Course syllabus

 

SEMESTER 2, 2017
Course Information

• Lecturer: Dr. Kirsten Zemke

HSB 808; ext 88415 k.zemke@auckland.ac.nz

 Course outline and reading 234 2017.pdf

• Course delivery format

2 hours of lectures Wed (4-6) and 1 hour of lecture Thurs (11-12)

 

• Dr Suzanne Woodward

HSB 544 s.woodward@auckland.ac.nz 

Drop-in Hours: Wednesday 3-4pm, Thursday 11-1pm

 

• Course Description              

The purpose of this paper is to traverse and analyse contemporary musics produced in the Pacific region, applying critical questions of authenticity, tradition, modernisation, Westernization, identity, sovereignty and Diaspora. We will look at various artists, genre, sub genre, musical techniques, modes of distribution, and media transmissions. The paper is designed to provide students with a comprehensive awareness and acknowledgment of popular musics in the Pacific region, while at the same time furnishing an opportunity to introduce students to academic literature on popular music with its incumbent themes of: transmission, culture, ethnicity, colonization, globalisation, hybridization, consumerism, post-modernism, and feminism.

 

Course outcomes

•  Introduce the studying of Pacific Popular Musics from an academic perspective
• Communicate research-based understandings of Pacific Popular Musics.
• Approach the academic writing on Pacific Popular Musics.
• Enhance students’ knowledge of key periods, styles and artists of Pacific Popular Musics.
• Elevate the intellectual and cultural prominence of Pacific Popular Musics by their inclusion in the academic curriculum and the application of academic theory to their study.

Learning outcomes 

At the completion of the course students are expected to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of some of the theory areas relating to Pacific Popular Musics.
• Be familiar with some of the various genre and historical periods of Pacific Popular Musics.
• Be able to apply theoretical perspectives to various genre and historical periods of Pacific Popular Musics.
• Demonstrate skills in reading, note taking, critical thinking and writing at the appropriate level

 

Weekly Topics 

 

Week 1 Introduction

Week 2 Golden Oldies

Week 3 Hawaii

Week 4 World Music

Week 5 Aotearoa Maori

Week 6 Gender

 

Week 7 Hip Hop

Week 8 Soul, R ‘n’ B

Week 9 Reggae

Week 10 Presentations

Week 11 Presentations

Week 12 Presentations

 

 

Coursework:

The coursework for this paper represents 40% of your total mark for the paper (the exam is worth 60%). The coursework consists of:

• 10%- Article Comparison ONE (800 words) Due 18^th August
• 10%- Article Comparison TWO (800 words) Due 15^th  September
• 20%- Presentation: “What is Pacific Music” playlist (3 components- plan, presentation, liner notes)

 

Exam:

The exam is worth 60% of the course assessment.

The exam consists of essays answering questions based on the lecture topics. Your answers will come from lectures, course readings, and your own examples of artists and songs.

 

Deadlines and submission of coursework:

Deadlines for coursework are non-negotiable. In extreme circumstances, you may seek an extension but you will be required to provide a doctor's or counselling certificate attached to your essay file when uploaded into Canvas. Late assignments without a certificate attached will be penalised one mark per week late- up until two weeks beyond the due date. After that no work will be accepted.