Music 100OL Bulletin Board
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Music 100OL Bulletin Board
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FUNDAMENTALS OF MUSIC -- ONLINE Fall 2009 PLEASE CAREFULLY READ ALL OF THE INFORMATION BELOW BEFORE STARTING THE COURSE. IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE CONDUCT OF THE CLASS, THIS PAGE CONTAINS THE FINAL WORD ON ALL COURSE MATTERS, DESPITE ANY CONFLICTS YOU MAY NOTICE ON THE OFFICIAL COURSE WEBSITE! PLEASE CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING TO TAKE YOU TO THE PART OF THIS PAGE THAT MATCHES THE LINK: PAGE DIRECTORY PROBLEM SOLVING AND GETTING HELP Course title: Fundamentals of Music - ONLINE Dept. number, section: MUS 100 OL, CRN: 89886 Hours: 3 lecture hours per week Orientation: Friday, August 21st, 2009, 1:10-2PM, Room 1107 Grading method: Letter grade Transfer and GE: UC and CSU transferable (C1), IGETSI AREA 3, Humanities area for AA/AS Professor: Robert Millar (pron. mil LAHR) Office: 1120 (Office hours by appointment.) Mailing address: Robert Millar Creative Arts Division Skyline College 3300 College Drive San Bruno, CA 94066 Office phone and voicemail: 650-738-4386 E-mail: millar@smccd.edu (Please do not send attachments.) Course Description: Students will learn how to read music notes, rhythms, key signatures, scales and chords. Students will develop listening techniques and explore musical styles and aesthetics. Recital attendance may be required. Appropriate for the general student, this course partially fulfills General Education requirements for the Humanities. Transfer credit: UC; CSU (C1). Course Objectives: After taking this course you will be able to: 1. Identify and interpret musical symbols and vocabulary. 2. Apply musical symbols and vocabulary to the creation of written music. 3. Convert musical symbols into sound. 4. Identify and reproduce simple musical forms. 5. Describe how musical materials can be manipulated to convey meaningFUNDAMENTALS OF MUSIC -- ONLINE is offered using the incredible resources of the World Wide Web (WWW) for learning purposes. This format has challenged many traditionally held assumptions about teaching and learning. I will not go into the many ways this has happened. I will, rather, let this exciting adventure unfold and reveal its lessons to all of you. As you know, almost all of the instruction for this Music Fundamentals course takes place online. For Fall 2008, the class will meet as a group for an initial orientation on Friday, August 21st, 2009, 1:10-2PM, Room 1107 at Skyline College. That will be the only in-person meeting of the class for the semester. Everything else (exams, quizzes, assignments, readings, etc.) will be dealt with online. After the orientation meeting you will work at your own pace to complete the course, studying at whatever times are convenient for you as long as you complete the course by the end of the term (11:59 P.M., Friday, December 18th, 2009) and follow the rules listed below. you must adhere to all of the deadlines and regulations listed below!! Please read them carefully now and refer to them frequently!! If, for some reason, you are enrolled in the class but cannot make the orientation, it is up to you to read and understand all of the information on this page before beginning the course. you will be held responsible for abiding by the parameters set out here. START THE COURSE IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE ORIENTATION! The software is called OnMusic Fundamentals Price: $100.00 at Bookstore. IT CAN BE FOUND BY ASKING FOR IT AT THE CHECKOUT COUNTER OF THE BOOKSTORE OR ORDERING IT ONLINE AT THE BOOKSTORE LINK: (http://www.smccd.net/accounts/bookstore/sky/index.html). CAREFULLY FOLLOW THE ENCLOSED INSTRUCTIONS TO LOG ON TO THE COURSE. THEN GO AHEAD AND BEGIN WORK. YOU CAN REGISTER YOUR SOFTWARE AND LOG ON TO THE COURSE BY FOLLOWING THIS LINK: http://www.student.connect4education.com/support/omf/documentation/quick_setup_guide.htm. MAKE SURE YOU BUY THE RIGHT SOFTWARE, AS THERE IS ANOTHER COURSE WITH SIMILAR PACKAGING. YOU ARE LOOKING FOR THE GREEN BOX. BEWARE OF ORDERING THE SOFTWARE FROM PLACES LIKE AMAZON.COM AND EBAY. I HAVE HAD A NUMBER OF STUDENTS DISAPPOINTED BY THE FACT THAT USED COPIES OF THE SOFTWARE WILL NOT WORK. IF YOU DO DECIDE TO GO AHEAD AND ORDER FROM SUCH VENDORS, MAKE SURE THE SOFTWARE HAS NEVER BEEN OPENED OR USED PREVIOUSLY --- IT MUST BE A NEW COPY! Make sure the e-mail address you register with on the course website is up to date so that you can be reached when necessary. Otherwise you may miss out on important information. Also, make sure that you are checking your my.smccd google account for email. I will be using this account