MUS342:

Spring 2011

Music and the American City

Caroline Polk OMeara (MRH 3.708) cpomeara@mail.utexas.edu | 512-471-0706 Office hours MW 3-4pm, or by appointment

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COURSE DESCRIPTION
An astonishing array of music has been made and enjoyed in American cities. In this course, you will study how city dwellers make and listen to music, and the ways in which urban geographies influence musics creation and reception. Course readings and lecture discussions will incorporate themes from a wide-range of intellectual perspectives including musicology (my home discipline), African American studies, urban studies, and Gender studies. By the end of the semester I expect you to hear American music not only as entertainment, but also as a critical component in the social life of modern cities, including Austin. Much of this class will be dedicated to studying the music of enslaved Africans and African-Americans, the most significant music and musical cultural in urban America across the twentieth century. We will study the history of several African American urban communities, and the music that these communities developed. This will include jazz and rock n roll in New Orleans, jazz and gospel in Chicago, blues in Memphis, jazz and hip-hop in Los Angeles, and bebop and hip-hop in New York City. Despite the success of all of these genres, the communities that nourished and developed them were and are underrepresented and marginalized. Some of you will be unfamiliar with technical music language, and none is required or expected to do well in this class. We will use recordings as historical documents, and you are expected to listen closely and think about the music. During the course of the semester, we will review any musical terms you will need for assignments. Together, we will listen to music in culture, studying the creation, reception, and impact of music on American culture and history.

CLASS OBJECTIVES
1. To acquire knowledge through interdisciplinary study, specifically the study of music and the American city. During the 15 weeks of the semester, urban studies will influence your knowledge of music history, musical sound will inform your interpretation of gender relationships, etc.

2. To learn and critically examine valid sources of information for your written and oral assignments. Reading assignments will ask you to find and evaluate sources from both academic and mainstream media while writing assignments will require you to thoughtfully bring together and analyze these sources. 3. To study the culture, perspectives, and history of the many underrepresented groups that

have made music in American Cities, including but not limited to African Americans and Latinos.
4. To polish your communication skills through oral presentations.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Written Assignments. Each assignment will have a detailed description and rubric posted to the courses Blackboard site and discussed in class. 1. Jazz Topic Research and Paper [10% of the grade] For this paper you will complete a series of small research assignments on a jazz topic as it relates to an American city. Then you will present this research to the class and complete a 2-3 page paper that brings together the research you completed and your reactions to this research. Please see rubric for more details. Due February 14. 2. Austin Ethnography. [10% of grade] In this assignment, you will attend a live music event in Austin and conduct a brief case study of the event. Required: attending one, preferably free, live music event in Austin at a venue other than a concert venue. The write up for this assignment will be a worksheet and a 1-page prose description. Due March 4. 3. Final Research Project. [20% of grade] In this assignment, you will choose one American musician and write about their music in terms of the American city they are most closely associated with (Louis Armstrong and New Orleans; Leonard Bernstein and New York City; Kurt Cobain and Seattle, Jay-Z and New York City etc). Some of the research requirements will grow on the skills you explored in the Jazz paper. You will have to write about one composition in detail as part of this assignment. Music majors will have to complete a more detailed music analysis. Due April 25. Oral Presentation. [5% of grade] You will complete one oral presentation this semester, presenting your independent Jazz research. February 14, 16 and 18. Preparation and Participation [15% of grade] Attendance, class preparation, and participation will be assessed in several ways. 1. In-class writing. At the beginning of most classes, everyone will write down their thoughts about the days assignment. This might be a question, an observation, or an idea the reading sparked. 2. Participation in discussion. Not every day will include a discussion portion of class, but many will. You are expected to either raise your hand or be ready when I call on you. You can use your in-class writing as a starting point for your questions. 3. Attendance. Each student will have three excused absences over the course of the semester. In addition, absences for University-sponsored events, illness, and family emergencies will be excused as long as your provide timely and written explanation. Midterm Exam [15% of grade] Your midterm exam will be in-class and will combine short and medium answer questions. I will provide more details in class closer to the date of the exam (March 7).

