St. Catharine—Kentucky’s Only Dominican College
Music Appreciation
Scotty Burns, Instructor
scotty.burns@washington.kyschools.us
___________________________________________________________
Text: The Art of Listening,8th Edition, Jean Ferris; McGraw Hill, 2003
A Pocket Style Manuel, 3rd Ed. D. Hacker, Bedford/St. Marin’s, 2000.
Course Description:
Introduction to musical elements, form, style, historical periods, and composers. Listening skills and
understanding of music as a communicative art form are cultivated.
Course Objectives:
Courses meeting The Human Arts requirement of Core Studies will collectively support the following
objectives in addition to instructor or department objectives:




Students will demonstrate an understanding of human arts vocabulary, concepts, materials,
techniques, and methods of intellectual inquiry relevant to the human experience.
Students will describe and evaluate artistic, written, musical, and other texts using primary and
secondary materials.
Students will analyze and synthesize artistic, written, musical, and other texts, recognizing their
historical context and place within the human experience.
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the role of the human arts in one’s worldview.
Embedded Competencies:
WR
Written Communication: Research Paper
OC
Oral Communication: Oral Presentation
IL
Information Literacy: Use of computer and library resources for research and presentation
CC
Cultural Competency: Writing Assignment; Concert attendance
IC
Individual Competency: Student reflection as part of the final exam.
R:
Reasoning: tests, research paper and oral presentation.
Course Outline:
I.
II.
III.
Fundamental concepts of music (Chapters 1-6)
A Vocabulary and definitions
B. Listening skills
C. Guest musicians
TEST
Survey of Early Music (Chapters 7-8)
A. Greek and Chinese Music
B. Medieval
C. Early Christian Music, Gregorian Chant
The Renaissance
A. Historical importance
Listening Requirement: Kyrie IV
I:12
B. Influence and relationship to the other Fine Arts
C. Religious Music
Listening Requirement: Pope Marcellus Mass I:14
D. Secular Music
Listening Requirement: Sumer is icumen in I:13
As Vesta Was From Latmos Hill I:15
Queen Elizabeth’s Galliard I:21
TEST
Written report and audio/video presentation—The Development of an Instrument and Musicians That
Played Them.
V.
A.
B.
C.
D.
V.
The Baroque (Chapters 12-15)
General Characteristics
Opera, oratorio and Passion
Instrumental suites
Listening Requirement: The Four Seasons, Spring I:37
Bach and Handel
LR: And the Glory of the Lord; Hallelujah Chorus
Brandenburg Concerto, No. 2
Little Fugue in G minor
Classical Music (Chapters 16-20)
A Classicism
B. Form
C. Mozart and the opera
LR: Symphony No 40 in G minor-Mozart
D. Beethoven and Haydn
LR: The Marriage of Figaro-excerpts–Mozart
LR: Symphony No 5 in C Minor–Beethoven
LR: Trumpet Concerto –Haydn
Writing Assignment –Loss of the Senses
TEST
VI.
VII.
VIII.
Romanticism (Chapters 21-23)
A. “Art for art’s sake” and the starving artist persona
B. Development of the symphony orchestra and instruments
C. Art song
LR: Erlkonig –Schubert
D. Music in America
LR: Stephen Foster; Amy Cheney Beach: Louis Gottschalk
E. Orchestral Music
l. Program Symphony
LR: Symphonic fantastique Berlioz
2. Concert Overture
LR: Nutcracker Suite; Romeo and Juliet–Tchaikovsky
3. Symphonic Poem
TEST
The “isms” of Early 20th Century
A. Expressionism
LR: Mondestrunken–Arnold Schoenberg
B. Impressionism
LR: Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun-Debussy
LR: Gamelon music
C. Primitivism
L.R. Le Sacre du printemps –Stravinsky
Twentieth Century (Chapters 24-27)
A. Visual arts and their relationship to music
B. Revolutionists
L.R. At The River–Ives
LR The Banshee–Cowell
LR Ensembles for Synthesizer -Babbitt
C. Evolutionists
LR Adagio for Strings–Barber
LR Variations on “Simple Gifts”
LR Afro-American Symphony–Still
IX.
Global Music
A. American Music and its influence
B. Global and Ethnic music; its influence and impact
FINAL PROJECT–
Attend a concert and write a critique of the performance. Also included in the final project will
be a student reflection on the course. Instructor will supply concert locations that are easily accessible
St. Catharine—Kentucky’s Only Dominican College
to St. Catharine students and that are either free of charge or nominal expense. Guidelines for both the
critique and self-reflection will be provided by instructor.
Research Paper Requirements:
Student may choose their topic within these parameters: history and development of a musical
instrument, or the history and development of a musical form, i.e. symphony, sonata.
The content of the paper needs to be 5-7 pages, double-spaced, typed (printed), font size 12, and 1-inch
margins. Four sources must be used, with no more than two being from a reliable internet source. The
references will be cited in the body of the paper. References and sources may include magazines,
newspapers, interviews, books, and electronic sources. A bibliography (resource citation) page should be
included along with a cover page that has title, course name, instructor’s name, , your name and date.
Rubric for writing assignment is attached.
Oral Presentation:
Oral presentation will be on the life and music of a composer from the Romantic period. Presentation
needs to be 3-5 minutes with both audio and visual components. Speech rubric is attached.
Grade Distribution and Scale:
Class grades will be determined by: 1) Four exams (50% of the total grade); 2) Research and oral
presentation (25% of the total grade); 3) Writing assignment and class participation (15%); and, 4) Final
Project (10%).
A
B
C
D
F
90-100%
80-89%
70-79%
60-69%
59% and below
Class Attendance and Make-up Tests:
Students are expected to attend class and to arrive promptly. After 3 unexcused absences student may
receive a failing grade. Make up exams will only be scheduled if the student has notified the
instructor beforehand. Tests will be scheduled within 7 days and at the instructor’s discretion.
Research papers, oral presentations and written assignment will be penalized 10% per every day beyond
due date. If extreme circumstances exist, (sickness, family emergency, etc.,) it is the student’s
responsibility to notify the instructor; upon notification, leniency of due date can be discussed.
Cheating and Plagiarism:
Cheating and plagiarism are simply not allowed. If a student is caught cheating on a test, that
student may receive a failing grade for the entire course. Plagiarism will mean an automatic failing grade
for the assignment. Please refer to student handbook pages 21-25.
Additional Reading:
Bach, Beethoven and the Boys; Music History As It Ought To Be Taught, D. Barber, Sound and Vision,
Toronto, 1996. (ebook)
If It Ain’t Baroque: More Music History As It Ought To be Taught, D. Barber, Sound and Vision,
Toronto, 1992 (ebook)