Semester at Sea, Course Syllabus Colorado State University, Academic Partner
Semester: Fall 2016 Discipline: Ethnomusicology Course Number and Title: MU 332 History of Jazz (Section 2) Course Level: Upper Faculty Name: David Borgo, Ph.D. Semester Credit Hours: 3
Prerequisites: none
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Explores the history of jazz from its roots to the present day. The course begins with an investigation into African and African American musical precursors, including spirituals, work and play songs, minstrel traditions, ragtime and the blues. It continues by exploring the emergence of jazz in New Orleans, Chicago, Kansas City, and New York City, as well as the exportation of jazz to locales around the world. Special attention will be paid to jazz artists and practices in Africa, Cuba, Brazil, Panama, and Peru. In addition to a survey of the most important performers and their associated styles and techniques (e.g., swing, bebop, cool, modal, avant-garde, jazz-rock fusion, etc.), this course explores the often provocative role jazz music has played in American and global society, and the diverse perceptions and arguments that have surrounded its production and reception. The course is designed to increase our abilities to hear differences among performances and styles of jazz, and to interpret the meanings of such differences. We will learn to use historical perspective, social context, and technological mediation as prisms through which we can understand why a piece of music sounds the way it does, what the music signifies about a particular time and place, and how its meanings may change for musicians and audiences over time.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this course, students should have:
• An awareness of jazz with regards to cultural and historical significance • An ability to discuss instrumentation, form, function, and style in jazz • A chronological understanding of the development of jazz up to the present day • An ability to differentiate between pre-composed melody and improvisation in jazz • An ability to identify by style previously unheard performances or recordings • A vocabulary to describe a jazz performance in both spoken and written formats • A knowledge of how a jazz performance is created, from composition to rehearsal to concert • Deep enough understanding of jazz to formulate opinions on the quality of a given performance based on accepted stylistic norms and personal opinion
REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS
AUTHOR: John Edward Hasse and Ted Lathrop TITLE: Discover Jazz PUBLISHER: Pearson ISBN-13: 978-0136026372 ISBN-10: 0136026370 DATE/EDITION: 1st ed., 2011
[NOTE: All required listening examples will be made available through the ship’s Intranet]
TOPICAL OUTLINE OF COURSE
[NOTE: all reading, listening, and viewing assignments should be done prior to the class session for which they are listed. Reading Quizzes are comprised of both objective and short answer questions related to the reading and listening assignments that will be handed out at least one class session in advance of their due date.]
Depart Hamburg—September 10
B1—September 13: Course Introduction and Overview
What is jazz? What are its defining elements? What different approaches can we take to studying jazz? What is its musical, historical, and cultural significance?
READ: Chapter 1
B2—September 15: Listening to Jazz
What are some strategies for focused and critical listening specific to jazz? How do jazz musicians approach melody, harmony, rhythm, sound color, and musical interaction? Did jazz retain any aspects of African musical practices? What are typical jazz forms and structures? What role does improvisation play in jazz and how should we listen for it? What factors help us to determine the quality of a jazz performance?
READ: Chapter 2
No Classes —September 16
B3—September 18: The Birth of Jazz
What roles did African, European, and Caribbean music play in the early development of jazz? Why was New Orleans important to jazz’s formation? How was early jazz related to other musical practices of the time, such as ragtime and the blues?
READ: Chapter 3 to page 45 and Chapter 10 pages 265-267 (“Early Latin Influences on Jazz”)
LISTEN: tracks 1-6
ASSIGNMENT: bring your Reading Quiz #1 responses to class
Piraeus—September 19-23
B4—September 25: New Orleans Notables
Who were some of the early jazz innovators in New Orleans? How did their music sound and why? How did issues of race play out in jazz’s first decades? Who made the first jazz records? How was early jazz music received, and for what reasons? What impact did jazz have on Europe in these early years and what controversies often surrounded it?
