Signature Assignment Paper: Western Art Music and ‘My’ Music

Project Description

This project takes the form of a paper produced by a team of students. It is based on the analyzing, comparing, and contrasting of two pieces of music (a piece from Western Art Music culture and a piece from any other culture such as pop, commercial, world music, etc.). The task will focus on the analysis of elements (historical, musical, and social), and the discovering of potential links. The paper will also allow students to develop team-working skills.

The Pieces

Piece 1: Western Art Music

Pavane by Gabriel Faure

Piece 2: Non – “Classical”

Little Me by Little Mix

Description:

Group 8 has chosen to compare Pavane (1887) by Gabriel Faure with the Little Me (2013) by Little Mix. The similarities between these two pieces stem from the latter’s use of Pavane as a sample. It pitches the samples up a few notes and also speeds it up. Pavane is an orchestral composition written in F-sharp minor with traditional orchestral instruments such as woodwinds, violins and strings. Little Me however is a more modern adaptation of the work and even though it doesn’t use the sample throughout it’s entirety, it retains the original composition, chord progression and key. It layers the original sample with modern drums, an electric guitar and synth bass.

I. Introduction -In this section, briefly describe/title your pieces, the methods used to analyze them, the main findings of your analysis, and potential links found between the compositions.

II.      Analysis

 A. Historical/Contextual Elements- Provide relevant information of the historical/contextual elements surrounding the compositions. These include but are not limited to: characteristics of the style, historical period, information about composers, performers, etc. 

B. Musical Analysis- Analyze the pieces focusing on at least two of the following elements: melody, rhythm, harmony/mode, texture, tempo, articulation, dynamics, and instrumentation. Students must analyze the form of the pieces providing charts of the different sections (as those used in class in the “Classical Period”) including the following information: location (timings) of the sections, description of the musical elements in the different sections arguments to justify the form (sections and labeling of the different sections). a. Musical Example 1 (list specific examples!) b. Musical Example 2 c. Etc.

 C. Social Impact- Conjecture about the role of these pieces in society. In the case of pieces that are not contemporary, analyze the role of the pieces in their respective time and in current society.

III. Comparison/Contrasting of the Pieces- Develop you compare/contrast component of the project, establishing possible links (historical, musical, or social) between the two analyzed pieces. This portion will be largely formed from your own opinions on having thoroughly examined and researched the pieces.

IV. Conclusion

V. Bibliography (Alphabetical order by last name)

1. Source

 2. Source

3. Source

 4. Source

 5. Source

Names and numbers

• Use full names of people and agencies/legislation the first time you use them. For agencies, include the acronym in parentheses after the full name when first used, e.g. Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA).
• After the first time you can refer to people by their last name or agencies/bills by their acronyms for the rest of the paper.
• Write out numbers lower than 100. (“All nine members of the Supreme Court…”)

Footnotes

• Ideas from outside sources, both direct quotes AND paraphrasing, must be cited with footnotes and a bibliography. NO PLAGARIZING!
• Footnotes go at the bottom of the page where the reference occurs.
• Within the essay text: put the note number at the end of the sentence where the reference occurs, even if the cited material is mentioned at the beginning of the sentence.
• The note number goes after all other punctuation.
• Be sure to use Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3) not Roman (i, ii, iii).
• Use Calibri or Times New Roman 10 pt font.
• Single-space each entry.
• Never reuse a number – use a new number for each reference, even if you have used that reference previously.
• Be sure to look at shortened form examples for sources you refer to more than once.

Bibliography

• Your bibliography should go on a separate page, with the word Bibliography in ALL CAPS centered at the top of the page in Calibri or Times New Roman 12 pt font. Do not use bold or large size font for the heading.
• You must use at least 3 outside sources.
• Be sure to use proper formatting – note and bibliography styles are different.
• Use a “hanging indent” – the first line of the citation begins at the margin, subsequent lines are indented.
• If your source has no author, alphabetize by title within the authors – don’t make a separate list.
• All formatting should follow the Chicago Manual of Style. https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/home.html

Watch out for these common errors/Final Thoughts:

• Note format uses first name last name, bibliography uses last name, first name.
• In your notes, do not reuse numbers! Each citation gets a new number.
• A bibliography goes in alphabetical order by author’s last name. (or title if there is no author). Notes are numbered and are listed in the order the sources are used.
• Don’t put Works Cited at the top of your bibliography – that is MLA style.
• Please use academically relevant sources. If you use online sources, make sure that they are academically trustworthy. DO NOT USE WIKIPEDIA.
• The paper must follow The Chicago Manual of Style (relevant in the case of quotations, footnotes, endnotes, abbreviations, etc.).
• The paper must adhere to the guidelines of the El Centro Academic Integrity, found in the student handbook.
• The paper should not be an exercise in ‘copying and pasting’. No more than 10% of direct quotations will be allowed in the paper. Beyond this point, there will be an impact on the assessment.