This professor's teaching method is as grotesque as his appearance- notably his taste in clothing . For the love of God, he is not able to speak clearly as he often mumbles and slurs his words in a very low, monotone voice. Please do yourself a favor and do not enroll in his god awful classes.

PS: YOU RUINED MY LIFE BY REPLACING KENNETH BURRELL FOR ELLINGTONIA.

Do you still winder why the student in Ellingtonia asked why the class material is going to be the same? Do you also wonder why the class, once closed, is now open?

I hope you feel good about yourself, Loza.

I have advice for you: eat less and move more.

Easy A. To be honest though, almost makes me sad that we pay this kind of money to be in these pathetic classes. His lectures are the most rambling, scatter-brained collections of random slides and ideas I've ever had to sit through. I probably can't even name two ideas/themes that we learned. My TA, Lara Rann, was nice and easy, but simply shouldn't be given the responsibility of teaching a college education.

Can't complain too much though, I guess. Do a little work on the study guides he gives you and just write a pointless eight-page paper that you won't even remember you wrote in a year, and you've got the A.

I received an A+ in this class. It'll probably be my only A+ at UCLA. The exams are incredibly basic. A week prior to the exam, Professor Loza sends out a study guide that contains a list of around 100 words or phrases (famous people, instruments, etc). ALL you need to know is the basic definition and background of the terms. The entire exam is matching. You also have to listen to songs and memorize the name and artist of the song. 10 songs will be picked and played during the exam. You'll have to match the song to the artist or the name of the song. I didn't buy the book/reader. All I did was study the terms from the study guide and memorized the songs. I don't think you need the reader to do well on the exams.

Discussions are MANDATORY and attendance is taken. Most TAs are laid back, except there's one TA that is very structured. I highly recommend Alexandro Hernandez - he's very knowledgeable. There is 1 8-page research paper OR 10-minute presentation about a topic within the course.

35% midterm, 35% final, and 30% discussion section grade (essentially your research paper + attendance + participation). There may be an extra credit paper for people who score below 70 on the midterm. No curve.
If you put in the effort to study, go to discussion, write a good paper/deliver a good presentation, there's no way an A isn't achievable.

GREAT CLASS!
I am selling the book and cd that Is needed for the class. I recommend getting the supplies early because it is a fast pace reading class.

if interested email me *************

Selling the Course reader for Chicano M108A Music of Latin America: Mexico, Central America, and Caribbean Isles. I just got this book so it's brand new. text me at **********

Selling book for Chicano M108A Music of Latin America: Mexico, Central America, and Caribbean Isles reasonable price & negotiable email me if interested *************

Easy class! Selling book! Message me if interested. S*************

Professor Loza's M108A class was great- I learned a lot about Latin music and although it was not in my interest to know about this category initially, now my playlist is filled with songs from the listening tape that we have to know for the midterm and final. Loza is not trying to trick you- he is a fair test maker and his TAs are outstanding. The papers are not bad either- a very open ended topic so that you have the flexibility to write on whatever interests you. You can also substitute the paper with a presentation.

Would recommend to anyone who wants to knock out
two birds with one stone- this means that this class counts for upper division elective credit, as well as your visual and performance GE! Loza is also a great professor and just wants everyone to learn.

Professor Loza is, as others have said, very laid-back and even said himself that he doesn't think school should be all about stressful impossible tests, but to learn.

Although sometimes lecture was a bit confusing because it was difficult to tell what was important or what was just a random tangent, he gives you a study guide for midterm and final and if you attended lecture and took notes, it's really quite simple to complete the guide and do extremely well on the tests. The listening: I personally enjoyed some of the music and am very glad that I could be exposed to it in this class.

The paper was doable, and I don't think the TAs are extremely hard graders--at least my TA was very laid-back and sections were never stressful (but I know some other TA's were a bit more structured and strict).

Overall, I think this was probably one of the least stressful classes I've ever taken at UCLA, and also (in my opinion) a breath of fresh air from all my other courses.

I have the coursereader for this class if anyone is interested in purchasing. Signed up for the class, bought the course reader ($97 after shipping), then realized I hated this course and dropped it. If you are interested in purchasing the course reader, e-mail me. ************* It's the book for the course Music of latin america.