The count-down begins in earnest for M403J, Introduction to the Study of Popular Music, the 2012 edition, so you may be asking yourself if there is something you can do before the first class?<\/p>\n
Obviously a lot of lounging, considering that you\u2019ve all struggled and fought your way to the end of Spring semester, with its deluge of end-of-term papers and exams. But I think you\u2019ll find your new freedom replaced with, dare I say, boredom, caused by a daily life without the stimulus of learning. So with the prospects of a summer course to get your synapses firing on all cylinders again, I have some suggestions for reading and viewing that you could do ahead of the course date. Note that these suggestions are not \u201crequired\u201d course material; you most certainly could succeed in the course without reading or seeing a single one of these items. But I believe you\u2019ll be far richer for the experience, and definitely get more bang for your buck (i.e., M403J tuition fee) when you\u2019re in my classes.<\/p>\n
Granted, you will be doing this summer reading on the bus, to and from work, or perhaps the beach on week-ends, but on the plus side, my recommendations are what could be called inspired over-views that time never allows during a regular semester. They are full of rich insights while avoiding meandering academese. And best of all, they\u2019re easy on the wallet.<\/p>\n
At the top of the list is Music: A Very Short Introduction<\/span><\/a>, by Nicholas Cook (Oxford University Press). Coming in at a modest 137 pages, it is the most erudite and engaging non-fiction book I have read in a very long time. And it\u2019s very inexpensive. As you work your way through the pages, you\u2019ll discover that popular music features prominently in his discussions. Gone are the days when \u201cmusic\u201d meant Western Art Music.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n If you are as deeply impressed with the book as I was, you will want to go the next step and read World Music: A Very Short Introduction<\/span><\/a>, by Philip Bohlman (Oxford University Press, 150 pages). I approach popular music studies partly from the vantage of an ethnomusicologist who has embarked on a probing study of a far-away music culture. Except it is the music of Us (as opposed to Other). Both books are part of an excellent series of pocketbooks (that can actually fit in a pocket!) called \u201cVery Short Introductions\u201d. The series appears to be missing Popular Music: A Very Short Introduction, but Nicholas Cook has the topic perfectly covered in his book.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Then there is Carl Wilson\u2019s brilliant little pocketbook,<\/span> Celine Dion’s Let’s Talk about Love: A Journey to the end of Taste<\/span><\/a> (2007). It\u2019s a cheeky look at pop, as opposed to rock, and it explores the topic of popular listening preferences among \u201cthe masses\u201d. And it\u2019s a hoot. I guffawed out loud in the airplane when I was reading it, much to the surprise of my movie-watching seat-mates. Best of all, it\u2019s a great Canadian read. His book is from another series of tiny books collectively called 33 and a 1\/3. Each one zeros in on a pop music icon to reveal basic truths about music-making and music-listening.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n If you have a more time on your hands, or perhaps you are feeling really ambitious, I recommend these larger studies that fill very important gaps.<\/p>\n Bruno Nettl, Heartland Excursions: Ethnomusicological Reflections on Schools of Music<\/span><\/a> (1995). Nettl casts his sharp eye on the world of schools of music, and in the process, illuminates Western art music in a whole new light. By placing WAM in a new context, he provides a level playing field that allows the introduction of topics like the study of popular music. The \u201cheartland\u201d in the title is a reference to a typical music school in the American mid-west, but it applies equally well to UBC\u2019s School of Music. My only quibble is the lack of Canadian content, but I acknowledge that he didn\u2019t write it for \u201cus\u201d, but rather for the thousands of American music students who fill their massive schools of music.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Next, dive into Christopher Small. Although my gut tells me to recommend Music.Society.Education<\/span><\/a> (1977, reprinted 2000), my head says, read<\/span> Musicking: The Meanings of Performing and Listening<\/span><\/a> (1998). The latter evolved out of former, a ground-breaking study of Western art music in relation to music outside of the concert hall, including popular music.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\nLarger Books<\/h2>\n