to contact you. In this course, you may communicate constantly with your classmates via electronic mail and Discussion Forums, cooperatively learning concepts, solving problems, and completing projects. This interaction can be a major component of the learning experience. When you sign on to the class, you can access both the e-mail and the Discussion Forums through links in the blue navigation box at the bottom of your course webpage. You can initiate a Forum discussion at any time by submitting a question or comment on the Forum. You can also view all of the assignments in the course, submit assignments, check the course index, check the ongoing status of your grade, e-mail people, etc., all using that navigation box. The Midterm and Final Exams may be taken at any time you feel you are ready to take them, although you should study all of the class lessons in order leading up to each exam. There are a series of practice exercises near the end of the course. These exercises are optional (to help you hone your skills), and do not average into your overall course grade. NEVERTHELESS, EVEN IF YOU SHOULD DECIDE NOT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THEM, YOU MUST NEVERTHELESS SUBMIT THEM SO THAT YOUR COURSE HAS A CHANCE TO COMPLETE ITS SEQUENCE! The quizzes in question are the 10 Ear Training practice exercises that are located between the Interval Quality Quiz 1 and the discussion of the Minor Scale. The single submission per day requirement does not apply to these exercises; you can do as many of them per day as you wish. THE CONCERT REQUIREMENT -- DUE 12/11/09 There is a concert attendance requirement for this course . For this assignment you must attend a live, *professional concert (not an amateur or any type of school, youth, or conservatory concert) of CLASSICAL MUSIC (not pop, folk, or jazz) and write an analytical review about it (2-3 pages, double-spaced). The concert you choose must be either 1) a *professional symphony orchestra concert (NOT A BAND CONCERT) 2) a *professional chamber music concert 3) a *professional opera company, or 4) a *professional musical theater show, like Camelot, West Side Story, etc. (this musical theater event must include a live orchestra in the orchestra pit). *(“Professional” means musicians making their primary living by performing music.) Please check with me first if you have a question about whether a concert is appropriate. You do not necessarily have to spend a lot of money for concert tickets. Concert prices can range from free to full-fee, so if you want to keep costs down, it is important to plan your concert early enough in the semester so that you are not left with only full-fee alternatives at the end. This assignment should be turned in online via the assignment submission window on the course website. When you are ready to explore, do, and/or submit the assignment, take the following steps:
You should also turn in proof of your concert attendance by submitting one or more of the following:
Submission of the required proof of attendance materials should be sent in by regular U.S. Mail to Robert Millar --- MUS 100 OL Creative Arts Division Skyline College 3300 College Drive San Bruno, CA 94066 Please identify yourself and the online class you are taking on the materials. PLEASE DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DROP THESE MATERIALS OFF IN PERSON AT THE COLLEGE! Failure to submit ticket stubs, program, or photo by the time the assignment is due will result in a lowering of your course grade by a full letter. In other words, an A course grade will become a B, etc. Therefore, make sure you choose a concert venue for which you will be able to obtain these items. Failure to DO the concert attendance assignment will result in a similar lowering of your course grade (not only will you receive no credit for the concert assignment when the course grade is averaged on the course website, but that overall course grade will be lowered one whole letter grade. Do not leave this assignment for the last minute. Do it a few weeks before it is due so that you have ample time to complete it with your best work. If you are taking another online class with me, you may not use the same concert for both classes. Go to a separate concert for each class. Remember: this assignment is due, tickets and all, in my possession, no later than Friday, December 11th, 2009 (earlier, if possible). Make sure that you mail the ticket stub and program to me early enough that they absolutely arrive on or before this date (mail 4-5 or more days before the due date). Listings of possible concerts can be found by exploring the following websites, although you may have to sort through the possibilities to find