Concert Paper
As part of the semester’s assignments, all students are required to attend a concert of music
from some other music culture and to write a concert paper. This can possibly be a worship service, or social gathering where
music is played in some way or other.
Here are some places where you can find performances:
http://www.worldmusicinstitute.org/
http://brooklynragamassive.com/
http://alwanforthearts.org/
http://www.irishartscenter.org/music.htm
There are quite a number of pubs where there are Irish music sessions, but you might have to be over 21 in some cases to be served—call them to be sure you can come in and order nonalcoholic drinks if not.
http://murphguide.com/traditional-irish-sessions/
Others sources are listed below.
You can attend other events as well (New York is full of them), but please check with me for approval to be safe
Please dress appropriately for these concerts. You are safe with business casual.
I suggest that you take notes as soon as possible after you attend the concert, even if you are not planning to write the paper right away. It is amazing how quickly information (especially in an unfamiliar field) can vanish.
The Writing Center
I strongly suggest you take advantage of the Writing Center while working on this paper. I am happy to write anybody a referral to the Center, and I think that it would be a good idea for almost all students.
Content of the paper
4 pages, typewritten (Times New Roman, 12 point), double-spaced, with margins no larger than 1 inch.
The paper is to be written in essay form. No lists of any kind, please.
The first paragraph should be an introduction. In it you should briefly describe the most important ideas of your paper (tell us what you are going to say).
Before you go, I want to you to look up the performers or the type of music and write a one page background essay about what you are going to hear. This will constitute the beginner of your report
In the body of your paper discuss the following (say what you have to say):
Describe the concert-going experience itself:
Possible ideas:
What was the environment like (the concert hall, the people, the stage, the musicians, etc.)
Was the environment different than you expected? What were you expecting? This should only be a paragraph or two—don’t pad the paper with too much background!
You should then discuss the music:
Pick some pieces that you particularly liked and describe it using the terms we discuss in class: rhythm, texture, and timbre. Be as specific as possible. The goal is for you to apply your knowledge of these terms to the piece that you choose as your topic, and to show me as clearly as possible that you understand these terms, and that you are able to apply them
to a piece.
YOU MUST GIVE ME THE NAMES OF THE PIECES SO THAT I CAN EVALUATE WHAT YOU ARE WRITING ABOUT.
Review the terms in your text, and use related terms as well (homophony, polyphony, monophony, rhythmic terms, etc.). Discuss the instrumentation of the piece as a whole, and describe how various timbres were used in the composition. Also, discuss the dynamics .
Explain why you liked the piece. Again, be specific, and use the musical terms that you have learned. Your last paragraph should be a conclusion:
You should discuss the people.
Please note interactions 1) among the musicians, 2) among the audience 3) between audience and performers. How to the audience or musicians talk about the music and/or event?
Summarize your most important points and conclude the paper (tell us what you said).
Attach the ticket stub (preferably) the program to the concert paper, or a phone picture of the event.
Other places to find concerts:
Lincoln Center: Avery Fisher Hall, Alice Tully Hall, The Library for the Performing Arts Carnegie Hall
Town Hall
Various branches of the New York Public Library
Various Museums around the city
CUNY Graduate Center Music Department – http://web.gc.cuny.edu/Music/
Brooklyn College Music Department – http://www.bcmusic.org/
Queen College Music Department – http://qcpages.qc.cuny.edu/music/
City College Music Department –
http://www1.ccny.cuny.edu/prospective/humanities/music/activities.cfm
The New York Times – www.nytimes.com
The Village Voice- www.villagevoice.com
New York Magazine – nymag.com/