Learning objectives
At the end of the course students will have THE KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING of the essential historical lines of 20th-century music. They will then be able to identify the most appropriate texts to deepen the specific research fields of their study paths with JUDGMENT AUTONOMY. They will have acquired the necessary KNOWLEDGE TO APPLY to critical listening of music as an artistic expression and form of knowledge and expression of thought. Without requiring analytical and technical skills in music, however, it is necessary to acquire sufficient COMMUNICATION SKILLS to describe the experience of listening to music with correct terminology. Students will also acquire the LEARNING SKILLS needed to understand piece of music in order to identify their particular traits and traditions.
Prerequisites
No prerequisite beyond normal literary and historical formation guaranteed by upper secondary school. In particular, no previous music training is required.
Course unit content
Musical sound in the twentieth century. The music of the last century has radically modified the concept of musical sound, and also forced the language to reassess the distinctions between 'sound' and 'noise'. The course studies this transformation and the idea of sound as an artistic material. It focuses on electronic sound and manipulation / transformation of sound in electroacoustic laboratories and recording studios. Thus, through the examination of the historical path, he identifies aspects shared by different genres and musical styles, between academic music and popular music, artistic research and sound design.
Bibliography
- “Enciclopedia della musica”, I: “Il Novecento”, a cura di J-J. Nattiez, Torino, Einaudi, 2001, le voci: Marc Battier, “La scienza e la tecnologia come fonti d’inspirazione”, pp. 360-79, Franco Fabbri, “La canzone”, pp. 551-568, Luca Marconi, “Muzak, “Jingle”, videoclips”, pp. 675-700, Allan E. Moore, “Come si ascolta la popular music”, pp. 701- 718.
- “Enciclopedia della musica”, II: “Il sapere musicale”, a cura di J-J. Nattiez, Torino, Einaudi, 2002, voce: Jean-Claude Risset, “Il timbro”, pp. 89-115
- Virgilio Bernardoni, Paolo Fabbri, “Musica e società”, III: “Dal 1830 al 2000”, Lucca, LIM, 2016, capitoli: Nicola Bizzaro, “Nuove musiche”, pp. 414-447, Ida De Benedictis, “Le nuove frontiere del suono”, pp. 500-525, Franco Fabbri, “La popular music”, 615-638, Pietro Cavallotti, “La globalizzazione dell’ascolto”, pp. 649-668.
- Franco Fabbri, “Around the clock. Una breve storia della popular music”, Torino, Utet, 2008, pp. 153-199.
- Serge Lacasse, Messa in scena vocale e funzione narrativa in “Front Row” di Alanis Morissette, in Analisi della popular music, a cura di Roberto d’Agostini e Luca Marconi, «Rivista di analisi e teoria musicale» 2002/2, pp. 154-179
- Gianmario Borio, Serena Facci, Quarant’anni dopo. Una musicologia pluralistica per il rock britannico, e Lelio Camilleri, Loop, trasformazioni e spazio sonoro, entrambi in Composizione e sperimentazione nel rock britannico 1967-1976. Atti del convegno internazionale di studi (Cremona, 20-22 ottobre 2005), a cura di Gianmario Borio e Serena Facci, «Philomusica Online», numero speciale, 2005, http://www-3.unipv.it/britishrock1966-1976/sagiit.htm
- Lelio Camilleri, Suono e immagini: l’audiovisione e Intreccio sonoro e intreccio audiovisivo in Id, Il peso del suono. Forme d'uso del sonoro ai fini comunicativi, Milano, Apogeo, 2005, rispettivamente alle pp.71-101 e 141-177.
- Fortuna, Sandra, Consigli per gli acquisti: La musica negli spot, in “MusicaDomani”, 168-169, Settembre-dicembre, 2013, pp. 6-11
- Ascolto di almeno 15 opere novecentesche, a scelta dello studente tra diversi generi e tradizioni compositive. In sede di esame verrà richiesto l’elenco delle composizioni scelte dallo studente.
Non-attending students must listen to at least 15 further works chosen among those mentioned in the bibliography and must study, in addition to the complete bibliography for attending students, also these texts:
Lelio Camilleri, “Il peso del suono”, Milano, Apogeo, 2005 (o la nuova edizione in e-book).
Da “Enciclopedia della musica” I: “Il Novecento”, cit.: François Delalande, “Il paradigma elettroacustico”, pp. 380-403, Marc Battier, “Laboratori”, pp. 406-419, Alessandro Arbo, “Breve storia del rumore, da Rousseau a Grisey”, in «Musicalia», I, 2004, pp. 29-51 (http://www.libraweb.net/articoli.php?chiave=200405201&rivista=52)
- Le dispense del ing. Campanini, disponibili sulle pagine del corso nella piattaforma Elly e
- William Moyland, “L’arte della registrazione Comprendere e creare la qualità sonora, Milano”, Hoepli, 2002, pp. 286: Cap. 3, “ Il messaggio musicale e l’ascoltatore”, pp.55-74; cap. 4, “Ascolto e valutazione del suono da parte dei professionisti dell’audio”, pp. 77-89; cap. 11, “Giudizio artistico sul processo di registrazione”, pp. 217-220; cap. 12, “Estetica e registrazione”, pp. 221-233; cap. 15, “Elaborazioni artistiche finali e panoramica sulle sequenze della produzione musicale”, pp. 273-286.
Teaching methods
The course will be comprehend front lessons and classroom discussions of the video or audio examples proposed: a great space will be devoted to the listening experience, from which the teacher will move for analysis, comments and insights. During the lessons, the terminology needed for a brief analytical description of the listening experience will be proposed and illustrated.
Three 12-hour workshops are planned, dedicated respectively to recording of music, psychoacoustics and popular music production.
Assessment methods and criteria
The test will consist of an oral interview at the end of the course according to the official calendar appointed by the Department. The interview will concern on the bibliography indicated after the first lessons, and at least fifteen Nineteenth Century music pieces chosen by the student. The interview will verify the understanding of the texts listed in bibliography; it will also verify the student's ability to navigate in the musical structures of the works chosen: the students will therefore have to listen to them more than once while studying the critical texts. Failure to know the works is a cause of insufficiency.
The ability to elaborate further knowledge and to ask the teacher relevant questions will result in excellence.The lack of knowledge of the 15 musical works and the lack of an understanding of the minimum content of the course are cause for failure of the verification. The ability to express oneself adequately, to solve problems related to information retrieval and the decoding of complex texts, as well as the ability to make independent judgments will be evaluated on a scale of thirty degrees.
The ability to develop further knowledge and to ask the teacher pertinent questions, even during the test, will result excellence. Likewise, the ability of integrated readings and cross-connections between the texts listed in the bibliography will cause excellent results.
Other information
To define the complete study program for critical historical texts, and for music, I need to know the learning group. Therefore, the extended program will then be indicated after the first lessons of the course.
