Excerpts

PREFACE: To the Instructor Perspectives on Music was created to increase the flexibility for teachers of music appreciation classes and to enhance student learning and enjoyment. These goals are pursued primarily through two significant differences between the standard music appreciation textbook and Perspectives on Music. An equal amount of time is spent on popular and classical music styles, rather than an emphasis primarily on classical music. The usual listening guides are replaced with more interactive Listening Activities. The first of these changes stems from my belief that popular music is an important part of contemporary music culture, something students will enjoy learning more about while still honing their listening skills. Studying popular musical styles that are more familiar to the students can increase their confidence when they begin studying classical music, while also improving their overall satisfaction with the course. The second of these changes, the use of Listening Activities, stems in part from the pedagogical research of Barbara E. Walvoord of Notre Dame University. Following her approach that uses more skills-oriented teaching, the Listening Activities in Perspectives on Music give students much more practice in listening attentively than do most music appreciation textbooks. The Listening Activities also provide greater flexibility for instructors, as is shown below. Further discussion of Walvoord's teaching principles can be found in the Instructor's Manual accompanying this book. There are also several other features of Perspectives on Music that are aimed at improving the flexibility for the instructor and the experience for the student: 1. Possibility for Modular Teaching. The Styles section of the book, Chapters 7 through 15, is written so that it is easier for instructors to reorganize and cut out chapters to suit their needs. These chapters are written as self-contained units, with only occasional references to different styles or periods. This flexibility is intended both to suit the individual needs of instructors and the changing needs of an instructor from term to term. One professor might enjoy discussing classical music and jazz, and wish to focus on these styles in the class; another might want to teach only the classical material, or emphasize the popular styles more. Or it might happen that in a particular semester a fine jazz artist will be coming to an instructor's university late in the term. The instructor can simply move Chapter 8, "JAZZ," to the end of the syllabus. 2. More Flexibility. The Listening Activities are designed to be used in a wide variety of ways, depending on the needs and preferences of the instructor. In a small class, an instructor might assign some or all of the Listening Activities and grade them, or have them graded by a teaching assistant, if one is available. They can also be assigned, but simply checked off and not graded. The Activities can also be used simply for the students' own use, as training for the listening skills they will need to exhibit on exams or in concert reports. Finally, the Activities can be a most effective tool for in-class work. Compared with the standard prewritten listening guide, students will remain more engaged in the lecture if they are asked to fill in the answers as the instructor works out a solution in class. 3. Pedagogical Aids. The textbook is designed with several devices to aid student learning: Important terms are listed in the margins of the textbook; these terms are gathered together at the end of each chapter as Key Terms, and also defined in the on-line Glossary; and once or twice per chapter there is a concise summary of the material covered, under the heading Checkpoints. The companion website has extra Listening Activities and dozens of MIDI files to illustrate examples in the text. 4. A More Graphic Look. The textbook is aimed at students with no musical background. Many music appreciation textbooks feature musical examples, but I have found this can leave behind those students who have no training on instruments or voice. Instead, Perspectives makes use of graphic illustrations to represent musical lines, aiding those students who learn visually, but not unfairly favoring those with a musical background. 5. Elimination of Early Music. Every textbook must make some compromises. Here, because of the extra emphasis given to the blues, jazz, rock, and Latino musical styles, some classical music had to be cut. One reason for this decision has to do with the availability of concerts. Despite the Early Music revival, concerts of classical music written since 1700 are still easier to find for those instructors who use concert reports as a part of class work. This decision also stems from the difficulty of adequately explaining to beginning music students the millennium of music before the Common Practice Period. It is my hope that Perspectives on Music will prove easy to adopt for those using a standard music appreciation textbook, and will be an effective tool for introducing students to the life-long habit of listening attentively to the various musical styles of Western culture. DONALD C. MEYER Highland Park, Illinois Excerpted from Perspectives on Music by Donald C. Meyer All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.