a venue that satisfies the parameters of the assignment: http://www.sfgate.com/eguide/music/ http://kzsu.org/~romain/mixed_links.html The following website tells you how to enjoy a concert. Look for the EDUCATION box on the left side and press the button titled: How to Enjoy a Live Concert: http://www.naxos.com/education/enjoy_intro.asp The concert should represent the best venues available in the Bay Area. You should write a report (2-3 pages, double-spaced) of your experience of the concert, and include the following components in your report: · Name of the performance · Name(s) of the performers · Location of the performance · Date of the performance · Titles of pieces being performed · Musical forces employed to play the music (i.e., full orchestra, chamber orchestra, chorus, piano & violin, etc.) · An essay-style descriptive analysis of what each piece expresses – feelings, emotions, ideas, sensory experiences, etc. Make this section the longest, most detailed, and most comprehensive part of your report (at least a page or two of it). · Any observations or comments you can make regarding how the expression was accomplished technically, including aspects of the melody, rhythm, harmony, texture, tone color, and other subjects you have studied for this course. · Description of how the music affected you. Use this opportunity to show some of what you have learned in this class. Make your work long enough and complete enough to truly illustrate the FULL extent of your knowledge. Not only will you be graded on correctness, but on comprehensibility, grammar, syntax, spelling, etc., as well. So, make sure your work on this assignment reflects your very best effort. Spend most of your time writing about the music. GOOD LUCK! If you need help with your writing, please contact the Learning Center for help. They offer a variety of services, both in person and online, to help students with a variety of writing difficulties. Their web address is: http://www.smccd.net/accounts/skytlc/ Tips for improving your writing You may improve your performance on written work by making sure you are doing the assignment carefully and thoroughly enough. Of course, the content of your writing is extremely influential in determining your grade. But it may be to your advantage if, as you do each assignment, you ask yourself the following questions and then make adjustments as necessary:
PROBLEM SOLVING AND GETTING HELP In my experience, students sometimes need additional resources when studying the fundamentals of music. This is particularly true toward the end of the course when it comes to chord construction and chord inversions. To help you overcome these and other problems, here is a list of links that will take you to other websites that have helpful information, interactive exercises, and drills that can improve your course performance. http://www.teoria.com/index.html In all of your coursework for this class it is extremely important to read everything associated with the course slowly and very carefully! This includes assignments and directions. Most of the common problems that come up using this course can be solved through careful reading of all the text and closely following instructions. If you do run into problems that seem beyond your scope, you have five resources that you can explore for assistance. You should use them in the following order: 1. This page. 2. The course website (http://www.student.connect4education.com/support/omf/index.htm) and the resource links you will find once you log on to the course. All technical problems regarding the operation of the course (complaints about test questions, unclear explanations, perceived unfair grading of tests, questions about how to make the course work properly on your computer, etc.) should be referred here by clicking on the CONTACT US tab, and then clicking on the TECHNICAL SUPPORT link. Be sure to check out the FAQ section first, however, since many common technical questions are answered there. If that doesn’t work… 3. Start a Forum by clicking on the FORUMS link in your blue menu box. State your problem and check back periodically for responses. If that doesn’t work… 4. E-mail a fellow student. If that doesn’t work… 5. Contact me by e-mail. All instructional problems (when you don’t understand a point or subject under discussion) involving course content should be referred here. If that doesn’t work… 6. Contact me by phone. If that doesn’t work… 7. Arrange an office visit with me.
