ETHNMUS 50A
Jazz in American Culture: Late 19th Century through 1940s
Description: Lecture, four hours; discussion, one hour. Course 50A is not requisite to 50B. Survey of development of jazz in American culture. Discussion of different compositional/performance techniques and approaches that distinguish different sub-styles of jazz from one another, as well as key historical figures that shaped development of jazz from its early years through modern jazz. Important historical social issues (segregation, Depression, World War II, Civil Rights Movement) that intersect with history of U.S. and jazz music. P/NP or letter grading.
Units: 5.0
Units: 5.0
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Most Helpful Review
Fall 2022 - As someone who could care less about jazz, I really enjoyed this class. The lectures were two hours which would drag on but being honest, I never attended class and just reviewed the slides which provided the lectures WORD FOR WORD. Prior to the TA strike, I must have just been unlucky but my TA would not really help us in any way, and for every assignment she graded, she would give me a 4.9/5, which felt a tad dramatic. The midterm and final were easy considering each question was based on the SLIDES. Although for a GE, the work and tested material were tedious considering you are expected to memorize artists from a selected list including a song, and significant fact but the exams being online made it less stressful. The final project was on anything jazz-related, I did a research paper that got an A+ since it was graded by Bolin himself due to the TA strike, which I was fortunate in that sense. Although I am just listing downfalls, the class was not difficult considering I got an A. LOTS OF EXTRA CREDIT WAS PROVIDED ... but, it was a lot of work for one point which felt not worth the time. As someone who put in the bare minimum, I still landed an A. Bolin is also a very understanding man, I missed a quiz due to being out of town but because I communicated with him about my absence, he allowed me to take it from home which was a relief. Following that, he then sent me a link to the recorded lecture and that saved me a lot of stress. Overall, I enjoyed the class because of Professor Bolin, As a freshman in my first quarter, it was nice to take a class that was stress-free and engaging.
Fall 2022 - As someone who could care less about jazz, I really enjoyed this class. The lectures were two hours which would drag on but being honest, I never attended class and just reviewed the slides which provided the lectures WORD FOR WORD. Prior to the TA strike, I must have just been unlucky but my TA would not really help us in any way, and for every assignment she graded, she would give me a 4.9/5, which felt a tad dramatic. The midterm and final were easy considering each question was based on the SLIDES. Although for a GE, the work and tested material were tedious considering you are expected to memorize artists from a selected list including a song, and significant fact but the exams being online made it less stressful. The final project was on anything jazz-related, I did a research paper that got an A+ since it was graded by Bolin himself due to the TA strike, which I was fortunate in that sense. Although I am just listing downfalls, the class was not difficult considering I got an A. LOTS OF EXTRA CREDIT WAS PROVIDED ... but, it was a lot of work for one point which felt not worth the time. As someone who put in the bare minimum, I still landed an A. Bolin is also a very understanding man, I missed a quiz due to being out of town but because I communicated with him about my absence, he allowed me to take it from home which was a relief. Following that, he then sent me a link to the recorded lecture and that saved me a lot of stress. Overall, I enjoyed the class because of Professor Bolin, As a freshman in my first quarter, it was nice to take a class that was stress-free and engaging.
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Most Helpful Review
Fall 2019 - This was perhaps the easiest yet most interesting class I’ve taken so far. Besides the fact that it was a morning class which made me and others quite tired, the content is kind of interesting especially if you like music. Every lecture is mainly about a style of music, different artists and their history, and the music they composed. He also plays some documentaries which aren’t important to watch but can sometimes be interesting. The midterm and final are really easy as all the questions are identifying songs that he plays by their title, style of music or composer/performer. Just make sure to know your music, which ends up being about 70-80 songs by the final. Besides a 5-10 page essay which was graded very generously, the only work you have to do is listen to music and remember the songs. It’s helpful to review lecture notes before the exams but the music matters a whole lot more. My TA Juan was also very nice and doesn’t assign much work. He focuses on the actual music and the way its played, which is interesting and different from what is taught in class. The TAs also assign different work so this may be different for some. Overall, I absolutely loved this class as it was probably the easiest and wasn’t even that boring. 10/10 would recommend
Fall 2019 - This was perhaps the easiest yet most interesting class I’ve taken so far. Besides the fact that it was a morning class which made me and others quite tired, the content is kind of interesting especially if you like music. Every lecture is mainly about a style of music, different artists and their history, and the music they composed. He also plays some documentaries which aren’t important to watch but can sometimes be interesting. The midterm and final are really easy as all the questions are identifying songs that he plays by their title, style of music or composer/performer. Just make sure to know your music, which ends up being about 70-80 songs by the final. Besides a 5-10 page essay which was graded very generously, the only work you have to do is listen to music and remember the songs. It’s helpful to review lecture notes before the exams but the music matters a whole lot more. My TA Juan was also very nice and doesn’t assign much work. He focuses on the actual music and the way its played, which is interesting and different from what is taught in class. The TAs also assign different work so this may be different for some. Overall, I absolutely loved this class as it was probably the easiest and wasn’t even that boring. 10/10 would recommend
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