Media Studies 381W:

Popular Music in Film and Television

Wednesdays, 9:00-11:50AM, KY 273

Instructor: Amy Herzog
Email: amyherzog@mindspring.com
Phone: 212-979-1133

Office G-103
Office Hours: by appointment

This course investigates the function of popular music in film, television, and video. Popular music has been a critical component of the film experience since the first days of silent film accompaniment. We will look at the various roles music has played throughout this history, from the earliest sound films to the contemporary movie and television industries in the U.S. Our focus will be on those instances where popular song comes to dominate the structure of a work, either through momentary eruptions in the narrative (in the movie musical or the soundtrack driven feature film, for example) or when music or musical performance are the primary subject (music videos, “rockumentaries,” and televised performances). How, in each instance, is music represented visually? What part do style, taste, and audience play in their manifestations? How are social and historical conditions reflected in different works, and how do conceptions of race, gender, and class come into play? How does music function as a commodity in film and television, and what impact might this have on its creative or artistic potential? We will address these questions through readings, screenings, and written assignments that approach music in film and television from a range of critical and cultural perspectives.

Attendance and Participation: You are expected to attend and actively participate in each class. Participation includes reading assigned material prior to class, asking questions, taking notes, and contributing to discussions. Please arrive on time: two “lates” will count as an absence. Leaving class during the break or during a screening will count as an absence. STUDENTS WHO MISS MORE THAN 3 CLASSES WILL BE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO WITHDRAW. Because the syllabus may be modified periodically, you are responsible for contacting the instructor should you miss a class. TURN OFF ALL CELLULAR DEVICES before class begins.

Journals: Every week, you will be asked to hand in an informal “journal” response to the readings. I am not expecting a polished essay—I am more interested in your candid response to the texts. What did you like? What didn’t you understand? How do the author’s ideas relate to your own understanding of the media? I am also interested in hearing your thoughts about class discussions and screenings. It is mandatory, however, that you write about the assigned readings.
Journals can be handwritten and do not need to be longer than one page. Given your busy schedules, it is understandable if there are weeks when you fall behind—thus you can take 2 “freebe” weeks during the semester when you will not be penalized for missing a journal. Journal entries are due at the beginning of class—late journals will not be accepted.

Discussion Leading: Each week, a group of students will be responsible for presenting questions or responses that will launch our in-class discussion. This can be undertaken individually or collectively (each person might pose a question about a particular reading, bring in a film or video clip that sheds new light on the topic, etc.). This does not need to be a formal or lengthy presentation, but should instead be a means of integrating your interests and perspectives with the course material. In practical terms, it means reading ALL the assigned articles particularly carefully, coming prepared with questions and comments to discuss, and “kick-starting” the discussion in class if it begins to lag. In my experience, discussion leading is more fun and engaging when students bring in outside materials (films, music, articles, images) that relate to the topic or have specific questions about things they did not understand.

Late Policy : Be forewarned: my late policy on papers is very strict. Papers are due at the beginning of class unless otherwise specified. If a paper is late, it will be marked down one full letter grade (e.g. a B+ becomes a C+). If a DRAFT of a paper is late, the grade for the final paper will also be downgraded a letter grade. Papers more than one week late will not be accepted. That said, do NOT skip class if you have not completed an assignment—it is wiser to explain the situation to me than to miss a week of material. I will not give incompletes except in cases of emergency.

Plagiarism: Plagiarism is an EXTREMELY serious offense. All work submitted must be the original work of the student whose name appears on it. ANY text or idea taken from an outside source MUST be carefully cited. Err on the side of caution when preparing your written work: always give credit to all your sources. This is a particularly large problem when students consult websites. Taking text directly from a website without quoting and citing your source constitutes plagiarism.

Plagiarism and other acts of dishonesty will result in an automatic grade of zero for the assignment and notification of the department. Cases may incur further academic penalties, including a failing grade for the course and disciplinary action. There is absolutely no excuse for plagiarism and it will not be pardoned under ANY circumstances.

Grading:

• Participation & Discussion Leading: 10%
• Journals: 10%
• Paper 1 (4-5 pages): 20%
• Research exercise: 5%
• Final Paper Topic: 5%
• Proposal and bibliography & Peer feedback: 10%
• Presentation: 5%
• Final Paper (8-10 pages): 35%

Readings from the textbook indicated by MM.
Articles on e-reserve can be accessed at http://queens.docutek.com/

9/3 Introduction
Review syllabus, key terminology, and first paper assignment.
Screening: Singin’ in the Rain

9/10 The Function of Music in Film
* Claudia Gorbman , “Why Music?: The Sound Film and Its Spectator” [MM]
* Kathryn Kalinak, “The Language of Music” [MM]
Clips: Vertigo, Illusions, Mulholland Dr.

