MUS 190 – Fall 2006

Study Guide for Midterm Exam

Readings: You are responsible for chapters 1, 2, 4, 5, from the text,

all in-class readings as well as the following article postings on my website:

Live Music reading

Sendak reading

Copland – How we listen

Tragic Heroes

Chapter 1 - Introduction

The concerns of art: Creativity, Aesthetic Communication, Symbols, Fine and Applied Art

What is the difference between fine and applied art? Can you provide examples of each?

The purposes and functions of art: Enjoyment, Political and Social Commentary, Therapy, Artifact. Be prepared with good examples from each category of function.

Style in the arts: the personality of an artwork. Be prepared to contrast and compare styles in various disciplines, much like the painting example offered in the text p. 14-18.

Chapter 4 – Music

What is it? Know the12 forms listed in the text:

Concert overture                                  Art Song

Concerto                                              Cantata

Sonata                                                  Mass

Suite                                                     Motet

Symphony                                            Opera

Fugue                                                   Oratorio

How is it put together? Sound (the four elements that make up sound are: pitch, dynamics, tone color, duration); rhythm, melody, harmony (consonance/dissonance), texture (the layers of sound), form

How does it stimulate?

What does the text mean by our “Primal Responses?”

How does the nature of the performance itself impact us? p.109

What is melodic contour?

Chapter 5 – Theatre

What is it? Know the five genres discussed in the text and how they differ.

Tragedy

Comedy

Tragicomedy

Melodrama

Performance Art

How is it put together? Script, plot (what are the elements that make up the plot?),

character, protagonist, themes, visual elements, (p.128-134), aural elements, lifelikeness

Death of a Salesman

            -be able to comment on the main characters of the play

            -discuss the main themes of the play

-discuss the visual elements in the production we watched in class – how do they emphasize the happenings in the play?

-Where was the exposition? Where were the climax and the crises?

Recall our discussion about The Man Who Couldn’t Dance, the short 10-minute play we read in class. Be able to relate concepts such as: genre, protagonist, climax, and discovery.

How does it stimulate?

From our guest Luther Jones: Summarize Luther’s comments about the differences between movies and live theatre.

Chapter 2 – Pictures

What is it?

Pictures can be drawings, paintings, etc. We may also identify them by their subject matter: landscape, portrait, still life, etc.

How is it put together?

Medium – In the category of drawing, be familiar with the examples of dry media vs. liquid media.

Why are oils the most popular painting media?

DO NOT BE CONCERNED WITH PHOTOGRAPHY, p. 39-46. We will study this later.

Composition in Visual Art: From the handout given in class be comfortable discussing: Line, form, color, mass, and texture.

Principles of Composition: From the handout, focus your attention on these issues: Repetition, Balance (Symmetry, Asymmetry), Focal Area, and Chiaroscuro.

How does it stimulate the senses?

Contrasts – How do we respond to color? Which colors are warm, which are cool?

What is chiaroscuro?

Dynamics – How has the artist created a sense of movement and activity? How does brushstroke relate to this? What do vertical and horizontal lines signify?

Objectivity – In your opinion, when an artist creates an objective painting, one not based on a lifelike representation, does the unfamiliar cause you to think more deeply and respond more fully because your imagination is left free to wander?

Recall some of your responses to the visit to the art gallery and our in-class guest.