Final Presentation Requirements

Presentation Day: Thursday, December 10th, 2009.

For your final presentation (which counts as your final exam mark), you need to present and discuss a recent English song. The song should not be older than 15 years.

You need to hand in a typed document which should contain the following:

1) Metadata

2) Full lyrics and indication of the Song Structure.

3) A summary of the lyrics, the topic and the themes, as well as identification of poetic devices, if any.

- Becoming Familiar with a Song

- Topic, Idea, and Theme

- Mention its social significance. (E.g. Does it have any effecy on society? Does it make social comment? Is it representative of social or political ideas?)

4) A full analysis of the music:

- Melody: Use appropriate vocabulary like “pitch,” “scales,” “melodic contour,” “ascending and descending motion,” “range,” “countermelody,” and so on.

- Harmony: Use appropriate vocabulary like “chord progression” and “dissonance and consonance.”

- Rhythm: Use appropriate vocabulary like “polyrhythm,” “syncopation,” and so on.

- Other: Orchestration & Instruments Dynamics / Timbre / Texture / Density / Form

5) A historic contextualization (Which previous genres influenced this song).

- Write a short essay in which you discuss what genres of music influenced the song you are presenting.


Keep the complexity of the song in mind:

Choose your song carefully. Keep the level of complexity of the song in mind. If the song that you choose is complex, you will probably have more to say about it. An analysis of a complex song is likely to get higher grades than an easy analysis of a simple song. However, if the song is too complex, it may take too long to discuss, which means that you may not be able to finish it in time.

Class presentation:

Your class presentation should be a summary of your full analysis. During your presentation you will play the song to the class and provide the metadata, and the lyrics with the song structure indicated; after which you summarize the lyrics, indicating the topic & idea, and theme(s). Also point out poetic devices if appropriate. Finally, give a short analysis of the music with reference to the melody, harmony, rhythm, and other important aspects. You do not have to play the whole song, you need only play sections that will reveal the points you wish to explain. Remember to mention the historical musical influences on the song, and be sure to mention if the song has any social significance.

Your whole presentation should be around 5 minutes.