WEEK 1: FIRST SONG

Jean Ritchie, Viper, Kentucky (Appalachia,), photo from 1940s

WEEK I:  FIRST SONG

Reading: Review S&P Blog Posts carefully (thoughtfully) see the territory of the course

Downloads: S&P CD / Extras / Supplements   (3 download links). DOWNLOAD and LISTEN & LEARN!

Project: FIRST SONG
Here's what I told you in class:
A person singing (not a recording)  -- authenticity
Someone personal (grandparent, lullaby, camp song or...
What was the situation ("context")
Associations (A personal Song Trail)
Distance from now   (this quality)

Make this your first notebook post--by way of introduction
with image of your project
let the work speak

Additional notes to help you get started: See if you can bring to mind an image of the first song you remember hearing--sung by a person, not something recorded  (maybe a lullaby, or a song from a parent or relative?). A song where you feel the immediate connection through listening to someone sing. Make your project from this--a visual response--drawing, painting, collage or combination image--media open, but what you make should have something of your hand in it. Expressive, that is. We'll pin these up in 170 at beginning of next week's class.

Think of FIRST SONG as a kind of introduction--to your own world, the world you come from. See if you can get this quality into the image. Also, make this the first post on your personal "online notebook"--the blog I'm asking you to keep for the semester. On which you'll post your projects (week by week) along with notes on reading and class themes--the songs we're doing.

Note: Please use Blogspot.com,  one of their simple (straightforward) formats. Send me an ACTIVE LINK before next class meeting on September 3rd so that I can make up a post with links to everyone's notebook.

R.B. Kitaj, To Live in Peace (The Singers), 1973-74

There's a certain irony here in that I'm introducing the notion of synesthesia--that is, letting one form of expression demonstrate another--the visual representing the experience of listening. Hence the R.B. Kitaj painting above (one of my favorites) which we can talk about next week. Kitaj was an American painter, born in Ohio, who spent much of his working life in London. We can talk about this as well... And about Jean Ritchie (a wonderful singer and dulcimer player) source of top photo. Two extremes of experience?

IMPORTANT -- Do for Next Week:
Send me CONFIRMATION (I will send you CEC as soon as I have them from office)
Blogsites--send me active URL
Reader next week -- bring $30
Project to pin up
Small notebook for in class... for names and places