Sample Essay Questions and Projects

Music of North India

Listening Response Essay #1

This week's listening response essay involves comparing and contrasting two musical examples--one vocal and one instrumental.

Please begin by selecting one of the vocal dhrupad performances included in this week's listening list. Then select one of the instrumental performances. Once you've selected two examples (one vocal and one instrumental), please listen to both recordings in their entirety (I know they're long, but that's the point of this exercise).

While listening, note the instrumentation of each performance. Is the soloist a vocalist or instrumentalist? (This will be obvious, I hope). For the vocal performance, is there one singer or two? If two, how are they interacting? Are they singing together or in alternation? Does one appear to be leading and the other following? If the soloist is an instrumentalist, which instrument are they playing? For each example, also be sure to discuss which other instruments, if any, are present in addition to the vocal or instrumental soloist(s). These could include drone instruments, such as the tanpura, or instruments of rhythmic accompaniment, such as the tabla or pakhawaj.

Also note where major structural changes occur in each performance. Is there an alap? If so, where (in the time code of the YouTube clip) does it end? Is there a jor? If so, where does it begin and end?  If there is rhythmic accompaniment present, where does it enter? Where do the performers noticeably increase the lay (tempo)? Where does the overall density of notes noticeably increase or decrease? How does each performance end? 

Remember, the jor can be considered part of the larger alap movement in the Hindustani performance arc, which includes everything prior to the introduction of a metered composition with rhythmic accompaniment. For our purposes, however, consider the alap and jor independently, meaning that once a steady pulse is introduced, the alap is over and the jor has begun. If these terms are unfamiliar, please revisit Lecture 3 for reference.

Finally, compare and contrast the ways the soloists explore their respective ragas. Can you identify any influences of vocal dhrupad in the instrumental performance? What strikes you as similar between the two performances you chose? What strikes you as distinct in one or the other?

Feel free to reflect on how you connect (or don't) with the performances and why.

The 1970s: A Decade in Rock

Final Projects: Album Reviews (20% of final course grade)

  • For your final project you are expected to write an original album review of approx. 750-800 words (As always, quality is more important than quantity!)

  • Begin by choosing one album from the 1970s you want to explore in detail. This can be an album we've covered in class or something you choose. If there’s a 70s album you're eager to discuss that wasn’t covered in the course, this is the perfect time to engage with it.

    1. Once you pick an album, review the album in the style of a rock critic (i.e. this is a creative writing project, not a book report)

      • For full credit:

        • Be sure to discuss each track on the album at least briefly

        • Demonstrate evidence of critical listening, analysis of lyrics, and clear familiarity with the artist and album in question

        • Attempt to situate the music in its social and historical context. This may require a bit of additional research.

        • Reference at least one existing review of the album you've chosen (search Rock Backpages (requires UCSC library login) and AllMusic.com)

        • When using Rock Backpages, if you select "advanced search" it's really easy to limit search results to album reviews from a specific time period

          • Please reach out to me or one of your TAs if you have trouble finding a suitable review

        • Proofread your work! Submissions should be legible and free of glaring spelling and grammatical errors

        • Be sure to cite any outside sources, including the existing album review(s) you find. Any citation format is fine as long as you're consistent.

        • Be creative and allow your unique voice, observations, and writing style to show through. This is supposed to be fun!!

A quick note on formatting: When writing about music, album names should always be italicized (e.g. The Dark Side of the Moon) and song names should always be offset in quotations (e.g. "Time" or "The Great Gig in the Sky")