Written by Anne-Marie Forbes, Conservatorium of Music

Introduction

FCB112 History of Jazz is an elective unit and is recommended for those in the contemporary music stream. The unit provides a survey of the development of jazz styles, their musical characteristics and major proponents from the advent of ragtime to modern jazz. These developments are discussed with reference to socio-political context. The development of Australian jazz is also studied. Students also gain familiarity with selected jazz repertory and the ability to identify hallmarks of specific regional or historical styles (eg New Orleans , Chicago , swing, be-bop and so on).

This unit forms a group with other music history offerings such as FCH220 Music History (Antiquity - 1680) and FCH320 Music History (1880-Present). FCB112 is a unit that is popular with both music majors and students from other faculties. Because the unit is based on recordings rather than scores, it is not necessary for students to be able to read music (although, of course it is encouraged). Some other music history units are based on reading scores and therefore this does not apply. Part of any music degree is of course music literacy, practical ensemble work and subject-specific terminology in music theory. However, history units are equally important for the well-rounded music graduate.

One objective of FCB112 is to provide training in music research, skills or information literacy skills that matter to the music student. Staff assess for the attribute information literacy through the library research assignment. This assessment piece is designed to show whether or not the student is capable of searching out the required material, citing it appropriately and understanding its relevance. Students are assisted in achieving this assessment through their lecture work and tutorial tests.

Another objective is to encourage students to apply technical skills appropriate to the discipline. Staff assess for this attribute through the listening tests. This assessment piece is designed to show whether or not the student is capable of identifying the hallmarks of specific historical or regional styles of jazz music. Students are assisted in achieving this assessment through their tutorial work, and learn the aural comprehension and analytic skills essential to the successful musician.

Linking attributes and objectives

The unit outline provided states that at the completion of FCB112, students will have:

1. gained an understanding of the historical development of jazz styles;
   
2. developed an awareness of the evolution of the role and position of jazz in Western society;
   
3. developed skills for basic music research in aspects of popular music, and
   
4. gained familiarity with selected jazz repertory and the ability to identify the hallmarks of specific regional or historical styles.

Here we will be concerned with objectives (3) and (4), which reflect the generic graduate attribute exemplar - applying technical and information skills to a particular discipline .

Ability to apply information skills relevant to the discipline

FCB112 attempts to instil information literacy skills that music students will use for the remainder of their degree. These skills must be relevant to the discipline however, note that objective (3) above refers to 'skills for basic music research'. The information skills needed by the music graduate differ from those required by other majors.

Ability to apply technical skills relevant to the discipline

Musicians are required to achieve a high level of technical skill in their chosen instrument. These technical skills are not limited to the actual playing of that instrument, listening skills form an integral part of the musicians skills base. FCB112 helps students to become proficient in this skill, and to appreciate its crucial role in the musician's life.

Linking attributes and assessment

There are five pieces of assessment in this unit. They are: library research assignment, listening test, three tutorial tests, essay and end of semester examination. The library research assignment and the listening test will be the main focus of this discussion, but it is also important to note that the other pieces of assessment are also designed with certain attributes in mind.

Forexample the three tutorial tests (15%) assist the student to

• identify, evaluate and implement personal learning strategies .

The tests consist of multiple-choice questions and definitions of terms. Tutorial tests are a means of giving students feedback about the types of answers they are providing, in terms of their accuracy and appropriateness (or lack thereof). Since the introduction of tutorial tests exam standards have improved, partly because students are better informed of how much detail is required in a certain question. There is no doubt the tutorial tests help the students to revise during the unit and gain sound study habits.

In addition the essay (1200 words, 25%) assesses students'

• ability to communicate effectively, and
• ability to appreciate disciplines other than their own .

The essay is expected to be critical rather than merely descriptive. Students chose from a range of topics such as - Discuss the parallels between jazz and the fine arts after WWII . These kinds of questions take students outside their own discipline and lead to a respect for the contribution of other disciplines and professional areas.

Assessing the ability to apply information skills relevant to the discipline through the library research assignment (10%)

The library research assignment tests whether or not the student has developed skills for basic music research in aspects of popular music. In other words it tests their competencies in information literacy . The assignment consists of a series of questions, the answers to which the students must discover for themselves in the library. It asks students to:

1. Find and use dictionaries and encyclopedias of popular music
   
   Students are required to master the usage of the database known as the International Index of Music Periodicals, or IIMP. This database is used to find the location of a certain article.
   
2. •  Find actual recordings of certain pieces of music
   
   If the recording proves elusive, the student must refer to a discography, or catalogue of recordings. This kind of assignment is designed to test whether or not the student has the research tools that they will later need to complete essays and reports. It functions as a practice run at skills such as acquiring and synthesising information, and formatting for bibliographic referencing, before it is time to tackle the essay.
   
3. •  Accurately cite recordings, for example the need for both label and disc number
   
   As a history unit, FCB112 is more concerned with individual recordings of pieces than with actual scores. Recordings form the primary source material for the unit, and therefore their citation must be extremely precise.
   
4. •  Accurately use footnotes
   
   Students are required to submit a brief report, that must contain at least one direct and one indirect footnote. The difference between the two is discussed earlier in class, and examples are provided. Feedback is given in order that by the time they come to the essay, the student can use footnotes well. This part of the assignment was instituted because there was clear evidence of need in the area of information literacy. Since its introduction in 2001 referencing standards in the essays have markedly improved.

Assessing the ability to apply technical skills appropriate to the discipline area through the listening test (10%)

All musicians require certain technical skills. One way of testing whether or not a student has gained familiarity with selected jazz repertory and the ability to identify the hallmarks of specific regional or historical styles is to carry out listening tests. Students are provided with an anthology of pieces on CD, and are expected to be able to recognise them. During the test students must listen to twenty pieces of music and then identify ten of them. They must not only know the artist and the name of the piece, but also which part of the piece they are hearing. Students must learn to understand concepts such as riffs, 12-bar blues, modal improvisation and recognition of solo instuments. Of the ten pieces, eight are from the student's CD, and two are other pieces from the genre, which are randomly chosen. This requires that students apply certain styles that they recognise, to make informed guesses about who the composer/performer of the unknown piece might be. They learn to integrate their knowledge and apply it to pieces they have not as yet encountered. This involves considerable technical skill, and knowledge that is specific to the discipline.

The teaching pattern

This unit is taught through a one two-hour lecture, and one one-hour tutorial per week. Lectures are relatively informal, comprising large and small group discussions. In these groups students are encouraged to discuss their ideas and pose questions about the music that they are listening to. For example, students are asked to reflect upon what it is that makes a certain piece of music popular at any given time - the effects of marketing, socio-economic factors and so on. These sessions involve brainstorming and peer assisted learning.

Tutorials focus on selected jazz repertory and the development of skills for aural comprehension of jazz styles and structures. It is here that students are prepared to succeed in their listening tests.

Students are encouraged to make use of the class web page, which makes available the details of assignment questions, weekly handouts for each lecture, lists of recordings used in class and a weekly outline including the dates of tutorial tests. The web site also provides links to external resources about relevant historical material to reinforce what is taught in lectures.

Conclusion

The ability of music students to apply technical and information skills is the key element of this unit. To be able to complete research activities associated with music demonstrates a student's competency in information literacy through library research, locating actual recordings and accurately reference the recordings. A student's technical skill in identifying a piece of music, its origin and artist is also assessed in this unit through listening tests.

The unit also provides the opportunity for students from other faculties to develop a knowledge base in music and respect the contribution of other disciplines, an exemplar of the Knowledge attribute.

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