FA20: PROSEMINAR MUSIC HISTORY/LIT: 8986

MUS M501 

Proseminar in Music History and Literature

MWF 7:30 AM-8:20AM (Online)

Instructor: Nicolette van den Bogerd

Office Hours: happily, and by appointment (via zoom)

Email: nvandenb@iu.edu

Zoom Link: https://iu.zoom.us/j/92767182133?

pwd=Wmw1b25DV0M3UTRiKzhSNHQxd0IvZz09 (Links to an external site.)

Password: 631514

Course Overview

This course is designed to help you develop skills essential to the academic study of music at the

graduate level. We will spend our time not only reading, watching, and listening, but also writing,

critical reading (essentially, engaging in conversation with the author), independent research, citation,

group discussion, project organization, and presentation. Class meetings will consist mostly of

discussion, in-class workshops, presentations, and activities with music and historical documents.

The course is made up of three units, each on a different topic. Each unit emphasizes different musical

and historical skills, preparing you to be an effective musician at the graduate and professional level.

As should be clear, this is not a survey course. It does not attempt to give you total or near-total

coverage of music history on some grand timeline.

Three units

1. Music Historiography: How have we constructed narratives to examine the music of the past?

How have these narratives changed over time, and what do we learn from this? In this unit we
 will examine historical narratives about music. The unit will build foundational skills, including

working with primary and secondary sources, critical reading, research tools, and citation.

2. Musical Representations of Race: How is the “other” represented musically within Western

art music? What kind musical techniques are used to represent racial difference? How does this fit

within social and political discourse? In this unit, we center the periphery by focusing on how

music has contributed to racial imaginations from the past to the present. In addition to

strengthening the skills acquired in unit one, we will focus on developing stylistic analytic skills

and writing about music.

3. Music and Politics in Eastern and Central Europe, 1933-1989: How do we define East/Central

Europe? How does music interact with politics in this region? In this final unit we will study

theoretical concepts of nationalism, communism, socialism, and fascism, and how they relate to

music composition and music performance. We study repertories connected to World War II, the

Holocaust, and the Cold War. Students will produce a (short, ca 1500 words) independent

research project.

Grading and Expectations

You must earn a grade C or higher in order to fulfill the requirements of your degree. Your grade is

calculated in five categories, which will be visible on the Canvas gradebook:

Homework and Misc. Assignments                                                                                      10 %

You will be assigned short research or written assignments periodically throughout the course. Each

assignment will be worth 10 points, and all assignments together will account for 10% of your overall

grade.

Reading Responses                                                                             20 %

For some assigned readings you will write short responses before class that summarize the author’s

work, give your response to it, and prepare questions for class discussion. These will happen about

once a week.

Class Work                                                                        30 %

Your attendance, preparation, and participation are vital to your success in this course. The score will

reflect your attendance as well as how well you prepare for class and participate in activities. This

does not depend on you having the right answer.

Unit Projects                                                                           40%

Each unit will conclude with a medium-length written project in which you will demonstrate your

familiarity with course concepts as well as the skills you have developed. Specific guidelines and

writing prompts will be released with each unit, including grading parameters. These projects are due

at class time on the last day of each unit, unless otherwise specified.

While there are some ungraded components in unit projects, you must submit every stage of

every project in order to get a grade on the final draft. 

**List of Important Due Dates for the Unit Projects (also see Assignments)**

Historiography

1. Topic Idea Email: August 31, 11:59pm

2. Topic and Article Citation: September 7, at class time

3. First Draft: September 18, at class time

4. Final Draft: September 25, at class time

Music and Representations of Race

1. First Draft: October 19, at class time

2. Final Draft: October 30, at class time

Music and Politics

1. Abstract and Annotated Bibliography: November 13, at class time

2. First Draft: November 30, at class time

3. Final Draft: December 14, at 11:59PM

For all assignments, the rubric for percentage to letter grade conversion is:

B+< 90% to 87% C+< 80% to 77% D+< 70% to 67%

A< 100% to 93% F< 60% to 0%
B< 87% to 83% C< 77% to 73% D< 67% to 63%
A-< 93% to 90%  
B-< 83% to 80% C-< 73% to 70% D-< 63% to 60%

Attendance: Your presence and participation are vital for developing the skills covered in this course.

The course will have synchronous and asynchronous work, and you are expected to attend every

synchronous class session and make reasonable efforts to complete asynchronous work in a timely

manner. Most classes are synchronous, and all asynchronous classes are labeled as such in the course

schedule.
We are in a pandemic and your first priority is to stay healthy, and to seek medical attention when

necessary. All accommodations will be made for those who become ill.

Late Work: It is important for individual and collective schedules to respect deadlines. I accept late

work up to two days after the due date with three caveats: 1) you will receive a letter grade reduction

on the assignment; 2) if you consistently turn in late work (more than twice) I will not accept the work

at all and you will receive a zero; and 3) late work will not receive feedback. Please note that this

policy does not apply to peer review assignments as these always need to be turned in on time. If you

have a situation that prevents you from turning in your work on time, I strongly encourage you to

communicate with me, and we can discuss solutions.

Technology: You will be required to use your computer during class time and be available for video

conference during synchronous sessions. In order to create as much of an in-person experience as

possible, black screens will not be permitted, unless there are dire circumstances. Virtual backgrounds

are acceptable, and I encourage creativity. You should contact me in the event of severe technological

problems or if you have issues with this policy, so we can work together to find a solution. 

