I'm working on things!

Greetings, students!

We are living in interesting times.

You may have a lot of anxiety, which is quite natural and normal. Please take good care of yourself both physically and mentally. Wash your hands often, practice social distancing, and do something that will make you feel good. Maybe that's listening to your favorite music (or playing it yourself!), going outside for a walk or run, or enjoying your favorite meal.

Regarding Music Theory and Ear Training classes, it's my responsibility to give you the best instruction that I am able to, given the constraints of the situation. I've been working on this, and continue to do so. Everything is not ready yet, but I wanted to give you a heads-up. We'll be using Sakai and the course Blog for most of the content, and I will provide links to other resources (such as videos on youtube). We've used these tools already, so that aspect shouldn't be too challenging for you.

One thing that will be new is that I'd like to host some live meetings. It seems to me that our normal class hours would be the best time to do that. I know that there are some of you who won't be able to make all of them, so I'm trying to provide some additional flexible options. I hope to record the meetings and post them for your future reference. I will set all of these to "Unlisted" on youtube, which means that only people who have the link will be able to access them (they can't be found by searching). I'm expecting to do this on Zoom, so keep an eye out for information on how to access this.

I will have some more information for you to send out soon.

I am looking forward to meeting this challenge together with you!

Dr. S-R

Link to FAQ document

Here is the link to the Music theory/ear Training FAQ (Covid-19 edition).

Answer key for practice dictation exam

For a small bonus, mark in any errors/corrections in a contrasting color, and write up a brief self-assessment/suggestions for improvement. Hand in on Friday morning before the exam.

Both parts are required to earn the bonus.

Mid-semester meetings (read carefully, directions included)

This Thursday/Friday each student will meet with me individually to discuss her/his progress in Music Theory and Ear Training classes. Ear Training classes will meet as regularly scheduled, but Music Theory class will not.

Your presence, preparation, and participation in the meeting will count toward the “PP&E” portion of your grade. I will grade this on a check-plus/check/check-minus/no-credit basis, just like a homework assignment or mini-quiz, but it will count TRIPLE (15 points instead of 5).

In preparation for your meeting, consider each of the questions below. The answers should be written in your shared Google Doc (the same one we use for hearing feedback). “The class” refers to both theory and ear training, so address both if you are in both classes. Have this done BEFORE your meeting (some of the 15 points mentioned in the previous paragraph will be specifically for these questions).

• How do you feel the class is going?

• In which area(s) of the class do you feel strong or competent?

• In which area(s) of the class do you still need significant improvement?

• What kind of progress have you made in the class?

• What can you do going forward to increase your degree of success?

• [For ear training only]: How do your self-assessments compare with your grades on Sakai?

Bring the following to the meeting:

Your notebook(s) from theory and ear-training classes

Any returned work (quizzes/exams, etc.)

Watch for Wednesday - fourth species counterpoint

https://youtu.be/f-NUaOeFvqg