MUS 248 : Music on Stage and Screen
Creative Arts and Industries
2020 Semester Two (1205) (15 POINTS)
Course Prescription
Course Overview
Over the past hundred years, American musical theatre and film music have held central places in our musical consciousness. In this course we will place this music into its historical and cultural context, focusing on a wide variety of practitioners including composers such as Richard Rodgers, Stephen Sondheim, and Bernard Herrmann, lyricists such as Oscar Hammerstein II, choreographers such as Bob Fosse, and directors such as Alfred Hitchcock and Wes Anderson. Case studies will provide students a comprehensive view of the importance of music in American theatre and film.
Capabilities Developed in this Course
| Capability 1: | Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice |
| Capability 2: | Critical Thinking |
| Capability 3: | Solution Seeking |
| Capability 4: | Communication and Engagement |
| Capability 5: | Independence and Integrity |
Learning Outcomes
- Demonstrate a detailed knowledge and understanding of the musical works, styles, and compositional aesthetics studied in lectures. (Capability 1 and 2)
- Demonstrate a comprehensive knowledge of, and critical opinion on, the ways in which music has been composed, performed, received, promoted, recorded, manipulated and commodified in its connection to dramatic texts. (Capability 1 and 2)
- Write clearly and concisely – demonstrating competency in grammar and syntax, register or mode of discourse, structure, argument, and referencing – and with specific musical- technical detail. (Capability 1, 2, 3 and 5)
- Conduct advanced research tasks, utilising relevant resources and source material. (Capability 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5)
Assessments
| Assessment Type | Percentage | Classification |
|---|---|---|
| Final Exam | 50% | Individual Examination |
| Essay I | 20% | Individual Coursework |
| Early Bibliography Assessment | 5% | Individual Coursework |
| Essay II | 25% | Individual Coursework |
| 4 types | 100% |
| Assessment Type | Learning Outcome Addressed | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||||||
| Final Exam | ||||||||||
| Essay I | ||||||||||
| Early Bibliography Assessment | ||||||||||
| Essay II | ||||||||||
Pass Requirements
Assignments are to be submitted, according to submission type specified on CANVAS, by the due date. In the event of illness or other circumstances which prevent the completion of an assignment, please contact the course coordinator with evidence as appropriate, prior to the due date. Late assignments that do not have an approved extension will be penalized 10% for each day or part thereof. No assignment will be accepted after that assignment has been returned to students.
Work will be assessed in accordance with the University grade descriptors: https://cdn.auckland.ac.nz/assets/auckland/staff/learning-teaching/Assessment2020/Assessment%20Policy%20Table%20A%20-%20University%20Grade%20Descriptors%202019.pdf
Teaching & Learning Methods
This course will be taught via weekly two-hour seminars. Students are expected to come prepared to discuss the content of musicals and films, and will need to view or listen to full films and cast recordings outside of class as part of their weekly study time. These can be accessed through the library, Spotify, YouTube, or uploads on Canvas.
Learning Resources
Weekly readings will be assigned. These can be accessed via Canvas. There is no required textbook for this course, but it is strongly recommended that you read Showtime: A History of the Broadway Musical Theater by Larry Stempel (Norton, 2010) and Celluloid Symphonies: Texts and Contexts in Film Music History edited by Julia Hubbert (California, 2011). The latter is available as an ebook, and both will be available on short loan in the library, but copies can be found for sale on Amazon.com and other bookselling websites.
Workload Expectations
This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.
For this course, you can expect 24 hours of lectures, 63 hours of reading and thinking about the content and 63 hours of work on assignments and/or test preparation.
Digital Resources
Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).
Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.
Academic Integrity
The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.
Inclusive Learning
All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.
Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website at http://disability.auckland.ac.nz
Special Circumstances
If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.
If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.
This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.
Student Feedback
At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.
Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.
Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.
Student Charter and Responsibilities
The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter (https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html).
In the event of unexpected disruption
We undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions, the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and your assessment is fair, and not compromised. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. In the event of a disruption, the University and your course coordinators will make every effort to provide you with up to date information via Canvas and the University website.
Copyright Warning Notice
This material is protected by copyright and has been copied by and solely for the educational purposes of the University under license. You may not sell, alter or further reproduce or distribute any part of this course pack/material to any other person. Where provided to you in electronic format, you may only print from it for your own private study and research. Failure to comply with the terms of this warning may expose you to legal action for copyright infringement and/or disciplinary action by the University.
Disclaimer
Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.
In this course you may be asked to submit your coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. The final decision on the completion mode for a test or examination, and remote invigilation arrangements where applicable, will be advised to students at least 10 days prior to the scheduled date of the assessment, or in the case of an examination when the examination timetable is published.