MUS 107 Music Appreciation

Guidelines for CD Listening Reports (5)

There are five CDs in the course listening guide set. It will be necessary to listen to every piece, often repeatedly, in order to identify these works on the three tests.** Beyond that, you are asked to select one entire piece from each of the five CDs and write a brief summary of each of those five works. Pick one that you like. Pick one that you hate. :-) Please note that some complete works span several CD tracks. These reports should be typed, and more than one page, but not more than two pages. Format: all margins one inch, double-spaced, 12-point standard font (Times New Roman, Arial, etc.). Due dates are provided on the syllabus.
**You may take notes on the pieces and use the notes during only the listening portion of each of the tests.
Report heading should include:

Your name, date, CD report number

Composer's last name, composition title (italicized), duration of the piece in minutes & seconds, e.g., (4:25), CD number and track number(s)

The structure of the paper should generally be designed as outlined below. In fact, a bullet point may be used for each item if you prefer. Not all items have to be addressed, but most should be.

Begin with a couple sentences relating to the mood of the piece. If the music were a soundtrack in a movie, what kind of scene might you see on the screen?

Melody: What are its characteristics? Is it smooth (conjunct) or jagged (disjunct)? Is the range large or small? Do you clearly hear phrases, or are they difficult to distinguish?

Rhythm & Meter: Is the piece in a triple or quadruple meter, or something more complicated? Is the meter simple (duple subdivision of the beat) or compound (triple subdivision of the beat)? Is there mixed meter? Is the rhythm at all syncopated (accents on weak beats)?

Harmony: Does the piece generally sound relaxed (consonant) or tense (dissonant)? Does it have a distinct major or minor sound?

Texture: monophonic, homophonic or polyphonic?

Form: Can you distinguish the form? Binary (AB), Ternary (ABA), Rondo (ABACA), Through-Composed, etc.

Tempo: Can you take a guess at the tempo marking if it is not indicated in the title? Grave? Moderato? Presto? etc.

Dynamics: Is there a range of dynamics, from soft to loud, or is everything at a medium volume?

Please feel free to add any other observations.

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