MUS 780 : Popular Music Research
Creative Arts and Industries
2021 Semester One (1213) (30 POINTS)
Course Prescription
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 |
| Capability 6: | Social and Environmental Responsibilities |
Learning Outcomes
- Understand and critically evaluate creative and efficient pre-production compositional practices and/or recording techniques and music production practices. (Capability 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5)
- Describe and analyse accurately and coherently your own creative work along with a range of other songwriters, music producers and musicians. (Capability 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5)
- Accurately develop and demonstrate advanced notation techniques to produce accurate lead sheets, scores and parts and/or well organised and efficient DAW-based sessions based on best practice recording protocols. (Capability 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5)
- Develop and demonstrate an ability to effectively and collaboratively work with other songwriters, musicians, recording engineers and music producers to complete set creative work and assignments. (Capability 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6)
- Critically reflect on how your practice engages with cultural, political, global, historical and ecological contexts through different media and organise a set of creative assignments that evidences your process. (Capability 1, 5 and 6)
- Demonstrate a critical and informed understanding of popular music compositional, recording and music production techniques appropriate to a chosen genre or aesthetic. (Capability 1, 2 and 3)
- Develop and demonstrate an in-depth understanding of self-reflection and the value of developing an independent personal creative process. (Capability 1, 2, 3 and 5)
- Develop and demonstrate technical and creative production values of an appropriate standard (with regards to recording techniques, distortion, dynamic range, frequency response, stereo imaging, mixing techniques and DAW processes). (Capability 1, 2 and 3)
Assessments
| Assessment Type | Percentage | Classification |
|---|---|---|
| Portfolio | 100% | Individual Coursework |
| 100% |
| Assessment Type | Learning Outcome Addressed | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |||
| Portfolio | ||||||||||
Assignments are to be submitted, according to submission type specified on CANVAS, by the due date. In the event of illness or other circumstances that prevent completing an assignment, please contact the course coordinator with evidence as appropriate before 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.
Teaching & Learning Methods
There will be a total of at least three hours of seminars, tutorials as well as regular group composition, pre-production, recording and post-production sessions per week. At the start of the course, students will discuss and negotiate with their principal supervisor their research goals and research outcomes, in the form of creative works, recordings, music notation and written analysis and discussion.
Students will attend weekly or fortnightly seminars where creative practice assignments and projects are discussed and analysed with reference to genre-relevant examples of compositional style and development of written discussion. composition, recording and music production.
Students will meet regularly to discuss, reflect and analyse their individual and collaborative creative work and the work of other creative artists.
Workload Expectations
This course is a standard 30 point course and students are expected to spend 20 hours per week involved in each 30 point course that they are enrolled in.
For this course, you can expect a total of 18 hours of lectures and tutorials, 141 hours of composition and creative research and 141 hours of completing the creative portfolio.
Delivery Mode
Campus Experience
Attendance is expected at scheduled learning activities including tutorials and seminars in order to support the completion of essential components of the course.
The course will, if needed, include live online events including group discussions or tutorials.
The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly or fortnightly timetable.
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.
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 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.
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.
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.
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.