Instructions for the second term paper

There are two brief papers required for this class, one for each part of the semester (before and after the midterm). This paper should be an original work, written by the student for this class, and should be about 5-6 pages.

Each paper should have an historical as well as an analytical component and should use at least 3-4 sources (books and articles). These sources should be of high quality and authority and should specialize in the topic. Books that may not be counted among your sources include: Donald J. Grout, A History of Western Music; Robert P. Morgan, Twentieth-Century Music; Glenn Watkins, Soundings. Consult these books for initial information only. Also, websites should be used with caution — many do not have real authority..

Here are some aspects that might be explored:

(a) relevant historical information concerning the time that the work was composed, including details of the composer's life;

(b) mention of other works composed around the same time, including works by other composers (as relevant);

(c) social or political aspects that may have affected the work;

(d) discussion of the music.

You may emphasize one or more of these aspects at the expense of the others, but be sure to find some balance between historical and musical detail.

The following works may be used as a basis for the second paper:

VarËse, Density 28.5

Honegger, Le roi David

Poulenc, Sextet for Piano and Winds

Weill, Fall und Aufstieg der Stadt Mahagonny

Stravinsky, Symphonies of Wind Instruments

Stravinsky, Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments

Stravinsky, Symphony in C

Hindemith, Suite "1922"

Hindemith, Symphonic Metamorphoses on Themes by Weber

Schoenberg, A Survivor from Warsaw

Schoenberg, Moses und Aron

Berg, Lyric Suite

Berg, Der Wein

BartÛk, Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion

BartÛk, Violin Concerto No. 2

Prokofiev, Alexander Nevsky

Shostakovich, Symphony No. 5

Falla, El sombrero de tres picos

Vaughan Williams, Sir John in Love

Ives, Symphony No. 4

Ruggles, Suntreader

Crawford Seeger, String Quartet

Copland, Billy the Kid

Thomson, The Mother of Us All

Barber, Dover Beach, Op. 3

Messiaen, Quatour pour la fin du temps

All research should be properly documented in footnotes or endnotes. You may use any accepted bibliographic style, but you must be consistent. Be certain to indicate the source of all quotations in footnotes or endnotes, and be sure to include a bibliography of all sources used. Any paper that does not identify the sources used by the student will be returned and the student asked to resubmit it (if at the end of the semester, the student will receive an incomplete). Finally, all papers should be typewritten or computer-generated.

Second paper due: Friday, November 20.