WITHDRAWAL POLICY IF YOU WISH TO WITHDRAW FROM THE CLASS, YOU SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO DO SO USING THE WEBSMART SYSTEM. I WILL NOT ORDINARILY INITIATE A DROP FOR YOU, EVEN IF YOU NEVER SHOW UP FOR THE CLASS. FAILURE TO DROP IN A TIMELY MANNER MAY RESULT IN A GRADE OF "F" FOR THE CLASS. INCOMPLETE GRADES A COURSE GRADE OF INCOMPLETE WILL ONLY BE AWARDED DUE TO AN UNAVOIDABLE PERSONAL EMERGENCY SITUATION WHICH OCCURS NEAR THE VERY END OF THE SEMESTER. THE STUDENT'S RECORD MUST SHOW THAT HE/SHE WAS ATTENDING TO THE COURSE REQUIREMENTS SUCCESSFULLY THROUGHOUT THE SEMESTER IN ORDER TO QUALIFY FOR A LAST-MINUTE INCOMPLETE GRADE. LATE WORK LATE WORK IS NOT ACCEPTED. THERE IS ENOUGH STRUCTURAL FLEXIBILITY AND ENOUGH TIME AVAILABLE IN THIS COURSE THAT YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO PLAN TO SUBMIT YOUR WORK BY THE DUE DATES AND TIMES. IF YOU ANTICIPATE A PROBLEM AS YOU APPROACH A DUE DATE, PLAN TO SUBMIT EARLY. IF FATE INTERVENES IN YOUR LIFE WITH MEDICAL APPOINTMENTS. PERSONAL TRAGEDY, CAR FAILURE, OR OTHER UNAVOIDABLE PROBLEMS THAT CAUSE EXTENDED ABSENCE, YOU SHOULD DROP THE COURSE. IF YOU ARE HAVING BRIEF PERSONAL TROUBLES THAT ARE PREVENTING YOU FROM CARRYING OUT YOUR COURSE RESPONSIBILITIES, PLEASE CONTACT ME AS SOON AS POSSIBLE SO THAT WE MIGHT MAKE ARRANGEMENTS TO TRY AND MAKE IT POSSIBLE FOR YOU TO SUCCEED. IF YOU CONTACT ME TOO LATE IN THE SEMESTER, I MAY NOT BE ABLE TO BE OF ANY HELP. EXCUSES MAKE NONE! I AM VERY CYNICAL WHEN IT COMES TO EXCUSES. OVER THE YEARS i HAVE HEARD THEM ALL--- "MY COMPUTER (OR PRINTER) DIDN'T WORK. I HAVE TO GO OUT OF TOWN FOR A FUNERAL (VACATION, WEDDING, ETC.). MY CAR BROKE DOWN. I GOT THE DATE MIXED UP, CAN I TURN IT IN LATER TODAY? I HAD A DENTAL OR DOCTOR'S APPOINTMENT. I WASN'T FEELING WELL. ETC. ETC. ETC. ETC......." IN MY EXPERIENCE, 99% OF THEM ARE FALSE. PEOPLE SIMPLY DON'T HAVE THAT MANY DISASTERS IN THE COURSE OF A SEMESTER. PLEASE DO NOT EXPECT TO RECEIVE MUCH LEEWAY BY USING THEM. ABOVE ALL, DO NOT APPROACH ME TOWARD THE END OF THE SEMESTER WITH THE OLD LINE, "BUT I HAVE TO GET A GOOD GRADE IN THIS CLASS SO THAT I CAN TRANSFER TO STATE NEXT SEMESTER!!!" IF YOU NEED A GOOD GRADE, PLAN TO EARN IT DURING THE COURSE OF THE SEMESTER'S WORK. RETURN OF MATERIALS NO SUBMITTED MATERIALS (TICKETS, PROGRAMS, ETC.) WILL BE RETURNED. Your work on the course will total 100%, broken down in weight as follows: Quizzes = 2% each Midterm = 30% Final = 35% Concert Assignment = 5% This course website grade may be adjusted in accordance with other course rules outlined in this syllabus. Your final course grade may reflect these adjustments. FINAL GRADES FINAL COURSE GRADES ARE FINAL IN ALL SENSES OF THE WORD. THEY ARE NOT OPEN TO NEGOTIATION OR DISCUSSION.
Stay on top of the work! Pace yourself wisely so that the course doesn’t get away from you. You can proceed at pretty much your own pace through the course (see provision below), but you must schedule your work so that you can complete everything on time ( the last day of the class ends at 11:59 P.M., Friday, December 18th, 2009). If you leave everything for the last minute you may doom yourself to failure. You should also know that students have reported difficulty submitting assignments at the last minute due to e-mail overload problems at the website. Sometimes students cannot submit work during this busy time and have had their grades compromised as a result. You can avoid all this simply by submitting your work early. Make sure the e-mail address you register with on the course website is up to date so that you can be reached when necessary. Otherwise you may miss out on important information. Study and memorize the highlighted or otherwise-emphasized information. Pay close attention to the vocabulary links. The definitions associated with these links ARE included on the tests! Listen repeatedly to the musical examples until you hear what the text is requiring from you. Take notes to study carefully in preparation for the quizzes and exams. Pay attention to small details, like exact definitions and spelling. Such details ARE included in the tests. Do all your study before taking on a test. Once engaged in the test, you cannot get out until the test is completed, nor can you go back and retake a test. You must be fully conscious that despite its present state of sophistication, computer technology is, for many reasons, quite immature. Expect to encounter some hurdles along the way. Don't be frustrated by them. Learn from your shortcomings and those of the technologies that we will be using. Don't forget to use the Discussion Forum to communicate with other students and your teacher. Sometimes, a little communication with others can help you clarify your thinking about problems, questions, and topics raised in the course. Also, you may help others to find solutions to their problems as you share your ideas with them. Above all, enjoy your exploration of music! |