9/17 Jazz and Early Cinema
* Tim Anderson, “Reforming ‘Jackass Music’” [MM]
* Krin Gabbard, “Whose Jazz, Whose Cinema?” [MM]
* Michael Rogin, “New Deal Blackface” on e-reserve
Clips: Birth of a Nation; The Jazz Singer; Soundies; Cabin in the Sky
No journal due this week—will do in-class.
Paper 1 due.

9/24 The Hollywood Musical
* Jane Feuer, “The Self-reflective Musical and the Myth of Entertainment,” on e-reserve
* Rick Altman, “The American Film Musical as Dual-Focus Narrative” on e-reserve.
* Carol J. Clover, “Dancin’ in the Rain” on e-reserve.
Clips: Dames; Grease; Singin’ in the Rain

10/1 The Rock and Roll Film
* Keir Keightley, “Manufacturing Authenticity” [MM]
* Barry K. Grant, “The Classical Hollywood Musical and the ‘Problem’ of Rock and Roll” on e-reserve.
* Thomas Doherty, “Rock ‘n’ Roll Teen Pics” on e-reserve.
Clips: Rock Around the Clock; High School Confidential; Jailhouse Rock; Viva Las Vegas; Rock and Roll High School
Syllabus revision-- journals will be due today.

10/8 The “Rockumentary”
* Stephen Mamber, selections from Cinema Verite in America, on e-reserve.
* Jonathan Romney, “Access All Areas: The Real Space of Rock Documentary” on e-reserve.
Clips: The Harder They Come;Gimme Shelter; Don't Look Back; Woodstock; Spinal Tap; Truth or Dare; MTV Diaries
Syllabus revision-- No journal due this week—will do in-class.
Paper One rewrite due.

10/15 Marketing the Film Soundtrack
* Jeff Smith, “Banking on Film Music” [MM]
* Ian Garwood, “Must You Remember This?” [MM]
* Jeff Smith, “Pretty Women and Dead Presidents: Theme Songs and Soundtrack Albums After 1975” on e-reserve.
Clips: Sleepless in Seattle, Blue Velvet, Pretty Woman, Charlie’s Angels.
Tentative topic due.

10/22 Introduction to Music Videos
* George Lukow, “The Antecedents of MTV” on e-reserve.
* Andrew Goodwin “From Anarchy to Chromakey: Developments in Music Television” on e-reserve.
* Jody Berland, “Sound, Image, and Social Space,” on e-reserve.
Clips: selections from American Bandstand, Hullaballoo; Ready, Steady, Go!; MTV’s TRL; music videos.

10/29 Gender and Music Videos
* Lisa Lewis, “Form and Female Authorship” on e-reserve.
* Tricia Rose, “Bad Sistas: Black Women Rappers and Sexual Politics in Rap Music” on e-reserve.
Clips: music videos.
Research exercise due.

11/5 Heavy Metal
* Will Straw, “Characterizing Rock Music Culture: The Case of Heavy Metal” on e-reserve.
* Carl Plantinga, “Gender, Power and a Cucumber: Satirizing Masculinity in This is Spinal Tap” [MM]
* Robert Walser, “Forging Masculinity: Heavy-Metal Sounds and Images of Gender” on e-reserve.
Clips: selections from This is Spinal Tap!, The Decline of Western Civilization Part II, Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, Heavy Metal Parking Lot, music videos.

11/12 Blacksploitation, ‘Hood and Gangsta Films
* Kodwo Eshun, “From Blaxploitation to Rapsloitation” on e-reserve.
* Guthrie P. Ramsey, Jr., “Muzing New Hoods, Making New Identities: Film, Hip-Hop Culture, and Jazz Music” on e-reserve.
* Beretta E. Smith-Shomade, "‘Rock-a-Bye, Baby!’: Black Women Disrupting Gangs and Constructing Hip-Hop Gangsta Films” on e-reserve.
Clips: Superfly, Krush Groove, New Jack City, Boyz ‘n the Hood
No journal due this week—will do in-class.
Proposal and bibliography due.

