Office Murchison Performing Arts Center Annex Room 110A

MUAG 5850.002 MUAG 3870.001

Fall 2014

Course orientation - Syllabus

Dennis W. Fisher

Office Murchison Performing Arts Center Annex – Room 110A

Office phone - 565-3737

Attendance policy

Regular and punctual class attendance is expected. Absences will result in a lowering of the final grade as follows:

1-no affect

2-3reduction of 1 letter grade

4-5reduction of 2 letter grades

6+grade of WF if withdrawal requested (or) final grade of F

Tardies accumulate to absences at the rate of 2 tardies equal 1 absence. Absence from class on a pre-assigned conducting day will result in the student being passed over for that conducting sequence, with a grade of 0 or no credit. The instructor, in advance of the absence must approve exceptions. The opportunity to make up a missed conducting assignment will be at the discretion of the instructor and will be rare.

Pre-requisites

MUAG 3800 or transfer equivalent, as determined by the conducting faculty.

MUTH 1380/1480/1390/1490/2380/2480/2390/2490

Successful completion of the qualifying entrance examination for MUAG 3870

Concurrent enrollment

MULB 1806, MULB 1807, MULB 1813 or MULB 5173.500, 501, 502

Information transmission

From time to time, I will send information regarding course assignments, meetings, handouts or other miscellaneous items by the email system through MyUnt. This will automatically go to your MyUNT email account unless you have arranged to have them forwarded to another email address. It is the students’ responsibility to monitor these emails on a regular basis for pertinent information.

Grades

Grades will consist of written transposition assignments, exams, demonstration of conducting skills through regular class assignments, and concert attendance. Failure to turn in written assignments when due will result in a 10% penalty per calendar day. Assignments will not be accepted after the FOURTH (4th) calendar day.

Concert observation and review requirements

Each student must attend a minimum of THREE (3) conducted concert performances of which the student is not a member. In order to receive credit for concert attendance, the student must submit a written observation report along with a program of the concert. All reports must be typed. Failure to complete this requirement will result in the reduction of the final grade by one (1) letter grade. Concert reports are due as follows:

Concert report 1:no later than Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Concert report 2:no later than Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Concert report 3:no later than Tuesday, November 25, 2014

Required Wind Studies Concerts:

September 18, 20147:30 pmSymphonic BandWinspear Hall

September 25, 20147:30 pmWind SymphonyWinspear Hall

October 8, 20147:30 pmConcert BandsWinspear Hall

October 23, 20147:30 pmSymphonic BandWinspear Hall

November 10, 20147:30 pmBrass BandWinspear Hall

November 6, 20147:30 pmWind SymphonyWinspear Hall

November 19, 20147:30 pmConcert BandsWinspear Hall

November 20, 20147:30 pmSym Band/ WSWinspear Hall

Extra credit

Limited extra credit may be earned through the following means:

a.Observation of rehearsals - These must be conducted rehearsals of a major performance lab of which the student is not a regular member. In order to receive extra credit, the student must observe one full rehearsal and submit a written evaluation report of the rehearsal. FIVE (5) extra credit points may be earned for each rehearsal observed.

b.Additional concert attendance - Students may earn FIVE (5) additional extra credit points for attending conducted performances in addition to the required minimum of THREE (3). Requirements for qualifying for this extra credit will be the same as requirements for concert attendance.

c.Student conducting on a performance - These may be any performance that the student actually conducts; i.e. an ensemble on a student recital, an ensemble at a community or church function, or any other approved ensemble performance. In order to receive extra credit, the student must receive advanced approval of the event and submit a printed program or equivalent. Extra credit points available - TEN (10) per performance.

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 You may also contact them by phone at 940.565.4323.

Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress (Undergraduates)

A student must maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) to continue to receive financial aid. Students must maintain a minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA in addition to successfully completing a required number of credit hours based on total registered hours per term. Students cannot exceed attempted credit hours above 150% of their required degree plan. 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 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.

Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress (Graduates)

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.

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:

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

Semester Drop Dates:

Students who wish to drop a course before the census date (12th class day during long semesters) may do so without instructor permission; they may do so online by visiting my.unt.edu or in person at the Registrar’s Office (in the Eagle Student Services Building). After the 12th class day, students must first receive written permission from the instructor, prior to dropping a course. For further information, please visit

Retention and Privacy of Student Records:

Student records are private. While students have a right to review their own records (e.g., exams, papers, etc.), instructors should not discuss a student’s grades with other individuals without verifying that the student has waived his or her educational privacy rights under FERPA. The instructor of record should maintain all course records for at least one calendar year; the grade book should be maintained in the department for a period of five years. The disposal of student educational records should be done in a secure way, after the appropriate time period has passed. Department administrative staff can provide information about secure, bulk shredding of documents.

