OLET1811: Semester 2, 2020

University home

Library

Current students

Staff intranet

Find an event

Give

Current students

Units OLET1811 Semester 2 2020 [Online]

Unit outline_

OLET1811: Writing About Music

Semester 2, 2020 [Online] - Sydney

Overview

This OLE unit of study will provide foundational knowledge in these areas. It will be useful to students without knowledge of music notation or even music theory. It will use both well-known and obscure examples, from Western and non-Western music, from historical to contemporary genres. This deliberately eclectic approach ensures that concepts can be related by students to all forms of music, not just those with which they are familiar.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit	Composition and Music Technology
Credit points	2
Prerequisites ?	None
Corequisites ?	None
Prohibitions ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Matthew Hindson, matthew.hindson@sydney.edu.au
Tutor(s)	Natalie Nicolas, natalie.nicolas@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Assignment	Watch lectures Weeks 1 and 2 Watch the lectures in Weeks 1 and 2 before the tutorial	2.5%	Week 02	N/A
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Watch the lectures for Week 3 Watch the lectures for Week 3 before the tutorial	2.5%	Week 03	N/A
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Canvas assignment on Pitch Do practice exercises (10x), then 5 musical excerpts will be analysed	7.5%	Week 03	N/A
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Watch the lectures for Week 4 Watch lectures Week 4 prior to the tutorial	2.5%	Week 04	N/A
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Canvas assignment on Rhythm and Tempo Do practice exercises (10x), then 5 musical excerpts will be analysed	7.5%	Week 04	N/A
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Watch the lectures for Week 5 Watch the lectures for Week 5 prior to the tutorial	2.5%	Week 05	N/A
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Canvas assignment on expressive techniques, instrumentation and orchestra, texture and timbre Do practice exercises (10x), then 5 musical excerpts will be analysed	7.5%	Week 05	N/A
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Canvas assignment on Structure and Genre Do practice exercises (10x), then 5 musical excerpts will be analysed	7.5%	Week 06	N/A
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Analysis presentation	60%	Week 07	Narrated slides 10 minutes + 600 words
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

Please note that you must complete all assignments – watching the online videos, completing the Canvas tasks and completing the final assignment – in order to do well in this unit of study.

Assessment criteria

Please see the rubric on Canvas giving information as to how the assignments will be marked.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and automated writing tools

You may only use generative AI and automated writing tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator. If you do use these tools, you must acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section. The assessment instructions or unit outline will give guidance of the types of tools that are permitted and how the tools should be used.

Your final submitted work must be your own, original work. You must acknowledge any use of generative AI tools that have been used in the assessment, and any material that forms part of your submission must be appropriately referenced. For guidance on how to acknowledge the use of AI, please refer to the AI in Education Canvas site.

The unapproved use of these tools or unacknowledged use will be considered a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy and penalties may apply.

Studiosity is permitted unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission as detailed on the Learning Hub’s Canvas page.

Outside assessment tasks, generative AI tools may be used to support your learning. The AI in Education Canvas site contains a number of productive ways that students are using AI to improve their learning.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Introduction to this unit of study (1 online lecture)	Individual study (1 hr)
Week 02	Describing Pitch (5 online lectures)	Online class (1 hr)
Week 03	Describing Rhythm and Tempo (5 online lectures)	Online class (1 hr)
Week 04	Describing Expressive Techniques, Instrumentation and Orchestration, Texture and Timbre (4 online lectures)	Online class (1 hr)
Week 05	Describing Structure (large and small) and Genre	Online class (1 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

As per the Sydney Conservatorium of Music resolutions, http://sydney.edu.au/handbooks/conservatorium/rules/faculty_resolutions.shtml (Item 12):

Students are expected to attend a minimum of 90% of timetabled activities for a unit of study, unless granted exemption by the Associate Dean (Education). The Associate Dean (Education) may determine that a student fails a unit of study because of inadequate attendance. Alternatively, at their discretion, they may set additional assessment items where attendance is lower than 90%.

This will not be rigorously enforced this semester due to COVID-19. Nevertheless it is in students’ best interest to attend the tutorials.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 2 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 40-50 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

All readings and musical examples are provided on the Canvas site.

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. Students will be able to accurately describe different facets of a piece of music that is heard, using correct music terminology.
LO2. Students will use critical thinking in working through relative importances and functions of the musical elements in a given excerpt of music, and will provide justification of this based on evidence and consideration of other possibilities
LO3. Students will use oral and written communication skills, including in digital formats, to present their analytical findings, and be able to communicate accurately about music in different contexts.
LO4. Students will employ analytical inventiveness to piece together different musical elements from a musical excerpt, and then combine them to provide unique or individual insights into that music’s construction.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

Students were concerned that they should be able to select their own piece to analyse for the final assignment. Unfortunately this will not be possible due to marking times.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect