4
After Wagner: German-Language Opera, ca. 1900–1935
MUMH 6770, Spring 2014
Dr. Notley, Room 295 Music Building; Tuesdays and Thursdays, 12:30–1:50
Office: Room 319; Phone: 565-3751; E-mail:
Hours: Tues. 11–12, Thurs. 2–3, and by appointment
COURSE OBJECTIVES: The musicology graduate program has an ongoing objective of strengthening students’ ability to think critically. Other goals of this course are for students to do the following:
- Acquire a solid understanding of Wagner’s music-dramatic innovations in Tristan und Isolde
- Understand the continuing impact of Wagner’s innovations on a sample of German-language operas, of widely varying types but from a circumscribed period of about three decades
- Be able to discuss and write about these works from nuanced analytical perspectives that engage new ideas about the role of narrative, drama, and music in opera
MATERIALS:
· Students should acquire Dover scores for Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde and Strauss’s Elektra; some of the other scores can be downloaded from IMSLP. The carrel for this class is 404.
· At times I'll place materials on reserve at the Copy Center in the Union, which will allow you to make copies at a very low price.
· You can access audio recordings at home through the library’s website: go to Electronic Resources and then to Naxos; other recordings will be on reserve for this class.
EXPECTATIONS: The distribution for the final grade is as follows:
Attendance: 6 %
Participation: 14 % (1/2 point per class)*
(*may include short writing assignments)
Leading class discussion twice 10 % (5 % + 5 %)
One short paper 10 %
Final paper and presentation: 60 % (10 % for presentation, 50 % for paper)**
LEADING CLASS DISCUSSION: Each student will lead class discussion with another student. I’ll prepare detailed assignments for each class, but I’ll expect the students leading class discussion to take the assignment further. I’ll expect all other students to participate fully.
SHORT PAPER: The purpose is to help students consolidate their understanding of a particular topic and to provide early guidance in the writing of a thesis-driven paper.
FINAL PROJECTS: The final project will involve an oral presentation and a written paper. Final papers must be 12 to 20 pages long; the presentations are to last 20 minutes. I’ll divide the 50 % allotted for the paper into several stages of writing. **This may include the writing of several short papers that will feed into the final paper.
ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION:
· A seminar works only if all students attend class and participate regularly in the discussions: you learn from preparing for class and engaging in discussion. Students are therefore expected to be present and prepared for each class. The six attendance points are there for each student to keep or lose!
· A student will lose two (2) points from his or her grade (100 points to begin with) for each unexcused absence and will be dropped from the roll with a WF after four (4) unexcused absences. The university recognizes only two types of absences as excused: those for religious holidays or for school-sponsored activities. For an absence to be considered excused, I must receive proper documentation. Absences for auditions and other important events may be considered excused: you must check with me first. The university does not recognize illness as a reason for an absence to be excused.
· An absence from any one of the classes devoted to final presentations will result in the subtraction of five (5) points from the student's final grade.
· A late arrival or early departure counts as a half or full absence, depending on how much of the class the student misses.
· I’ll take notes each week on students’ participation. Make sure that you prepare for and participate in each class. Again, this is essential for a seminar. *Please note: I may make short written assignments to ensure that each student participates. If you want to avoid the extra writing, prepare well and participate vigorously from the beginning.
Approximate Weekly Schedule (subject to revision)
Week (by Tuesday) Topic
1 (1/14) Introduction; Tristan und Isolde
2 (1/21) Tristan und Isolde
3 (1/28) Tristan und Isolde; Elektra
4 (2/4) Elektra
5 (2/11) Elektra; Erwartung
6 (2/18) Erwartung; Eine florentinische Tragödie
7 (2/25) Eine florentinische Tragödie; Die tote Stadt
8 (3/4) Die tote Stadt
Week of March 11 SPRING BREAK
9 (3/18) two versions of Wozzeck
10 (3/25) Wozzeck
11 (4/1) Wozzeck; Mahagonny
12 (4/8) Mahagonny; Arabella
13 (4/15) Arabella
14 (4/22) FINAL PRESENTATIONS
15 (4/29) FINAL PRESENTATIONS
EXAM TIME ALSO FOR FINAL PRESENTATIONS: Thursday, 8 May, 12:30 p.m.–2:30 p.m.
SPECIAL NOTICES FROM THE ASSOCIATE DEAN FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRS:
Office of Disability Accommodation
The University of North Texas makes reasonable academic accommodation for students with disabilities. Students seeking accommodation must first register with the Office of Disability Accommodation (ODA) to verify their eligibility. If a disability is verified, the ODA will provide you with an accommodation letter to be delivered to faculty to begin a private discussion regarding your specific needs in a course. You may request accommodations at any time, however, ODA notices of accommodation should be provided as early as possible in the semester to avoid any delay in implementation. Note that students must obtain a new letter of accommodation for every semester and must meet with each faculty member prior to implementation in each class. For additional information see the Office of Disability Accommodation website at http://www.unt.edu/oda. You may also contact them by phone at 940.565.4323.
Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress
A student must maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) to continue to receive financial aid. Students must maintain a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA in addition to successfully completing a required number of credit hours based on total registered hours per term. Students cannot exceed maximum timeframes established based on the published length of the graduate program. If a student does not maintain the required standards, the student may lose their financial aid eligibility.
If at any point you consider dropping this or any other course, please be advised that the decision to do so may have the potential to affect your current and future financial aid eligibility. Please visit http://financialaid.unt.edu/satisfactory-academic-progress-requirements for more information about financial aid Satisfactory Academic Progress. It may be wise for you to schedule a meeting with an academic advisor in your college or visit the Student Financial Aid and Scholarships office to discuss dropping a course being doing so.
Academic Integrity
Academic Integrity is defined in the UNT Policy on Student Standards for Academic Integrity. Any suspected case of Academic Dishonesty will be handled in accordance with the University Policy and procedures. Possible academic penalties range from a verbal or written admonition to a grade of “F” in the course. Further sanctions may apply to incidents involving major violations. You will find the policy and procedures at: http://vpaa.unt.edu/academic-integrity.htm.
Student Behavior in the Classroom
Student behavior that interferes with an instructor’s ability to conduct a class or other students’ opportunity to learn is unacceptable and disruptive and will not be tolerated in any instructional forum at UNT. Students engaging in unacceptable behavior will be directed to leave the classroom and the instructor may refer the student to the Center for Student Rights and Responsibilities to consider whether the student’s conduct violated the Code of Student Conduct. The university’s expectations for student conduct apply to all instructional forums, including university and electronic classroom, labs, discussion groups, field trips, etc. The Code of Student Conduct can be found at: www.unt.edu/csrr.