Assignment 2: A playlist (1000 words).
Released on 22 November 2021.
Due on 9 December 2021 at 4pm GMT.
30% of final mark.
Assignment aims:
This playlist (1000 words) will give you an opportunity to reflect on your music tastes, your preferences and your knowledge of a broad repertory, creating a narrative to go with it and tell your story. It will also give you a chance to think about how to design music programmes and insights into the ways in which professional playlist curators operate. Through research on your selected topic, you will also gain insights on your chosen theme, your target audiences’ tastes according to demographic, and the role playlists play in shaping people’s musical tastes (70% of final mark).
Collecting the metadata for each item on your playlist will help you demonstrate your research skills (30% of final mark).
Assignment instructions:
A playlist is an annotated listening list (or discography) structured around a theme (similar to the topic of an essay). You must justify your theme and choices with an introduction setting out their scope, identify your audience and explain why you think a specific target demographic will be interested in your playlist. You need to provide evidence of research to justify your choices. You will then create a list of 10 items and for each item you will need to provide the following essential metadata:
Track title
Orchestra/band name/Artist/Performer
Album name
Record label
Writer/lyricist/composer
Publisher
Genre/sub-genre
Track length
Year of song composition
Year of track release (this may be different from the year of song composition, so be careful which version you are referring to).
Here are two examples for you:
EXAMPLE 1
Track title
Hallelujah
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Jeff Buckley
Album name
Grace
Record label
Columbia Records
Writer/lyricist/composer
Leonard Cohen
Publisher
Sony/atv Songs Llc
Genre/sub-genre
Alternative Rock/Folk Rock/Blues
Track length
05:22
Year of song composition
1984
Year of track release
1994
EXAMPLE 2
Track title
II. Molto Vivace, Symphony No.9 in D minor, Op.125
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Claudio Abbado/ J Eaglen, W Meier, B Heppner, B Terfel; Berlin Phil; Berlin Philharmoniker
Album name
Beethoven Symphonie NR. 9
Record label
Sony
Writer/lyricist/composer
Ludwig van Beethoven
Publisher
Out of Copyright. Original composition in Public Domain.
Genre/sub-genre
Classical
Track length
13:50
Year of song composition
1822-1824
Year of track release
1996
Your work will be assessed for the completeness and interest of the “story” it tells and the accuracy of the information you provide for each track.
Please note: for classical, traditional, some folk music and in general for music composed around 50-70 years ago, it might not be possible to identify the publisher. The work might be out of copyright in certain countries or in public domain. In these cases you can leave the publisher line empty if you are not sure and you won’t be penalised for doing so.
Formatting and presentation instructions:
Use Arial 12pt if using Microsoft Word, or equivalent font and size if using any other software.
For references, we recommend using a so-called “author-date” system of your choice: Chicago (author-date), APA, MLA or Harvard are all very good options. Instructions on how to use these systems can be found here. Referencing software is available to help you with your references here.
You must include a list of references at the end of your assignment.
Assignment
Rationale behind your playlist. What is the theme that runs through all the pieces you chose to include? How is it relevant to you? This could be a classical piano technique, a colour, a season, a mood or emotion, an idea, a composer. It’s really your choice.
(max 500 words)
Do you envision a particular sequence for these pieces, or can they be shuffled? Why?
(max 100 words)
Who is your target demographic for this playlist and why do you think they will be interested?
(max 400 words)
Your playlist of 10 items. For each item you need to include the relevant metadata listed in the assignment instructions
TRACK 1
Track title
Do you want to build a snowman?
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Album name
Record label
Writer/lyricist/composer
Publisher
Genre/sub-genre
Track length
Year of song composition
Year of track release
TRACK 2
Track title
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Album name
Record label
Writer/lyricist/composer
Publisher
Genre/sub-genre
Track length
Year of song composition
Year of track release
TRACK 3
Track title
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Album name
Record label
Writer/lyricist/composer
Publisher
Genre/sub-genre
Track length
Year of song composition
Year of track release
TRACK 4
Track title
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Album name
Record label
Writer/lyricist/composer
Publisher
Genre/sub-genre
Track length
Year of song composition
Year of track release
TRACK 5
Track title
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Album name
Record label
Writer/lyricist/composer
Publisher
Genre/sub-genre
Track length
Year of song composition
Year of track release
TRACK 6
Track title
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Album name
Record label
Writer/lyricist/composer
Publisher
Genre/sub-genre
Track length
Year of song composition
Year of track release
TRACK 7
Track title
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Album name
Record label
Writer/lyricist/composer
Publisher
Genre/sub-genre
Track length
Year of song composition
Year of track release
TRACK 8
Track title
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Album name
Record label
Writer/lyricist/composer
Publisher
Genre/sub-genre
Track length
Year of song composition
Year of track release
TRACK 9
Track title
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Album name
Record label
Writer/lyricist/composer
Publisher
Genre/sub-genre
Track length
Year of song composition
Year of track release
TRACK 10
Track title
Orchestra/Band/Artist/
Performer
Album name
Record label
Writer/lyricist/composer
Publisher
Genre/sub-genre
Track length
Year of song composition
Year of track release
Before you submit your playlist, ask yourself these questions, which will be used to mark your work:
Content:
Have I provided a thorough and precise description of the theme of my playlist, of the target audience, and of why I think the pieces I chose fit within my narrative?
Am I analysing the theme I chose, the reasons why I think the pieces I chose will fit well and how I identified my target audience and why? Am I discussing, engaging critically, drawing connections and am I asking “why” and “how” my playlist will have a certain effect on people, for example, in addition to stating my choices? Tips on critical thinking can be found here and in related links: https://library.soton.ac.uk/sash/critical-thinking
Are my interpretations original and creative? Am I offering a novel approach to this problem or theme? Am I demonstrating my own expertise in this subject? Am I using examples that beyond those that were not discussed in class?
Research:
Am I demonstrating that I researched the theme of my playlist, that what I say about the music is correct and relevant, that my target audience has been chosen according to data and research I have done?
Am I drawing on the relevant recorded lectures, discussions in seminars, and all the other sources we have explored during the semester? Am I demonstrating that I engaged with the module and what was discussed?
To what extent am I expanding from what was discussed in class, bringing in more relevant topics, sources, connections?
Am I using reliable sources? If using blogs or other online sources written by anonymous authors, can I verify that the information they give is correct and reliable using other sources?
Am I acknowledging all the sources I am using, including online resources, lectures and seminars? Tips of academic integrity can be found on this page and related links: https://library.soton.ac.uk/sash/what-is-academic-integrity
Communication:
Is my description well structured, clear, precise? Am I repeating myself, or are there concepts/ideas that could be discussed together to avoid repetitions? Would using bullet points help with clarity?
Are my opinions and arguments clearly expressed?
Is my prose clear enough that my reader will find my argument easy to understand? Am I using too many words to say something I could say in a more concise way? Tips of academic writing can be found here and in related links: https://library.soton.ac.uk/sash/what-is-academic-integrity
Is my referencing consistent? Will my reader be able to find the source I used?
Have I included a list of references at the end?
Presentation:
Did I carefully check my text for spelling and typos?
Am I presenting my assignment in a way that shows my attention to details? Is the formatting correct, so that there are no problems of inconsistent indents, changes of font type, use of bold or italics where it is not necessary etc.?
22 November 2021
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