Final Exams [25% of grade] Your final exam will consist of multiple choice questions, short-answer questions, and one longer essay. The multiple choice and short-answer sections will be in the same format as the midterm and cover only material from March 9th on. It will be 15% of your final grade. The essay question will be cumulative and ask you to tie together material from across the semester. It will be 10% of your final grade. Friday May 13 from 2 5pm. Location TBA.

COURSE MATERIALS
There is a mandatory reading packet available at Speedway Copies in Dobie. You must bring your reader to class. A few additional readings will be available on Blackboard. All listening assignments will be linked from Blackboard.

COURSE POLICIES
Academic Integrity. Students are expected to uphold the University of Texas honor code: The core values of The University of Texas at Austin are learning, discovery, freedom, leadership, individual opportunity, and responsibility. Each member of the university is expected to uphold these values through integrity, honesty, trust, fairness, and respect toward peers and community. Plagiarism. According to the University of Texas Student Judicial Services, plagiarism occurs if you represent as your own work any material that was obtained from another source, regardless how or where you acquired it. For more information on plagiarism, see: http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/sjs/scholdis_plagiarism.php You will spend time in your discussions learning on how to properly cite the sources you use in your research essays, so that you will be equipped to avoid unintentional plagiarism. I will refer all suspected cases of cheating and plagiarism to Student Judicial Services. If you have any question about what constitutes academic misconduct please visit the University of Texas Student Judicial Services website at http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/sjs/academicintegrity.html This syllabus is subject to change as the semester progresses. All writing assignments, the midterm and the final must be handed in order to receive a passing grade.

GRADING All grades will be posted on the Gradebook available through Blackboard. I do not round up final grades.
10% 10% 20% 5% 15% 15% 25% No Extra Credit No Extensions No Exceptions.

Jazz Paper Austin Ethnography Final Paper Oral Presentation Participation Midterm Final

A A-

94-100 90-94 D:60-69

B+ B B-

87-89 83-86 80-82

F: 59 and below

C+ C C-

77-79 73-76 70-72

DAILY CLASS SCHEDULE

Week 1. January 19. Course Introduction January 21. The Culture of Cities Readings Sharon Zukin, Whose Culture? Whose City in The Culture of Cities (Cambridge: Blackwell, 1995), 1-24. (Google Books) Charlie Gillett, Introduction to the First Edition: Dancing in the Street, in The Sound of the City: The Rise of Rock n Roll 2nd edition (1972; New York: Da Capo Press, 1996), xviii. (Google Books) Week 2. January 24. City Soundscapes Reading Emily Thompson, Noise and Modern Music, in The Soundscape of Modernity (Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2002), 130-144. R. Murray Schafer, Introduction, The Soundscape (Rochester, Vermont: Destiny Books, 1977), 9- 12. January 26. New Orleans: The music of Enslaved Africans Reading Ned Sublette, The Gift of the River and A Most Extraordinary Noise, in The World That Made New Orleans (Chicago: Lawrence Hill Books, 2008), 8-13; 271-288 Listening Au Place Congo: Miche Banjo -- Bamboula Louis Moreau Gottschalk, La Bamboula (Danse des Ngres) January 28. New Orleans and the Jazz Landscape. Readings Louis Armstrong, My Life in New Orleans, 89-108. Mark Sakakeeny, Under the Bridge: An Orientation to Soundscapes in New Orleans, Ethnomusicology 54 (Winter 2010), 1-27. Listening The Original Dixieland Jazz Band, Tiger Rag (1917) Jelly Roll Morton, Black Bottom Stomp(1926) Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five, "West End Blues" (1928) Week 3. January 31. New Orleans R&B and Rock Reading Selection from John Broven, Rhythm and Blues in New Orleans (Gretna: Pelican Pub, 1974). Listening Fats Domino, Aint That a Shame; Walking to New Orleans. Little Richard, Tutti-Frutti

