Instructor: Helen Dewey Reikofski, dma aka "Dr. R"

Monday & Wednesday – 9 AM to 9:50 AM – MUSI 250

E-MAIL: Helen.Reikofski@unt.edu AND heldewski@gmail.com

OFFICE HOURS: Mondays: 10AM -11AM, or by appointment
REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS

1. Kathryn LaBouff. Singing and Communicating in English (ISBN: 9780195311396)

2. Daniel Jones. Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary. Edited by Peter Roach, Jane

Setter, and John Esling. 18th ed. Cambridge UK: Cambridge University Press, 2011.¹

3-RING BINDER with paper for in-class work, handouts and notes, a pencil, a USB drive.

MUAG 1905 is introductory course for music majors, or related disciplines, that is designed to acquaint the student with the basic symbols of the International Phonetic Alphabet used in spoken and lyric diction, and the rules for pronunciation in the English language in classical vocal music.

This course will promote ease and clarity in singing English language songs, arias, and choral works, and will build skills, through the use of IPA (the International Phonetic Alphabet) and techniques of enunciation, in singing in three major dialects: American Standard (AS), the neutral pronunciation used for North American repertoire; Received Pronunciation (RP), both historic and modern, used for repertoire by composers and/or poets of the British Isles; and Mid-Atlantic (MA), a hybrid of North American and British diction used in European and other works that do not specifically require a British or American character.

1. 
   employ the International Phonetic Alphabet as a valuable tool to aid diction choices, demonstrating proper pronunciation of all basic IPA symbols in transcriptions of songs,
   
2. 
   prepare their vocal texts using rules for pronunciation, enunciation, and expression taught in Singing and Communicating in English by Kathryn LaBouff,
   
3. 
   identify which dialects may be called for, considering composers, poets, librettists, and production needs,
   
4. 
   speak and sing texts in English with understanding, through the examination of syntax and sentence structure, and word stress and inflection,
   
5. 
   sing expressively, and with greater ease, allowing the texts to flow smoothly, or be accentuated without adding tension,
   
6. 
   access resources for pronunciation, meaning, and further research related to diction,
   
7. 
   utilize skills developed through in-class participation, and personal application, on their own repertoire, and class assignments.
   

Your final grade will be based upon the average of your grades in the following categories: Attendance, in-class work, in-class participation; Quizzes taken in the first ten minutes of class; Mid-Term Exam, including pre-written work, in-class exam, and spoken and sung sections; Assignments posted on BlackBoard; Final Exam. See below.

Attendance/Participation: This includes class attendance, participation, preparedness, and demonstrating personal growth with using IPA in speaking and singing applications.

Attendance: One (1) absence is allowed without a grade penalty. Save it for late in the term.

If UNT causes you to be absent, such as TMEA, that will not count as your “1 no-penalty” absence.

Warning: Three (3) tardies will count as one absence.

Each absence thereafter will result in a lowering of the semester grade by 5%.

Any absence caused by UNT, such as a tour, has no effect on your grade, if documentation is received before the absence.

You are responsible for any notes, assignments, or announcements given in class, regardless of reason for the absence. You are advised to check BlackBoard and a classmate or two, to get notes on the class session missed.

Quizzes: Quizzes will be added together to form one grade.

Mid-Term: This includes spoken and sung sections, pre-prepared written material, and an in-class test.

Final: A Final Exam will be given on the date and at the time assigned by the University. Note that this exam, as listed on this syllabus, meets earlier than the scheduled class.

ON TIME ASSIGNMENTS/Extra Credit: Assignments are due on my desk at the beginning of each class, unless otherwise advised to ‘hold’ them for in-class corrections. Some assignments will be turned in by submitting to BlackBoard. Late work will rarely, if ever, be considered.

Week 1/Class 2 WED AUG 26 Assignment ONE is due 8/26/15

W2/C2 WED SEP 2 Assignment THREE; MUST HAVE BOOK for a grade.

W3/C2 WED SEP 9 Assignment FIVE “Complete exercises in Chapters 1&2” due 9/9/14.

W4/C2 WED 16 SEP Assignment SEVEN “Transcribe Dr. R Assigned Piece”

W5/C2 WED 23 SEP Assignment NINE. Bring 2 copies of your voice-teacher-assigned piece.

W6/C2 WED 30 SEP Assignment ELEVEN “IPA of Your Voice Teacher Piece” On Bb and in your Binder (not on desk)

W7/C2 WED 7 OCT Assignment THIRTEEN “Bring Corrections” Attend & participate.

W8/C2 WED 14 OCT MID-TERM (Written In-Class Exam) (10/14/15)

W9/C1&2 MW 19 & 21 OCT Review & answer questions. Speak and sing and transcribe.
W10/C1 MON 26 OCT Assignment FOURTEEN “Read Chapters 13 & 14 thru p.220” Quiz7

W10/C2 WED 28 OCT In-class application

W11/C2 WED 4 NOV In-class application. Individual assignments as needed.

