music-cultures
assignments

Your assignment is in three stages




STAGE 1 

In your WordPress blog, write a 500 word review of your song choice giving a personal rationale backed up with cultural and historical references. Your song choice may be any song you deem worthy of reflecting on. There will be an example demonstrated in class, and on site, during the  Introduction session. Drafts to be posted on your blog by the end of week 4 (February 3rd) and will be presented in week 5. The final piece must be properly edited ad up to 500 words, should be properly referenced (see Cite Them Right) and included with your uploaded submission at the end of term (see Moodle brief).


STAGE 2 

In week 5 (February 10th) you will present your 'My Song' to the class, having already uploaded the writing to your blog for Stage 1 (in week 4). Your presentation should not be a read through but should summarise the My Song choice, research and argument as part of a 2 minute presentation. You should have an image last enough for students to see and include a 30 second sample (from your phone or mobile device). The total timing of the presentation should be no more than 2 minutes. It is important that you name check significant authors and introduce them to the class (summarising their status and key points).

STAGE 3 


Finally, you should hand in an essay (2,000 words). This essay should pick up from your shorter 'My Song' essay and develop an aspect of your choice into the fuller essay. At this stage, it is important to recognise that the longer essay is an academic essay and should reflect this in its structure, style and tone. One successful academic model is as follows: an introduction that explains your research question and methods; a few paragraphs that introduce your research and the key debates in your topic area; a section where you plan and develop points, using visual and sonic analysis treatments and discussing your case study in light of the key debates you have just evaluated; finally you will conclude with your main points. Harvard Referencing must be used and a full bibliography submitted.

 

Possible topics: Please note, your final submission will include a) 2,000 word essay + the shorter blog My Song essay (up to 500) + annotated bibliography. Please check Year 2 Moodle brief for details about annotating bibliography and the extent of research required.