Syllabus for:
Critical Studies in Music
 
(MUSIC 235 and MUSIC 180)   
 

University of California, Irvine
Fall Quarter, 2002

Course #  04660 (MUSIC 235)
04488 (MUSIC 180)
four units policy on academic integrity
Wednesdays, 10 a.m. – 12:50 p.m. sources for reading assignments
Room 202, Music & Media Bldg. course outline
instructor:
James Wierzbicki, Ph.D.
office: Room 103, Music & Media Building; (949) 824-3854
office hours: Tuesdays, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Wednesdays, 1 p.m. – 2 p.m.
or by appointment.
e-mail: jwierz@uci.edu  
course description:
“Critical Studies in Music” is a seminar in which students will critically examine Western musical traditions, institutions, and value systems using various modes of inquiry recently developed in music and other disciplines.
The seminar will focus on intensive reading and involved discussion, and will conclude with a comprehensive take-home examination.
Each week, students will be required to:

read all of the essays or book chapters scheduled for that week.

participate in mature, collegial discussion of the issues raised in the assigned readings.
turn in a brief memo (500-1,000 words) that summarizes and responds to the content of the assigned readings. 
(These memos, which should not be thought of as formal papers, will be read by the instructor and returned with only minimal comment. Their assignment is intended to demonstrate not a comprehensive grasp of  the week's reading material but simply a student's serious engagement with at least some of the issues raised by the authors of the readings. The memos will indeed be graded, but primarily for intellectual effort and – of course – promptness of delivery.)
In addition, students taking the class for full graduate credit will be required to introduce the weekly sessions by presenting organized overviews of the assigned readings. A flexible schedule for these presentations will be determined at the first seminar meeting, and graduate students will have the option of doing their presentations alone or in tandem with a colleague. It can be expected that each graduate student will participate in at least two presentations.
grades:
Grades for "Critical Studies in Music" will be based on the following scheme:
25 %  Weekly memos based on assigned readings
25 % Participation in discussions and – in the case of those taking the seminar for full graduate credit – in-class presentations
50% A comprehensive take-home examination presented to students at the final seminar meeting (Wednesday, December 4) and due one week later, at 5 p.m., Wednesday, December 11
policy on academic integrity:
Plagiarism of any kind is a violation of UCI policy on Academic Honesty, and penalties for plagiarism can be severe. Students are expected to attribute due credit to the originator of any ideas or words that are incorporated substantially into a student’s work. This applies particularly to the citation of sources for quotations that students include in their writings. Violations of this policy will be reported to the office of Academic Affairs for disciplinary action.