W12/C2 WED 11 NOV In-class application. Individual assignments as needed.

W13/C2 WED 18 NOV BINDER CHECK: All Quizzes organized. In-class application.

W14/ WED 25 NOV (TBA) Thursday is Thanksgiving Holiday

W15/ WED DEC 2 In-class. Prepare for FINAL EXAM. Don't schedule your jury during a class.

The UNT College of Music does not discriminate on the basis of disability in the recruitment and admission of students. The content of this class requires each student to:

(a) participate in a safe manner

(b) spontaneously process visual and verbal cues, respond verbally and in writing

(c) read and prepare written assignments, some by hand, some need to be typed

The student has the responsibility of informing the instructor of any condition that requires modifications. If you have a disability and feel you are unable to meet the requirements of this class without reasonable accommodations, please contact the Office of Disabilities Accommodation on campus. The University of North Texas makes reasonable academic accommodation for students with disabilities. Students seeking accommodation must first register with the Office of Disability Accommodation (ODA) to verify their eligibility. If a disability is verified, the ODA will provide you with an accommodation letter to be delivered to faculty to begin a private discussion regarding your specific needs in a course. You may request accommodations at any time, however, ODA notices of accommodation should be provided as early as possible in the semester to avoid any delay in implementation. Note that students must obtain a new letter of accommodation for every semester and must meet with each faculty member prior to implementation in each class. For additional information see the Office of Disability Accommodation website at http://www.unt.edu/oda. You may also contact them by phone at 940.565.4323

In accordance with the University policies on student conduct, any acts of dishonesty, including, but not limited to, Cheating, Facilitating Academic Dishonesty, or Plagiarism, (which includes

“1. the knowing or negligent use by paraphrase or direct quotation of the published or

unpublished work of another person without full and clear acknowledgment.

2. the knowing or negligent unacknowledged use of materials prepared by another person

or agency, the selling of term papers or other academic materials.”)

will result in automatic failure of the assignment in question and probable failure of the course and suspension from the University as deemed appropriate by the instructor, the Dean of Students office, and the Academic Integrity Officer. All issues of Academic Integrity will be submitted to academic.integrity@unt.edu. See http://vpaa.unt.edu/academic-integrity.htm

In addition, cases of conduct will be referred to the Dean of Students for disciplinary action. Please refer to https://deanofstudents.unt.edu/conduct for more information.

Students who wish to drop a course before the census date (12th class day during long semesters) may do so without instructor permission; they may do so online by visiting my.unt.edu or in person at the Registrar’s Office (in the Eagle Student Services Building). After the 12th class day, students must first receive written permission from the instructor, prior to dropping a course.

Information about add/drop dates for the Fall Semester:

http://www.unt.edu/registrar/schedule/fall/withdraw.html

If at any point you consider dropping this or any other course, please be advised that the decision to do so may have the potential to affect your current and future financial aid eligibility. Please visit http://financialaid.unt.edu/satisfactory-academic-progress-requirements for more information about financial aid Satisfactory Academic Progress. It is recommended that you to schedule a meeting with an academic advisor in your college or visit the Student Financial Aid and Scholarships office to discuss dropping a course.

 

Graduates: A student must maintain Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) to continue to receive financial aid. Students must maintain a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA in addition to successfully completing a required number of credit hours based on total registered hours per term. Students cannot exceed maximum timeframes established based on the published length of the graduate program.  If a student does not maintain the required standards, the student may lose their financial aid eligibility.

If at any point you consider dropping this or any other course, please be advised that the decision to do so may have the potential to affect your current and future financial aid eligibility. Please visit http://financialaid.unt.edu/satisfactory-academic-progress-requirements for more information about financial aid Satisfactory Academic Progress. It is recommended that you to schedule a meeting with an academic advisor in your college or visit the Student Financial Aid and Scholarships office to discuss dropping a course before doing so.

The Student Evaluation of Teaching Effectiveness (SETE) may still be a requirement for all organized classes at UNT. This short survey will be made available to you at the end of the semester.

UNT considers the SETE to be an important part of your participation in this class. We will be able to offer extra credit to the whole class if more than 85% complete the SETE.

Final Notes

• 
  Please be sure to SAVE A COPY OF ANY WORK YOU TURN IN FOR THIS CLASS OVER THE COURSE OF THE SEMESTER AND SAVE ALL WORK THAT IS RETURNED TO YOU UNTIL THE SEMESTER IS COMPLETE.
  
• 
  It is required that you save a copy of your computer generated work on a flash drive, and each hard copy you are returned in a 3-ring binder. Blackboard LEARN is very useful, when it works as intended. A student saving his work on a flash drive that he brought with him to class DID save his grade on a Turnitin/Blackboard situation in a previous term.
  

Keep informed by attending each class, checking BbLEARN, and connecting with classmates.

http://ipa.typeit.org/full/ Use with cut and paste. Lucida sans Unicode.

For cut and paste options, see “Full IPA” document on Bb.

www.thedictionpolice.org Podcasts 17 & 57