Diction II

Portfolio – German and French Literature

Bauer/Spring 2008

 

Due Dates: 

            Monday, February 18 German Written Portfolio

            Wednesday, February 20 German Oral Presentations

            Wednesday, April 16 French Written Portfolio

            Monday, April 21 French Oral Presentations

 

Purpose: 

1. It is essential that you listen to accomplished

 professional singers in order to improve singing,

 diction, style, language acuity, and authenticity.

2.    By compiling a list of songs appropriate to your voice it is assumed you will have a broader grasp of vocal literature.

3.    You will have broader knowledge from which you and your teacher can choose appropriate future literature for such things as your Junior Qualifying Examinations, Juries, Junior and Senior recitals.

 

What to do: (Written Portion)

 

1.    Choose/locate 10 recordings of German Lieder and/or French Chanson.  These should be 10 different singers.  Please note:  of these 10 only 3 may be from You Tube or some other Òon lineÓ source.  You must go to the library and learn to use these resources. 

 

2.    Cite those recordings according to the following format:  (to be included in your written submission)

Composer.  Title.  Arrangment by, or any other pertinent information. Performers.  Label, Label #,

Year of Recording.                                             

SOME EXAMPLES

Kurt Weill.  Street Scene, Original Broadway Cast.  CBS Masterworks, MK44668, 1947.

 

Jennifer, Larmor.   My Native Land, A Collection of American Songs.  Teldec Classics

 International, 0630-16069-2, 1997.

 

3.    Listen to them all multiple times.

 

4.  Choose 3 of those ten from above.  Be sure these three have different composers.

            a).  Copy the score – (to be included in your written submission)

            b).  Research the composer – (to be included in your written submission) – ½ page  Please limit this research to information pertinent to your song selection.  I.e.  If you are doing a Mozart aria – tell me what was happening in his life during this composition or significant facts about the opera/character. 

            c).  Research the performers – (Singer and if possible, pianist) – ½ page each

            d.  Provide a translation for the poem - (to be included in your written submission)

            e.  Provide IPA for these three songs.  Write the IPA from what you are hearing in the recording.  (to be included in your written submission)

            f.  Make comments about letter ÒeÓ.  (1 full page per song.)  Do you agree with the singer?  What do you notice about the singerÕs diction?  Do you think the singer is German?  Why did you choose this song? ETC.

            g.  Do not plagiarize!!!!  If you quote from anything, cite your source!!!

            h.  After you have completed 1-g, write an introduction to this project.  This portion should be no less than ¾ of a typewritten page.  In this introduction discuss what skills you needed to have to complete the assignment. 

 

What to do:  Oral Portion

 

1.  Choose one of the three you have researched from #4 above.

2.  Present the recording in class.

3.  Have the score presentable in class (we can use either xeroxes if you plan ahead, or we can use the digital camera.)

4.  Present the research you did on the composer.

5.  Present the research you did on the singer/pianist.

6.  Present your translation.

7.  Present your comments.

 

This presentation should be no longer than 10 minutes (including the listening).  So choose a song of appropriate length.

 

Grading Rubric

Written Portion = 70%

Oral Portion = 30%

A= All directions were followed

      All written work is inciteful, thougtful and well-researched

      IPA is accurate always

B=Most directions were followed

     Most written work is inciteful, thoughtful and well-researched

     IPA is mostly accurate

C=Most directions were followed

     Written work is not inciteful nor thoughtful and not well-researched.  Sloppy work. Hastily done.

D=Few directions were followed

     Written work is not inciteful nor thoughtful and not well-researched.  Sloppy work. Hastily done.

F= Poor work; directions were not followed; sloppy; hastily thrown together.

 

Here are some places to start

The periods of music are: 

The Renaissance (1450--1600)

                                                      The Baroque (1600 --1750)

                                                      The Classical Period (1750 --1827)

                                                      The Romantic Period (1827- -1900)

                                                      The 20th Century (1900—2000)

 

Here are some composers who wrote German Lieder to start your search:

Bach                    Marx                         Strauss

Beethoven          Mendelssohn          Wagner

Brahms               Mozart                      Wolf

Franz                   Reger

Handel                Schoenberg            

Haydn                 Schubert                              

Liszt                    SchŸtz                                  

Mahler                Schumann

 

Here are some composers who wrote French songs to start your search:

Berlioz                            Faure                         Massenet

Bizet                                Gounod                     Milhaud

Chabrier                         Hahn                         Poulenc

Charpentier                  Honegger                 Ravel

Chausson                       Hue                             Rousseau

Debussy                          Lalo                           Roussel

Delibes                            Liszt                          Saint-Sa‘ns

Duparc                            Lully                          Satie

Dupont                            Martini