READ: Chapter 3 from page 46 and Chapter 11 pages 288-298
LISTEN: tracks 7-9 and 35
Civitavecchia - September 26-28
Livorno – September 29-30
B5—October 2: The Jazz Age
How did jazz develop in the 1920s in Chicago, Kansas City, and New York City (especially in Harlem)? Who were some of the leading figures of jazz at the time? What controversies did jazz music provoke? What role did arrangers, singers, and the record industry play in popularizing the style? What impact did jazz have on both popular and classical music of the period? Who were some important artists in this regard?
READ: Chapter 4
LISTEN: tracks 10 and 11
ASSIGNMENT: bring your Reading Quiz #2 responses to class
Barcelona—October 3-7
B6—October 9: The Swing Era
How did jazz become America’s popular music during the swing era? What contributed to the sound of the big bands, and who were the “royalty” of swing? What impact did the racial climate of the time have
on how big bands formed and operated? Why did all-female bands arise during this period? What role did smaller ensembles and soloists play? What contributed to the decline of the big bands?How did jazz develop in the Middle East and what are some Middle Eastern and Andalucian influences on jazz?
READ: Chapter 5 and Chapter 11 pages 306-308 (“Jazz in the Middle East”)
LISTEN: tracks 12-15
Casablanca—October 10-14
B7—October 17: Bebop and Modern Jazz
What musical and social movements during and after WWII were pivotal to the development of bebop? Who were some of the pioneering bebop musicians, and where did they hone their craft? How were bebop musicians portrayed in the media at the time?
READ: Chapter 6 to page 146
LISTEN: tracks 16-18
ASSIGNMENT: bring your Reading Quiz #3 responses to class
B8—October 18: Piano Modernists, Cool Jazz and the West Coast Scene
How do the piano styles of Bud Powell, Thelonious Monk, Lennie Tristano, and Dave Brubeck differ? Why was Monk often considered too “far out” for his time, even by his fellow modernists? How did cool jazz differ from bebop, and who were its key proponents? How did this style of jazz relate to the lifestyle and environs of California? Why did artists look to make inroads with college and concert audiences at this time? What is “third stream” music? How did it develop and what has been its lasting impact?
READ: Chapter 6 from page 146 and pages 176-177 (“Two Takes on the Piano”)
LISTEN: tracks 19-21
B9—October 20: Jazz in Africa
Where is jazz performed in Africa, what styles tend to be popular, and who are/were some prominent musicians? Why has jazz played such an important role in South Africa, in particular, and what styles and celebrated performers have emerged from there? Why did the US State Department “export” jazz during the 1950s and 60s, and, in particular, why did they view the African continent as an especially important destination for sponsoring bands led by African American musicians?
READ: Chapter 11 pages 311-317 (“Jazz in Africa”) and Ingrid Monson, “Africa, The Cold War, and the Diaspora at Home”
LISTEN: track 36
ASSIGNMENT: bring your Reading Quiz #4 responses to class
Dakar—October 21-24
B10—October 26: MIDTERM EXAM
No Classes—October 28
B11—October 29: Latin Jazz: Common Sources, Different Sounds
How did Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian jazz draw on similar musical roots to create different musical styles? What native Cuban and Brazilian rhythms and musical instruments have influenced the development of Latin jazz?
READ: Chapter 10 to page 265
B12—October 31: Brazilian Music and Jazz
READ: Chapter 10 pages 277-281 (“Brazilian Music and Jazz”)
READ: “Orkestra Rumpilezz: Reinventing the Bahian Percussion Universe” by Juan Diego Díaz Meneses
RECOMMENDED: “Brazilian instrumental music and jazz” (Chp. 8) from The Brazilian sound : samba, bossa nova, and the popular music of Brazil / Chris McGowan and Ricardo Pessanha. (revised ed. 2009, Temple University)
LISTEN: track 34
Salvador—November 1-6
B13—November 8: Cuban Music and Jazz
How and why did musical exchanges between the United States and Cuba change over the years? Who were the key Puerto Rican and Cuban musicians in jazz history?
