Program Notes Challenge

Welcome to Day 2 of the Program Notes Challenge!

Give the contextual background of the work or performance.

• For Euro-American art music or dance, what year was the work written, and when did it fall during the creator's (composer/choreographer's) career?
• For popular music or Euro-American art music or dance, did a notable performer premiere it or first record it?
• Is this a standard work (jazz), a traditional tune (traditional/folk music), or originally composed? Is this an improvised work or have improvised sections?
• Is the work intended for a specific event, location, tradition, or ritual? When and where did the work premiere or originate? Did some person or group commission the work?
• Discuss the title -- does it have specific meaning or significance? Are there genres, modes, or other terms used in the title (particularly relevant outside of Euro-American art music)?
• Describe any instruments that might not be familiar to the audience. This is especially important for traditional or world popular music.

Use the library's resources to locate important information:

• Search SUMMON for books, e-books, or recordings (i.e. liner notes) about your work or about performances in the style of your performance
• Search music reference sources (Oxford Music Online, Garland Encyclopedia of World Music, or Bloomsbury Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World) for articles about people, cultures, instruments, etc.
• See additional tabs on the Music Research Guide for more specific sources from different geographic areas or genres.

For Setnor Concert Credit: 

Write a brief paragraph (2-4 sentences) answering the questions in the top box for the three works you discussed yesterday. Email them to Amanda.

BONUS Challenge: Reviews and Reception!

Find reviews of performances in ProQuest Newspapers (New York Times, LA Times, Washington Post, and others), or search Google for a review.

Search for journal articles in Music Index, RILM, RIPM - Retrospective Index to Music Periodicals Full Text (EBSCO), RIPM Preservation Series: European & North American Periodicals, or Music Periodicals Database

Preparing for the next challenge

Excellent job setting yourself up to take the stress off your recital! Tomorrow we'll talk about description and how that can inform your performance practice. See you then!