Listening Discovery: “What the heck was that?” – Martin Mueller. This is a course where the students enrolled
present musical samples, duplicating the “listening party,” a gathering held
purely for the love and discovery of music.
New music. Old music. Loud music.
Soft music. At each class
session, students will be required to bring in a burned copy of anything BUT
some standard tune that everyone’s heard a million times by an artist that
everyone knows. It is about
quality. It is about range. It is, perhaps more than anything else, about
surprise. You may very well bring “Blue
Bossa,” but only if it is “Blue Bossa” as performed by a punk-jazz band from
Norway who recorded it on a four-track at some obscure festival just before its
singer died from an aneurysm bungee-jumping from her Harley. In other words, you bring something
interesting, unexpected. It can be
mainstream, but the song should be sonically fascinating, well recorded,
somehow unique and not something you think others have heard. Each class will consist of a series of blind
listening rounds. After listening and commentary on each round, each student
contributing samples will explain why they choose their selection, and be
prepared to articulate what this music means in context to themselves, their
artistry, and their study in The New School for Jazz and Contemporary
Music. Grading is pass/fail, and based
on a strict attendance and participation formula as well as the submission of
one short paper at end of semester.
Limited to 12 students, first come, first served. 1
credit