Course Details

Materials: All materials will be posted on Canvas, but some are accessible via e-books or links online.

You are responsible for finding and completing all work prior to  the class meeting for which they are

assigned. You should have access to a  copy of all assigned materials for the day, as well as any

responses you may have written.

Canvas: Canvas is crucial to how this class operates. Your grades will be there, and you will submit

your assignments there.  I will also send announcements to both our section page and messages to the

class; please confirm that Canvas is set to notify you of messages through whatever means necessary.

Failure to do so may result in you missing graded work.

Schedule: You will find a daily schedule for the course, including all assigned materials and

assignments for each day, in the modules section on our Canvas page. This schedule is set, but it may

update as our progress changes, so check it regularly

Getting in touch with me: I will check my email Monday through Friday 8:00AM-8:00PM. I typically

respond within 24 hours, but almost never in the weekend. Please plan ahead, and consider your

deadlines, if you would like to discuss a time-sensitive issue. Problems with assignments due on

Mondays will need to be dealt with by Friday. I am not able to honor same-day meeting requests

unless there are emergencies. Please do NOT send me messages via the Canvas inbox as I will not

check it.

Plagiarism and Academic Integrity

Plagiarism: When you verbally or physically turn in work as yourself, you assert that this work is your

own. You are required to take the graduate Plagiarism Test, found at

https://www.indiana.edu/~academy/firstPrinciples/certificationTests/index.html  (Links to an external

site.).

You must pass the test and submit your certificate on Canvas by Friday, September 11. Completion

of the test affirms that you understand, and will abide by, the University’s definition of plagiarism,

and accept the consequences of any violation of these policies. No assignments will be     accepted for

grading after September 11 until this is completed. Excessive plagiarism is grounds for failure on

assignment or the entire course.

Honesty: You are responsible for knowing the university’s policies on academic integrity in the Code

of Student rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct, Part II, Section G  Student Rights, Responsibilities,

and Conduct http://studentcode.iu.edu/responsibilities/index.html (Links to an external site.). There

are no excuses for violating these policies, including ignorance. Cases of academic misconduct will be

reported and may result in failing the course.

Accommodation

Every attempt will be made to accommodate qualified students with disabilities, established at the

appropriate office that services students with disabilities. Note that services are confidential, may take

time to put into place and are not retroactive. Please contact Disability Services
at http://disabilityservices.indiana.edu/ (Links to an external site.)or 812-855-7578 as soon as possible

if accommodations are needed. The office is located on the third floor, west tower, of the Wells

Library, Room W302. Walk-ins are welcome 8 AM to 5 PM Monday through Friday, but check their

most recent COVID-19 guidelines.

Indiana University respects the right of all students to observe their religious holidays and will make

reasonable accommodation, upon request, for such observances. The policy may be found

here: https://www.indiana.edu/~vpfaa/academicguide/index.php/Policy_H-10  (Links to an external

site.).

Absences for such observances may thus be excused following the university protocol, including

submission of the Request for Accommodation for Religious Observances by Friday, September 6th.

Diversity

From the IU Diversity Statement: “Indiana University Bloomington prohibits discrimination based on

arbitrary consideration of such characteristics as age, citizenship, color, disability, ethnicity, familial

obligations, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, national origin or ancestry, race,

religion, sex, sexual orientation, socio-economic background, or veteran status. This campus is to

remain a place of tolerance and respect for all, where diversity of opinions are civilly debated.”

Resources

The university has a website forgeneral resourcesfor all students, providing help with online learning,

health and wellness, and information about COVID-19 procedures should you become ill.

Visit https://www.indiana.edu/guides/current-students.html  (Links to an external site.)for more

information.

The Student Academic Centerhelps students with general and course-specific study skills and time

management. For information, visit www.sac.indiana.edu (Links to an external site.), call 812-855-

7313, or stop by their office at 408 N. Union Street, Suite 300.

Writing Tutorial Services, a service of the Campus Writing Program, offers general and course-

specific writing tutors to students for free. Due to COVID-19, these services are offered via zoom

session which may be scheduled online. You will need to complete a one-time online registration if it

is your first time using the online scheduler. You may register here:

https://iu.mywconline.com/backdoor.php?

email=nvandenb@iu.edu&token=33c26391c15b869ade874b9be74e13e9&datastring=Other%7CNone  

(Links to an external site.)

For more information, visit www.indiana.edu/~wts/or call 812-855-6738 (Links to an external site.).

University Information Technology Servicesoffers troubleshooting, repair and instruction for

students about computing and other technology on campus. Search the IU Knowledge Base at

www.uits.iu.edu/, visit them in the Wells Learning Commons or IMU M089, or call 812-855-7383.

Counseling and Psychological Servicesemploys an onsite counselor for Jacobs School students in

Merrill Hall MU011F. All students are entitled to two free appointments.  Appointments will be held

on zoom this semester. For more information visit

http://healthcenter.indiana.edu/counseling/index.shtmlor call 812-855-5711.

You can read about the Office of Disability Services for Students(DSS) above.

http://disabilityservices.indiana.edu| iubdss@indiana.edu| 812-855-7578Herman B Wells Library,

Room W302