February 2. Memphis, Jazz and Blues Readings WC Handy, Pee Wees, Pimps, and Politics, from Father of the Blues: An Autobiography (New York: Macmillian, 1947), 89-105 (skip music). Listening Louis Armstrong, Memphis Blues (Composed by WC Handy) Bessie Smith, St. Louis Blues (Composed by WC Handy) February 4. Chicago, The Great Migration, Jazz and Blues Readings W. Howland Kenney, South-Side Jazz: Cultural Context, in Chicago Jazz: A Cultural History (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993), 3-5; 28-34. Listening: King Oliver & his Creole Jazz Band, Dipper Mouth Blues Louis Armstrong and his Hot Seven, Gully Low Blues Week 4. February 7. Jazz paper Topic Workshop February 9. Chicago, The Great Migration, Blues, and Gospel (Continued) Readings Robert Palmer, Chicago Pep from Deep Blues (New York: Viking Press, 1981), 132-137; 155- 169. David W. Stowe, Come Sunday, from How Sweet the Sound: Music in the Spiritual Lives of Americans (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2004). Listening Muddy Waters, I Cant be Satisfied Muddy Waters, (Im Your) Hoochie-Coochie Man (written by Willie Dixon) Chuck Berry, Maybellene Thomas A. Dorsey, Take My Hand, Precious Lord February 11. Art and Commerce in the Postindustrial City Readings Richard Lloyd, Living Like an Artist, in Art and Commerce in the Postindustrial City (New York: Routledge, 2006), 99-112. Bill Wyman, etc. Three Pandering Sluts and Their Music Press Stooge: The Great Steve Albini Letters-to-the-Editor Debate, in the Chicago Reader. http://www1.chicagoreader.com/hitsville/pander.html Listenings Liz Phair, Never Said (1993) Smashing Pumpkins, Today (1993) Jesus Lizard, Boilermaker (1992) Week 5. Jazz Papers February 14. Jazz Papers Due Presentations 1-5 February 16 & 18. Presentation 6-10; 11-15.

Week 6. February 21. Nashville and the Grand Ole Opry Reading Loretta Lynn, Music City, U.S.A., and Patsy, in Coal Miners Daughter (Chicago: Bernard Geis Associates, 1976), 95-104. Listening Hank Williams, Cold, Cold Heart Loretta Lynn, Coal Miners Daughter February 23. Nashville and the Conservative Movement Reading Feder, J. Lester. When Country Went Right. The American Prospect Online Edition. February 16, 2007. http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=when_country_went_right Proud to Be an Okie Listening Merle Haggard, Okie from Muskogee Tammy Wynette, Stand by your man February 25. Austin and Progressive Country Guest Lecturer: Travis Stimeling, Milliken University Week 7. February 28. Austins Sound: Recording Liveness, Sincerity and Authenticity Reading Barry Shank, The Imaginary Tourist: An Introduction to Austins Rock n Roll Scene, and Constructing the Musicalized Performance of Texan Identity, in Dissonant Identities (Hanover, NH: Wesleyan University Press, 1994) 1-19. Thomas Porcello, Music Mediated as Live in Austin, in Wired for Sound, eds. Greene and Porcello (Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press), 103-115. March 2. The Live Music Capital of the World. Reading Austin City Council Resolution 910829-46, August 29, 1991. Watch Willie Nelson and the first episode of ACL, http://video.pbs.org/video/1294292042/ March 4. Austin Rock Reading Shank, Punk Rock at Rauls, 91-117. Listening Butthole Surfers, Sweet Loaf, (1987) Scratch Acid, Cannibal, (1991) Week 8 March 7. Midterm March 9. Guest Lecture: Charles Carson and Philadelphia March 11. No Class

