Music research

PAPER GUIDELINES Paper Prompt and Guidelines: All students are to prepare short (2-3 page) papers on topics of their choice. The topic must relate to music without duplicating any material covered in class. Each student must write one paper (2-3 pages in length). This is a research/expository paper. This is not an analytical paper or an argumentative paper. Do not make a claim and support it (argumentative paper) or analyze and evaluate an issue or idea (analytical paper). Do not express your opinions. Research your topic and present your findings with internal citations and a Works Cited. Because numerous past students have struggled to write on the topic of music therapy and keep it as a research/expository paper rather than an analytic/argumentative one, the topic of music therapy is forbidden for this paper. Students may exceed the 3-page maximum with prior instructor permission, but students should write with concision and choose topics of appropriate scope to ideally fit this 2-3 page length. Pick any of these topics -The Evolution of the Harpsichord into Modern Pianos -The Invention of the Roland TR-808 –The Florentine Camerata’s Influence on Opera -Loretta Lynn -The Birth of Ragtime in the US -The Rise of Hip-Hop DJs in the 1970s -Miles Davis -Recent Developments in Artificial Intelligence for Music -Berlioz’ Symphonie Fantastique -The Introduction of Amplification into Musical Theatre -The London Philharmonia’s Use of Technology in the 21st Century -The Composer Florence Price -Olivier Messiaen’s Use of Birdsong in His Compositions -The History of the Bassoon How to Get an F Most students who end up with an F on their papers make one or more of the errors listed here: -Write something that’s not a research paper -Write about music therapy (see the syllabus for an explanation) -Pick too large a topic and then cover it too shallowly (if there’s a whole book written on your topic, you -can’t do it justice in 2-3 pages) -Put in direct quotes without enclosing them in quotation marks and putting an internal citation directly afterward -Omit internal citations (required even if it’s paraphrased) -Omit sources from your works cited or omit your works cited entirely -Plagiarize or otherwise violate academic integrity principles -Write poorly (if you need help, visit the LSC-UP Writing Tutors) -Use forbidden or unreliable/poor sources CITATIONS -Follow current MLA guidelines, including providing the complete URL to anything you cite from the web as part of its citation in your Works Cited. Make sure the URL is a stable URL or DOI (not a URL dependent on your particular session). -Cite anything that’s not your own thinking. Since this is a research paper, you should be citing almost everything. You don’t need to cite common knowledge. A good rule of thumb is if you find the same information undocumented in at least five credible sources, it’s safe to use. (Learn more here: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/589/2/). When in doubt, cite it! -Not citing with an internal citation and a listing in your works cited is tantamount to plagiarism and will usually result in an automatic F. NO PLAGIARISM