Electronic devices in the classroom

Students may not bring activated electronic communication devices to class or use them in the class period. This includes, but is not limited to, cellular telephones, picture phones, laptop computers, electronic tablets and other personal paging devices. Tape recording of class lectures is permitted, with permission. Students are prohibited from posting any lecture or portion of any lecture on YouTube or other public social media.

Class materials

Course packet

The Modern Conductor - Elizabeth Green, 6th or 7th edition

Conducting baton - 12” or 14” only

8 1/2 X 11-manuscript paper for transposition assignments

2gb flash drive for video recording of conducting practicum

Your primary instrument, or secondary as assigned by the conducting faculty

Scores as assigned

Supplemental, strongly encouraged

Talent is Never Enough by John C. Maxwell

Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2007

Everyone Communicates, Few Connect by John C. Maxwell

Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2011

Master Conductors: A legacy of wisdom

Featuring Mark Hindsley, Frederick Fennell, and William Revelli

DVD production

GIA Publications, 2006

Master Conductors: The Art of the March

Featuring Mark Hindsley, Frederick Fennell, and William Revelli

GIA Publications 2007

MUAG 3870/5850

1.COURSE ORIENTATION

a.Absence and grading policy

b.Resource materials

c.General information

2.TRANSPOSITIONS AND PART SINGING

a.Review of fundamentals of transposition

b.Transpositions from concert to written pitch

c.Transpositions from written to concert pitch

d.Mixed transpositions

e.Singing transpositions

f.Application to score reading and recognition

3.FUNDAMENTALS OF CONDUCTING

a.Posture

b.Baton grip

c.Conducting plane

d.Hand/arm relationship

e.Basic conducting patterns and cueing

4.MECHANICS OF CONDUCTING

a.Baton technique

b.Left/right hand independence

c.Cueing

d.Non-verbal communication

e.Odd meter/mixed meter

f.Stylistic considerations

5.TERMINOLOGY

a.General terms for the conductor

b.Foreign names and terms

6.SCORE PREPARATION AND SCORE READING

a.Types of scores

b.Preparation of the score for rehearsal

c.Preparation of the score for conducting

d.Tips for score reading

e.Organization of the score

f.Analyzing the score

7.MUSICIANSHIP

a.Transferring musicianship to the baton

b.Musical conducting

c.Making musical decisions

8.REHEARSAL TECHNIQUES

a.Score preparation

b.Error detection/problem identification

c.Economizing rehearsal time through good conducting techniques

9.CONDUCTING PRACTICUM

As a part of the conducting practicum, there will be a number of opportunities to conduct. In order that each member of the class has the best opportunities, it is essential that performance participation by each member of the class be the norm. Failure to participate as a performer for other class members will be treated as an absence.

As stated previously, non-attendance in class on the date when a conducting practicum is assigned will result in the student missing that round of the conducting sequence

SELF EVALUATIONS

Each student is required to fill out a self evaluation based on observation of their video recording. This self evaluation is due at the next regular class period following conducting. Students will not be allowed to conduct on subsequent conducting rounds until previous evaluations are completed and submitted. A missed conducting assignment, whether for absence or for failure to complete the previous self-evaluation will be treated as an absence.

MUAG 3870/5850

Concert and rehearsal observation guidelines

As a part of the observation component for MUAG 3870/5850, you are expected to observe conducted performances and rehearsals. The observation review must be typed and in narrative format. The following guidelines are established in order to guide you towards observation of specific areas and to respond accordingly. When writing the summary, address these areas:

For Rehearsals:

a.How does the conductor prepare tempo?

b.How does the conductor prepare style?

c.In what ways does the conductor cue individual instruments/sections?

d.What does the conductor do to indicate stylistic consistency?

e.In what does the conductor express musical nuances to the ensemble?

f.Other musical/mechanical observations

For Concerts:

a.Stage deportment

How does the conductor enter the stage?

How does the conductor acknowledge the audience and the performers?

What does the conductor do between movements of a work?

How does the conductor acknowledge soloists or featured sections?

How does the conductor acknowledge the entire ensemble?

How does the conductor leave the stage?

Other

b.In what ways does the conductor enable the musical performance?

Through the mechanics of conducting

Through the musicianship of conducting

c.How does the conductor visibly communicate style and musicianship to the ensemble?