READ: Chapter 10 pages 268-277 and “Swing Shift: The 1940s” (Chp. 4) in Latin Jazz by John Storm Roberts (Shirmer Books, 1999)
LISTEN: tracks 32 and 33
B14—November 10: Calle 54
FILM: Calle 54 also recommended: Cachao…Como Su Ritmo No Hay Dos
ASSIGNMENT: bring your Reading Quiz #5 responses to class
B15—November 12: More Sounds from the Caribbean
READ: Chapter 10 pages 281-284
Port of Spain —November 13-14
B16—November 16: Mainstream Jazz
What currents in American society influenced the development of jazz in the 1950s? Why was Miles Davis among the most important musicians of this period? How did hard bop develop in response both to bebop and cool jazz? What is soul jazz? What vocalists were important during the mainstream era? How was jazz presented on television at this time? What impact did the long-playing record have on jazz? How did jazz interact with or influence the literary and visual arts of the time?
READ: Chapter 7
LISTEN: track 25
No Classes—November 18
B17—November 19: Miles Davis
LISTEN: track 22
B18—November 21: John Coltrane
LISTEN: track 23
Callao—November 22-26
B19—November 28: 1959
Why was 1959 such a pivotal year in jazz history? What innovative albums were released that year, and by whom? What exploratory practices were hinted at in jazz at this time with regards to melody, rhythm, and harmony?
READ: page 199
FILM: 1959: The Year that Changed Jazz
ASSIGNMENT: bring your Reading Quiz #6 responses to class
B20—November 30: The Sound of Freedom
What were the roots of free jazz, and who were the leading innovators? How did Ornette Coleman’s music become a lightning rod for praise, confusion, and scorn? What changes were being explored in performance style and compositional practice?
READ: Chapter 8 pages 200-213
LISTEN: tracks 26 and 28
Guayaquil—December 1-4
B21—December 6: Further Explorations
How did free jazz resonate with the Civil Rights Movement? What role did artist-run collectives and performance spaces play in free jazz? Which artists were in the “second-generation” of the jazz avant- garde, and how did they approach their music and message? How was exploratory jazz received in Europe and beyond?
READ: Chapter 8 from page 214 and pages 300-301 (“Experimental and Free Jazz in Europe and Beyond”)
LISTEN: track 27
B22—December 8: Fusion Jazz
What is fusion jazz and how does it compare to other jazz styles? What were some of the early forms of fusion jazz? What are some of the key fusion bands of the 1970s. and how did their styles differ? How did fusion jazz become more commercial by fusing with R&B music? How has fusion continued to develop and who are some current performers?
READ: Chapter 9
LISTEN: tracks 24 and 29-31
ASSIGNMENT: bring your Reading Quiz #7 responses to class
Puntarenas—December 9-13
B23—December 15: The Mainstream Revival
What precipitated a revival in mainstream acoustic jazz in the late 1970s and 1980s? Who were some of the important figures in this revival? How did Wynton Marsalis become a spokesperson for jazz and a lighting rod for criticism at this time? In what directions has mainstream jazz continued to develop?
READ: Chapter 12 to page 329
LISTEN: 38
B24—December 17: Jazz Forward
Who are some important contemporary jazz artists? What is meant by “jazz” in the twenty-first century? Has the music continued to evolve? What is the current health of the jazz industry and the jazz community? Who listens to jazz? Do differences of race, class, gender, and sexuality continue to be factors in the jazz world today?
READ: Chapter 12 from page 330
LISTEN: tracks 37, 39, and 40
ASSIGNMENT: bring your Reading Quiz #8 responses to class
Study Day—December 18
B25—December 20; B Day Finals
San Diego—December 22
FIELD WORK
Paying attention to music you encounter in each of the ports we visit is an important aspect of this course. Whenever possible, try to seek out opportunities in the ports that involve music, especially musical activities that might be related to jazz in some way. Attend live musical events whenever possible, but also pay special attention to where and how recorded music is utilized in daily activities. How does the music you are hearing seem to relate to the people, the place, and/or the other activities going on? How is music marketed and consumed (i.e., purchased, engaged, or understood) in the places you visit? By whom? Why? To what effect? Try speaking with participants, listeners, and musicians whenever possible.
You are welcome to make “field recordings” of small portions of the music you encounter, if this seems appropriate to the context of the event or performance. [NOTE: Before you record, do your best to make certain that making a recording at the event or performance is acceptable. If you can, try to get approval from the involved parties. If you have any lingering concerns, then don’t record.] Most importantly, you should make a habit of recording your observations, reflections, and information that you collect about music and culture in a dedicated “field notebook” or journal. We will set aside time during the class session immediately following our time in port to share and discuss student observations.
