Module MUSI42760: Orchestration and Arranging Project

Department: Music

MUSI42760: Orchestration and Arranging Project

Prerequisites

• None.

Corequisites

• None.

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None.

Aims

• To provide an opportunity for independent research into Orchestration and Arranging, within the context of the Western Classical Music tradition as an area of specialism at MA level
• To facilitate the acquisition of advanced skills and techniques in orchestration and arranging
• To enable students to develop a critical understanding of and reflective approach to the practices of orchestration and arranging

Content

• Under the guidance of the module leader the student will prepare a portfolio of arrangements/orchestrations of varied musical works

Learning Outcomes

• Students will become familiar with a range of advanced arranging techniques, as well as the perspective and critical understanding required to apply them, where appropriate, to their own research.
• advanced knowledge of chosen areas of specialism in orchestration and arranging
• advanced understanding of theoretical and methodological approaches relevant to orchestration and arranging
• knowledge appropriate to work at Masters level of the research context and of scholarly and creative work previously undertaken in orchestration and arranging
• advanced knowledge of relevant musical repertories
• advanced knowledge of relevant creative and performative praxes

• Students will acquire the skills necessary to produce arrangements/orchestrations with fluency and authority.
• advanced critical skills in the close reading and analysis of texts
• critically- and historically-informed awareness of technical and aesthetic dimensions of musical works
• an in-depth understanding of the ways in which music relates to its socio-cultural context
• skill in articulating and substantiating at a high level a refined and imaginative response to orchestration and arranging
• advanced knowledge and understanding of concepts and theories relating to the study of orchestration and arranging
• sophisticated skills of effective communication and argument
• expertise in conventions of scholarly presentation, and bibliographic skills including accurate citation of sources and consistent use of scholarly conventions of presentation

• The module will facilitate the development of the techniques of orchestration and arrangement that are most appropriate for the articulation of each student's musical ideas.
• engage in close readings of a wide range of challenging texts (musical, verbal, audio-visual, as appropriate)
• deploy independent research skills using appropriate specialist tools and resources;
• synthesise complex materials from a wide range of sources and to present them cogently in the form of written documents, oral reports, presentations, and musical performances, as appropriate
• demonstrate competence in information technology skills to support MA learning and research (e.g. by means of: word-processing and music-processing software; databases; presentation software; audiovisual editing and analysis software; graph- and image-processing; web-based resources; relevant technologies)
• deploy advanced knowledge of professional conduct in meeting academic standards, including appropriate use of relevant ethical codes of practice and correct referencing of sources
• deploy problem-solving skills
• deploy organisational skills, including time management
• demonstrate the ability to design and execute a major project appropriate to the chosen area of specialism which is conceptually and methodologically sound, meets appropriate professional standards, and is potentially worthy of dissemination to a critical and discerning audience

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Students’ choice of repertoire will be subject to the approval of the Board of Studies. Supervisions will provide students with guidance on all aspects of the project and feedback on work-in-progress, but without jeopardising the independence of their research.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Supervisors may set brief formative tasks at their discretion, or at the request of the student.

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University