11/19 The Teen Pic Post-1980
* Lawrence Grossberg, “Cinema, Postmodernity and Authenticity” [MM]
* Kay Dickinson, “Pop, Speed, Teenagers and the ‘MTV’ Aesthetic” [MM]
* Lisa Lewis, “A Madonna ‘Wanna-Be’” Story on Film [MM]
Clips: Flashdance, Desperately Seeking Susan, Romeo and Juliet
Peer editing due.

11/26 NO CLASS—Classes follow a Monday schedule.

12/3 Final Project Presentations!

12/10 Final Project Presentations!

12/17 Papers Due at NOON.

All papers should be typed or word-processed, double-spaced, with titles and numbered pages. All references should be carefully cited according to the MLA Style Guide. It is assumed that all work submitted is the original work of the student whose name appears on it. Plagiarism and other acts of dishonesty will result in an automatic failing grade for the assignment and may incur further academic penalties.

Assignment requirements will be posted below, as pdf documents.

• Paper 1, Due 9/17
  

Books on Reserve:

Dickinson, Kay, ed. Movie Music: The Film Reader. New York: Routledge, 2003.
Frith, Simon, Andrew Goodwin, and Lawrence Grossberg, eds. Sound and Vision: the Music Video Reader. New York: Routledge, 1993.
Goodwin, Andrew. Dancing in the Distraction Factory: Music Television and Popular Culture. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1992.
Mundy, John. Popular Music on Screen: From Hollywood Musical to MTV. New York: Manchester University Press, 1999.
Rose, Tricia. Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary America. Hanover, NH: Wesleyan University Press, 1994.
Smith, Jeff. Sounds of Commerce: Marketing Popular Film Music. New York: Columbia University Press, 1998.
Wojcik, Pamela Robertson and Arthur Knight, eds. Soundtrack Available: Essays on Film and Popular Music. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2001.

Sources for Films/Videos:
You should be able to locate many films highlighting popular music at your local video store. There are several stores in Manhattan with large, eclectic collections as well: any branch of Kim’s Video (6 St. Mark’s Place is the largest, 212-598-1131), Alan’s Alley (9th Avenue @ 22nd Street, 212-645-0999), or TLA Video (52 West 8th Street, 228-8282).

Web Resources:

General Resources:
http://www.imdb.com/: lists production credits and synopses for thousands of film and television productions.
http://www.popcultures.com/: Great collection of links to scholarly essays, bibliographies, journals, and other resources, most searchable by subject. Check out the film and music subject headings under “articles.”
http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/film/journal/index.htm: Scope Film Studies journal.
http://www.film-philosophy.com/: Journal, discussion salon, and collection of links related to philosophical discussions of cinema. Contains several articles and links related to popular music and film.

Sites on Writing:
http://writesite.cuny.edu/ieindex.html: Excellent resource, with guides to writing different types of papers, grammar, style, citations, and sources for help at CUNY and online.
http://www.qc.edu/Writing/index.html: Writing at Queens College website, with information on writing tutorials and workshops and resources on campus.
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_mla.html: Good overview of MLA citation style with many examples, published by Purdue University.
www.mla.org: Website for the Modern Language Association, with links to FAQ about the MLA Style Manual.
http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/online/cite5.html: Detailed instructions on citing internet sources according to the MLA Style.

Sites on Film Music/Sound:
http://www.filmsound.org/: Incredibly rich resource regarding sound in film, with a glossary of terms and numerous articles, interviews, and links.
www.lib.uchicago.edu/e/su/music/musfilm.html: List compiled by the University of Chicago. Contains an impressive bibliography and collection of links.
www.filmmusic.com: SoundtrackNet site devoted to “the art film and television music.” Contains numerous interviews with contemporary composers and musical directors, reviews, resources, and discussion groups.
www.cinemaweb.com/silentfilm/bookshelf/: The Silent Film Bookshelf. Text from original documents from the silent film era, including a number regarding musical accompaniment, cueing, and scoring.

Sites on Popular Music:
http://www.cas.usf.edu/communication/rodman/biblio/biblio-front.html: "Everyday I Write the Book: A Bibliography of (Mostly) Academic Work on Rock and Pop Music."
http://www.humnet.ucla.edu/echo/: Echo: A Music Centered Journal. Online journal devoted to the study of music. Includes many articles on film, television, and video. Click on “Archives” for an index of past issues.
http://www.iaspm.net/: Homepage for the International Association for the Study of Popular Music. Contains links to journals, bibliographies, reviews, and other resources.