FIELD CLASS AND ASSIGNMENT
Field Class attendance is mandatory for all students enrolled in this course. Do not book individual travel plans or a Semester at Sea sponsored trip on the day of your field class. Field Classes constitute at least 20% of the contact hours for each course, and will be developed and led by the instructor.
Salvador, Brazil – Field Class for History of Jazz (Section 2) – November 1, 2016
The Field Class for this section will be centered around Orchestra Rumpilezz, whose Afro- Brazilian fusion combines aspects of local traditions with jazz and other contemporary forms. They have used their success to establish an institution for furthering their musical heritage through education. While at Rumpilezz Institute, composer Leites Leitires will offer a presentation about samba music, its cultural roots, and issues of race within musical representation in Bahia. After Maestro Letieres has presented on the history of Afro-Brazilian traditions that have influenced Rumpilezz the day will continue with a hands-on workshops during which students will learn the intricacies of clave rhythms which form the ground work for understanding this distinctive music. This will lead to a performance in which the students get to jam these rhythms with members of Rumpilezz, fostering a performative cross-cultural
engagement. The day will culminate with a sonic walking tour by Bahian musician Bule Bule, whose songs are from the repentista tradition and are based on improvised lyrical observations about everyday life, situations and locations. The students will learn about different musical traditions in Bahia and some of the ins and outs of the Brazilian commercial musical scene and industry.
On the final day of the semester you are expected to hand in your final FIELD ASSIGNMENT. This will take the form of an original essay of a minimum of five pages, typed and double-spaced.
Your writing should demonstrate a sophisticated and ongoing engagement with all of the course materials, and it should draw upon your experiences and reflections from our field class and from at least two additional ports of call. It should contain detailed ethnographic observations, critical reflection, some limited musical analysis, and some basic interview materials.
Your writing should demonstrate a familiarity and ease with new analytical musical vocabulary introduced in the course, and it should make connections between the musics you encounter and their cultural and social context. The bulk of your report can focus on our field class activities in Salvador, including what you learned about Brazilian traditions and rhythms and approaches to improvisation, ensemble performance, and pedagogy, but you should also make some references to musical activities that you have witnessed in different ports.
Your essay should have a controlling idea and make insightful and nuanced observations about the music, places, and people you engaged, as well as demonstrate an ability to discuss and analyze music with terminology we learn in the course. You are welcome to submit a field recording or two in tandem with your final paper, especially if those recordings are analyzed in the text, but this is not required.
For your FIELD ASSIGNMENT to be judged excellent, it should contain error-free articulate prose, varied sentence construction, and be organized into sections and paragraphs that effectively enhance the development of ideas.
INDEPENDENT FIELD ASSIGNMENTS
As previously mentioned, paying attention to music you encounter in each of the ports we visit is an important aspect of this course. Each student should be prepared at some point to share observations about a musical event they attended in port with the class.
METHODS OF EVALUATION / GRADING SCALE
The following Grading Scale is utilized for student evaluation. Pass/Fail is not an option for Semester at Sea coursework. Note that C-, D+ and D- grades are also not assigned on Semester at Sea in accordance with the grading system at Colorado State University (the SAS partner institution).
Pluses and minuses are awarded as follows on a 100% scale:
Excellent Good Satisfactory/Poor Failing
97-100%: A+ 87-89%: B+ 77-79%: C+ Less than 60%: F 94-96%: A 84-86%: B 70-76%: C 90-93%: A- 80-83%: B- 60-69%: D
READING QUIZZES - 40% (5% ea.)
MIDTERM EXAM - 20%
FINAL EXAM - 20%
FIELD CLASS AND ASSIGNMENT - 20%
* Exams involve listening identification, written reflection on what you are hearing, and short answer responses to prompts or terms based on course themes, lectures, and readings. The final exam is NOT cumulative.
* Reading Quizzes are comprised of both objective and short answer questions related to the reading and listening assignments that will be handed out at least one class session in advance of their due date.
