MUS 284 : Popular Music Theory and Musicianship 1
Creative Arts and Industries
2020 Semester One (1203) (15 POINTS)
Course Prescription
Course Overview
- Further training in practical musicianship and contemporary music writing skills pertinent to a popular music practitioner.
- Continued development of aural recognition skills with an emphasis on transcription and sight-singing skills.
Capabilities Developed in this Course
| Capability 1: | Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice |
| Capability 2: | Critical Thinking |
| Capability 4: | Communication and Engagement |
Learning Outcomes
- Develop theoretical, analytical and aural skills practice to solidifying best practice methods and materials while exploring varied approaches to both aural and written popular music concepts. (Capability 1, 2 and 4)
- Identify accurately and fluently, simple, complex and compound time signatures, advanced rhythmic grouping, accents and tempo changes. (Capability 1, 2 and 4)
- Demonstrate demonstrate an ability to use appropriate clefs, staves, key signatures, pentatonics, major scales and modes, intervals, minor modes, symmetrical scales and non-diatonic compound intervals. (Capability 1, 2 and 4)
- Identify accurately and fluently, up to five and six-note chords and their inversions, write and label progressions using both roman numerals and popular/jazz chord notations and utilise voice leading concepts in written progressions . (Capability 1, 2 and 4)
- Identify accurately and fluently and notate from dictation and perform by rote, complex rhythms, chord progressions, melodies, intervals and chord sequences. (Capability 1, 2 and 4)
Assessments
| Assessment Type | Percentage | Classification |
|---|---|---|
| Rhythm video assignment week 4 | 10% | Individual Coursework |
| Solfege video assignment week 7 | 10% | Individual Coursework |
| Finger drumming test week 7 | 15% | Individual Coursework |
| Solfege test week 11 | 15% | Individual Coursework |
| Written theory and aural tests week 6, 12 | 50% | Individual Coursework |
| 5 types | 100% |
| Assessment Type | Learning Outcome Addressed | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||||||
| Rhythm video assignment week 4 | ||||||||||
| Solfege video assignment week 7 | ||||||||||
| Finger drumming test week 7 | ||||||||||
| Solfege test week 11 | ||||||||||
| Written theory and aural tests week 6, 12 | ||||||||||
Pass Requirements
No-penalty extensions on assignments are available only by prior arrangement and for good reason. There is a 10% per day penalty for late work. Arrangements for missed tests can only be made with medical or other evidence, provided on or before the day of the test.
Teaching & Learning Methods
Learning Resources
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 19 hours of lectures, a 1-hour tutorial per week [12], 70 hours of reading and thinking about the content and 45 hours of work on assignments and/or test preparation and 4 hours of testing.
Other Information
The aims of this course are to build on the core music theory skills acquired in MUS 103 and 104 and introduce students to a richer palette of harmonic options via the study of scales such as melodic minor and symmetrical scales.
Both written and practical applications are explored with the primary aim of assisting students to continue to improve their ability to successfully compose, arrange and analyze contemporary popular music. It further develops an understanding of established core music theory concepts with a shift to instrumental based tutorials. This new focus is aimed at enhancing student’s ability to confidently express musical concepts through their instrument and by singing, in addition to written techniques.
The expectations on second-year students for both written and singing and rhythm tests are outlined below.
• The student presents written work in a clear and legible manner and performs set tasks without hesitation.
• The student shows an advanced level of understanding of the topics and devices in Western music conventions within the popular idiom and uses appropriate musical nomenclature to describe them and established performance modes in vocal and instrumental execution.
• Questions can be answered with a wide variety of compatible approaches showcasing the student’s repertoire of problem-solving options.
• The student is able to display quick recall of appropriate procedures when dealing with questions of established musical functions.
• The student strives for timely completion of assignments with an understanding that late submissions will incur a penalty of 10% reduction of marks per day.
• An expectation that students have carried forward the skills acquired from undertaking previous papers.
Though all handouts and assignments will be online, students are required to take notes during classes as many of the topics taught encourage further discussion that may be relevant to testing in future assessments.
An online teaching tool called Canvas is also used to upload relevant articles, examples and links to popular music as it is released.
Communication outside lecture times will be via Canvas and University email addresses. Please check regularly for class notices. Course resources will also be posted on Canvas.
Students in MUS 284 will also benefit from spending time every week practising on the Auralia ear-training programme and revising theoretical concepts on the corresponding Musition programme. You can purchase a licence from The University Bookshop (UBS) to use this software on your own computer. It is highly recommended that you use these programmes, and students generally find it very useful to have on their own computers.
Guitarists will need to bring their instrument to each guitar tutorial.
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.