Assignment 1
Due: in section 2
Choose a passage in Monteverdi’s Orfeo and describe the way or ways in which the music is
designed to affect the listener’s perception of the text. (Don’t choose Orfeo’s lament “Tu se’
morta,” which was discussed in lecture).
Length: approximately 250-400 words (1-1.5 pages, double-spaced)
1) Starting the paper:
 Choose your passage: you should listen to Orfeo and choose one part that you find
interesting.
 Think about what motivated you to choose that particular passage. What about the music
do you find interesting? Use the glossary on the website to help with musical terms if
you are unsure.
 Check the text to determine its relationship to the music. (The translation is provided in
your source book, but occasionally the words in Italian will not precisely match the ones
in English.)
 Read the advice given on the course website for writing on music.
2) Preparing your material:
 To analyze the music for this paper, you will need to listen to your selected passage
several times. This listening will require your concentration, so be sure to do so without
any additional distractions. For example, you should not have the passage as background
music while you do other things.
 Listen to the passage while looking at the score; even if you cannot read music very well,
it might help to form some ideas about what factors are influencing what you hear. Also,
listen to the passage while following the text.
 Feel free to draw diagrams in helping you understand the music. Diagrams such as the
ones Professor Kelly has used in lectures are one way of starting an analysis.
3) Writing the paper:
 Make a thesis sentence based on the question asked for the assignment. Remember that
this is a short paper, so you do not need to make any grandiose claims. Keep the thesis
sentence focused and argue only one point.
 Be sure to refer to the website when using musical terms. If you cannot find a musical
term to describe part of the music, explain in your own words what you would like to say.