ATTENDANCE/ENGAGEMENT IN THE ACADEMIC PROGRAM
Attendance in all Semester at Sea classes is mandatory. I expect students to be on-time and prepared for each class session. Each unexcused missed class will lower the the student’s final grade by 3% points. Tardiness will lower the the student’s final grade by 1% point. Missing more than three classes without an excuse (or 6 days arriving tardy) can be grounds for failing the course.
Students must inform their instructors prior to any unanticipated absence and take the initiative to make up missed work in a timely fashion. Instructors must make reasonable efforts to enable students to make up work which must be accomplished under the instructor’s supervision (e.g., examinations, laboratories). In the event of a conflict in regard to this policy, individuals may appeal using established CSU procedures.
Class discussions should be both informed and respectful. All students are encouraged to raise questions, explore ideas, and express misgivings. We will aim to make certain that everyone’s voice is heard and that all viewpoints are given equal consideration.
Contributions to class discussions and active participation in small group work are essential to both the momentum of the course and the development of your ideas. This requires that you come to class prepared (having completed assigned reading, listening and assignments) and ready to participate in class activities.
LEARNING ACCOMMODATIONS
Semester at Sea provides academic accommodations for students with diagnosed learning disabilities, in accordance with ADA guidelines. Students who will need accommodations in a class, should contact ISE to discuss their individual needs. Any accommodation must be discussed in a timely manner prior to
implementation. A memo from the student’s home institution verifying the accommodations received on their home campus is required before any accommodation is provided on the ship. Students must submit this verification of accommodations pre-voyage as soon as possible, but no later than July 19, 2016 to [email protected].
STUDENT CONDUCT CODE
The foundation of a university is truth and knowledge, each of which relies in a fundamental manner upon academic integrity and is diminished significantly by academic misconduct. Academic integrity is conceptualized as doing and taking credit for one’s own work. A pervasive attitude promoting academic integrity enhances the sense of community and adds value to the educational process. All within the University are affected by the cooperative commitment to academic integrity. All Semester at Sea courses adhere to this Academic Integrity Policy and Student Conduct Code.
Depending on the nature of the assignment or exam, the faculty member may require a written declaration of the following honor pledge: “I have not given, received, or used any unauthorized assistance on this exam/assignment.”
RESERVE FILMS FOR THE LIBRARY
[For all of the films listed under electronic course materials I can provide a digital copy]
RESERVE BOOKS FOR THE LIBRARY none
ELECTRONIC COURSE MATERIALS
Films:
Calle 54
Cachao…Como Su Ritmo No Hay Dos
1959: The Year that Changed Jazz
Scans:
AUTHOR: John Storm Roberts
TITLE: “Swing Shift: The 1940s”
JOURNAL/BOOK TITLE: Latin Jazz
PUBLISHER: Shirmer
ISBN #: 0825671922
DATE/EDITION: 1999
PAGES: Chapter 4
AUTHOR: Chris McGowan and Ricardo Pessanha
TITLE: “Brazilian instrumental music and jazz”
JOURNAL/BOOK TITLE: The Brazilian sound : samba, bossa nova, and the popular music of Brazil
PUBLISHER: Temple University Press
ISBN #: 1592139299
DATE/EDITION: 2009 (revised and expanded edition)
PAGTES: Chapter 8
AUTHOR: Ingrid Monson
TITLE: “Africa, The Cold War, and the Diaspora at Home”
JOURNAL/BOOK TITLE: Freedom Sounds: Civil Rights Call Out to Jazz and Africa
PUBLISHER: Oxford University Press
ISBN #: 9780195128253
DATE/EDITION: 2007
PAGES: Chapter 4 (pp.107-151)
AUTHOR: Juan Diego Díaz Meneses
TITLE: “Orkestra Rumpilezz: Reinventing the Bahian Percussion Universe”
JOURNAL/BOOK TITLE: ICTUS, Journal of the School of Music of the Federal University of Bahia 13 (1)
DATE: 2012 volume 13(1)
PAGES: 6-40. https://www.academia.edu/7075012/Orkestra_Rumpilezz_Reinventing_the_Bahian_Percussion_Universe