Week 9 March 21 Western Swing Reading Peter La Chapelle, Rhythm Kings and Riveter Queens, in Proud to be an Okie; pages 76-78;99- 110. Not Required: Sherrie Tucker, What if Jazz History Included the Prairie View Ramblers? Journal of Texas Music History 2 (2002): 1-9. Listening Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys, San Antonio Rose (1938/1944) Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys, Corrine, Corrina (1940) March 23 Kansas City Jazz Reading Hartmann, Rudolph H., Chapter 1 in The Kansas City Investigation : Pendergast's downfall, 1938- 1939 (Columbia: Mississippi University Press, 1999). Billie Holiday, On The Road with Count Basie Listening Count Basie, One OClock Jump (1937) Count Basie's Kansas City Seven, "Lester Leaps In" (1939) March 25. Commercialization from Tin Pan Alley to the Brill Building Reading David Suisman, Prologue and Epilogue from Selling Sounds: The Commercial Revolution in American Music (Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 2009). Listening Irving Berlin, Blue Skies (including Willie Nelson performance) George Gershwin, Ive Got Rhythm Jerome Kern, Smoke Gets in Your Eyes Week 10 March 28. Jazz in New York: from the Cotton Club to BeBop Reading Duke Ellington talking about Harlem, in Hear me Talkin to Ya, edited by Nat Hentoff and Nat Shapiro (New York: Dover Publishing, 1955), 224-233. Jazz Goes Downtown, in Hear Me Talkin to Ya, 359-370. Listening Duke Ellington, Rent Party Blues Duke Ellington, Harlem Air Shaft Dizzy Gillespie, Salt Peanuts March 30. Disco Reading Andrew Kopkin, The Dialectic of Disco, in The Village Voice, 12 February 1979. Listening Manu Dibango, Soul Makossa Donna Summers, Bad Girl Chic, Good Times

April 1. Downtown Music Reading Bernard Gendron, The First Wave, in Between Montmartre and the Mudd Club (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2002), 249-273. Listening The Velvet Underground, White Light / White Heat (1967) The Ramones, Blitzkrieg Bop (1976) Talking Heads, Psycho Killer (1977) Blondie, X Offender (1976) Week 11 April 4. Watch From Mambo to Hip-hop in Lecture April 6. South Bronx and Hip-Hop Readings Caroline OMeara, From Ruins to Records Listenings Incredible Bongo Band, Apache (1973) Sugar Hill Gang, Apache (1981) Afrika Bambaataa, Planet Rock (1982) Grandmaster Flash, The Message (1982) April 8. Guest Lecture: Beth Levy, University of California, Davis Week 12 April 11. American Cities in Musicals (New York) Videos Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim, Prologue and Jet Song from West Side Story (film 1961) Jonathan Larson, La Vie Bohme from Rent (1996; film 2005) April 13. Olympia, Seattle and Grunge Readings Steve Waksman, selection from Louder, Faster, Slow it Down! in This Aint the Summer of Love: Conflict and Crossover in Heavy Metal and Punk (Berkeley: University of California Press, 2009). Listening Mudhoney, Overblown The Melvins, Boris Nirvana, Smells Like Teen Spirit Nirvana, Aneurysm April 15 Los Angeles, Classical Music and Noir Music Reading Royal S. Brown, Interlude II: Double Indemnity in Overtones and undertones: reading film music (Berkeley: The University of California Press, 1994). Video Selected scenes from Double Indemnity

