Popular Music Studies - 1st semester
Objectives
The aims of the course Popular Music Studies are two-fold:
1. To expose the students to the main music genres, styles and musical phenomena associated to what we usually know as popular music.
2. To provide an overview of the main concepts, methodologies and research topics pertaining to the interdisciplinary field of Popular Music Studies.
By the term popular music we refer to those commercially produced and market-oriented music genres within the Western world.
General characterization
Code
711021078
Credits
6
Responsible teacher
Pedro Alexandre Amendoeira Mendes, Ricardo Miguel Bernardes Andrade
Hours
Weekly - 4
Total - Available soon
Teaching language
Portuguese
Prerequisites
None
Bibliography
Bennett, A., Shank, B. &
Toynbee, J. (Eds.) (2006). The
Popular
Music
Studies
Reader.
New
York: Routledge.
Frith, S. (2004).
Popular
Music.
Critical
Concepts
in
Media
and
Cultural
Studies. New
York: Routledge.
Hesmondalgh, D. & Negus, K. (eds). (2002). Popular
Music
Studies.
London:
Arnold.
Moore, A. (Ed.) (2003). Analyzing
Popular
Music.
New
York:
Cambridge
University
Press.
Shuker, R. (2001).
Understanding
Popular
Music.
New
York:
Routledge.
Teaching method
The course will include lectures and discussions as well as occasional creative or experimental in-class projects. Students will undertake a semester project and help direct discussion of one or more texts during the course.
Evaluation method
The final grading will be the result of the joint evaluation of all the activities carried out during the course, with the following proportions:
1) Final project: 40%
2) Critical review: 30%
3) Class participation and continuous evaluation: 30%
Subject matter
Week 1: Introduction. Popular Music: Definitions and Research Issues. Week 2: Popular Muysic Histor(ies)y. Week 3: Form and Meaning in Popular Music. Week 4: The Music Industry. Week 5: The Business of Music. Week 6: Covers and Sampling. Week 7: Music & Copyright. Week 8: Music, Technology and the Mass Media. Week 9: Music and Identity (1): Performing Gender, Sexuality and Race. Week 10: The Politics of Popular Music. Week 11: Music and Identity (2): Performing Gender, Sexuality and Race. Week 12: Music Scenes, Reception and Audiences. Week 13: Mediation(s) and Authenticity. Week 14: Fame and Stardom. Weeks 15 e 16: Discussion of student´s research papers.