 Week 13. April 18 Central Avenue Reading George Lipsitz, Introduction in Midnight at the Barrelhouse: the Johnny Otis story, (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2010. Listening Lionel Hampton, Im in the mood for swing Eric Dolphy, Something Sweet, Something Tender Billie Holiday and Teddy Wilson, Ive Got Rhythm April 20 East Side Sound Reading George Lipsitz, selection from in Midnight at the Barrelhouse: the Johnny Otis story, (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2010. Listening Lil Julian Herrera, Lonely, Lonely Nights Richie Valens, La Bamba Thee Midnighters, Whittier Boulevard War, Low Rider April 22. Country on the Left Coast Reading Olivia Carter Mather, "Regressive country: the voice of Gram Parsons Listening Flying Burrito Brothers, Christine's Tune (Devil in Disguise) Emmylou Harris and Gram Parsons, Return of the Grievous Angel Joni Mitchell, Chelsea Morning Crosby Stills and Nash, Our House Week 14. April 25. Detroit: Motown Reading Introduction from Suzanne E. Smith, Dancing in the Street: Motown and the Cultural Politics of Detroit Listening Martha and the Vandellas, Dancing in the Street The Supremes, Mama Said The Temptations, My Girl Marvin Gaye, Whats Going On April 27. Eminem and the White Stripes (day 1) Watch White Stripes Documentary in class April 29. Detroit: Eminem and the White Stripes Reading Loren Kajikawa, Eminem's My Name Is: Signifying Whiteness, Rearticulating Race, Journal of the Society for American Music (1999).

Listening Eminiem, My Name is 1999 Eminem, Lose Yourself 2002 White Stripes, Hello Operator 2000 White Stripes, Seven Nation Army 2003 Week 15., May 2. Postmodern Geographies and Hip-hop in Los Angeles Listening NWA, Straight Outta Compton Dr Dre, Let Me Ride Warren G, Regulate May 4. Postmodern Geographies and Hip-hop in Atlanta Listening Outkast, ATLiens Outkast, Bombs Over Baghdad Ludacris, Southern Hospitality May 6. Last Day of Class: thoughts and conclusions

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REQUIRED UNIVERSITY NOTICES Students with Disabilities. If you require special accommodations, you must obtain a letter that documents your disability from the Services for Students with Disabilities area of the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement (471-6259 voice or 471-4641 TTY for users who are deaf or hard of hearing). Present the letter to me at the beginning of the semester so we can discuss the accommodations you need. No later than five business days before an exam, you should remind me of any testing accommodations you will need. For more information, visit http://www.utexas.edu/ diversity/ddce/ssd/. Use of E-Mail for Official Correspondence to Students Email is recognized as an official mode of university correspondence; therefore, you are responsible for reading your email for university and course-related information and announcements. You are responsible to keep the university informed about changes to your e-mail address. You should check your e-mail regularly and frequentlyI recommend daily, but at minimum twice a weekto stay current with university-related communications, some of which may be time-critical. You can find UT Austins policies and instructions for updating your e-mail address at http://www.utexas.edu/its/policies/emailnotify.php. Religious Holidays By UT Austin policy, you must notify me of your pending absence at least fourteen days prior to the date of observance of a religious holy day. If you must miss a class, an examination, a work assignment, or a project in order to observe a religious holy day, I will give you an opportunity to complete the missed work within a reasonable time after the absence. Behavior Concerns Advice Line (BCAL) If you are worried about someone who is acting differently, you may use the Behavior Concerns Advice Line to discuss by phone your concerns about another individuals behavior. This service is provided through a partnership among the Office of the Dean of Students, the Counseling and Mental Health Center (CMHC), the Employee Assistance Program (EAP), and The University of Texas Police Department (UTPD). Call 512-2325050 or visit http://www.utexas.edu/safety/bcal. Emergency Evacuation Policy Occupants of buildings on the UT Austin campus are required to evacuate and assemble outside when a fire alarm is activated or an announcement is made. Please be aware of the following policies regarding evacuation: Familiarize yourself with all exit doors of the classroom and the building. Remember that the nearest exit door may not be the one you used when you entered the building. If you require assistance to evacuate, inform me in writing during the first week of class. In the event of an evacuation, follow my instructions or those of class instructors. Do not re-enter a building unless youre given instructions by the Austin Fire Department, the UT Austin Police Department, or the Fire Prevention Services office.

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