INTEGRATIVE ARTS 1 (GA)
INTRODUCTION TO THE ARTS IN GREECE
Instructor: Dr. Paul Greene• email:
• Email is the best way to contact me.
Tour agency: Celestial Voyagers Customized Travel
• 516-829-1525, / Pennsylvania State University
Brandywine Campus
Spring 2015
Timeline:
Wednesday, March 4, 2015 10:00 a.m. All Pre-Trip Assignments are due to the Angel Drop Box for this course.
March 8-14, 2015 Immersion experience in Greece facilitated and guided by Celestial Voyagers tour agency.
Wednesday, May 4 10:00 a.m. Journal of Arts Experiences and All Post-Trip Assignments are due to the Angel Drop Box for this course.
Welcome to the exciting worlds of the arts in Greece. In this course, we will explore means of expression and communication that involve sound, space, color, and shape including high arts, architecture, music and crafts. We will reflect on and carefully analyze what is being communicated through these media. We will learn and use aesthetic terminology which will function as our tools to discuss the arts, and we will learn to consider artworks within a framework of Greek art history.
This course does not require an artistic background, nor advanced skills in music-making, drawing, or acting. Instead, it is an introduction to the arts that targets your ability to consider and verbally discuss what meanings and functions an artwork takes on in our lives, and how it relates to other artworks in aesthetic traditions in Europe. The course will not tell you what is "good" or "bad" art, but instead invite you to decide this for yourself, in relation to artistic traditions that have been cultivated over the centuries.
No previous experience with music, sculpture or architecture is required. No previous travel is required. The only prerequisites are an interest in the arts and a willingness to participate constructively and professionally in a course that includes a short-term immersion experience in Greece.
REQUIRED FOR THIS COURSE:
• Email and Internet access. Course communication will take place via email. Please set up your Penn State “Access” email account, if you have not already done so. Plan to check your email regularly. Also, many assignments require you to search or find information on the Internet. Students should also be prepared to work through the Penn State online environment of Angel (http://cms.psu.edu), for access to important course resources and information. There will be a "drop box" for you to turn in assignments within Angel.
• Register for this course. Registration for this course is not possible through the usual online methods (the website shows the course as “closed” even though it is not). What is required is my signature on a Drop/Add form if you are at the Brandywine Campus, or if you are not, then an email message from me in which I write to the campus Registrar specifically to grant you permission. Contact me: .
• Work with the Tour Agency. Have you contacted the tour agent to make arrangements for travel? Celestial Voyagers, 1-800-651-6262, email: . Do this immediately. They will ask that you have your passport (US citizens can arrange for passports through the Media Courthouse, http://www.co.delaware.pa.us/ojs/passport.html; 201 W. Front St., Government Center 123, Media, PA; 14-day rush processing: call 877-487-2778). Have you signed up for PSU travel insurance? (For that, contact Gail Wray, Main Building Room 212; 610-892-1472; .) Registering for the course does not sign you up for the trip or arrange your airfare; you have to make all such arrangements with Francoise directly. Delays can result in higher fares or possibly make travel impossible.
• Camera. To complete the Journal of Arts Experiences, you will need a camera. You will need to arrange for a picture of yourself to be taken at each site that you visit, as proof that your papers are grounded in actual, first-hand experiences in the arts. I recommend digital format because this will make it easier for you to submit your Journal electronically, and to type in explanations below each photo. Make sure you have enough film or memory and battery power for one week of arts experiences. Remember: voltage is different in Europe, so unless you have adequate transformers and adapters it probably will not be possible for you to recharge your camera in a wall outlet while in Europe.
• Blank notebook in which to keep a daily journal of arts experience while you are in Europe. A standard spiral notebook of 8.5 x 11 pages is fine, or electronic equivalent.
• Travel Guidebook to Greece (recommended but not absolutely required): You will be traveling around the country in pursuit of artistic experiences, and so, to supplement the guidance of Celestial Voyagers, it is very helpful to have a guidebook that introduces you to the city, offers cultural background, and clarifies the best ways to get to key sites. Different guidebooks have different strengths and weaknesses. A useful guidebook should include a listings of museums, theatres, and concert venues, a good index, and pages containing background cultural and historical information. I recommend Lonely Planet. Guidebooks are available online and in non-campus bookstores.
Additional useful resources (not required):
• Joseph Kerman and Gary Tomlinson. Listen. (4th edition, Boston ; New York : Bedford/St. Martin's Press, 2000, available in the library).
• New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, online at www.grovemusic.com; also in paper form in some (but not all) college libraries.
• Wikipedia: http://www.en.wikipedia.org.
• Toolkit of Musical Terms (included).
• Sound Advice about Musical Terms electronic resource: http://www.de2.psu.edu/academics/faculty/greene/powerpoint/sld001.htm
ABOUT THIS COURSE
This is a blended course, combining the following elements: communication between students and instructor via email and the Angel environment (http://cms.psu.edu); Internet and/or library research for papers; a one-week immersion experience in Greece in which instructor and students work together on guided travels and tours facilitated by the tour agent (Celestial Voyagers).
Students need to be proficient in distance learning technologies of email and the Penn State University Angel environment. Regarding Pre-Trip and Post-Trip Assignments, please feel free to email me with any questions or concerns as they arise. Please also check your email frequently for course- and travel-related messages.
I prefer that you email all assignments to me. Please submit all documents as Microsoft Word documents (my computer cannot read Word Perfect documents). Please make sure that every document you submit has your last name as part of the document title. For example: if your last name is Smith, then you may email me your Terminology in the Arts assignment in a document named Smith-Terminology-in-the-Arts.doc.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Integrative Arts 1/Art History 100 is based on a total of 100 points, valuated according to the Penn State University Faculty Senate Agreement of 1987: 95+ A, 90-94 A-, 87.7-89 B+, 83.3-87.6 B, 80-83.2 B-, 75-79 C+, 70-74 C, 60-69 D, 59 and below F.
Pre-Trip Assignments:15 points / 1. History of Music in Greece
15 points / 2. Terminology in the Arts of Greece
5 points / 3. Musical Concepts and Terminology Worksheet
Assignment to be Done During the Trip:
15 points / Journal of Arts Experiences
10 points / Community Contribution Grade
Post-Trip Assignments:
15 points / 1. Aesthetic Experience Paper: Architecture
15 points / 2. Aesthetic Experience paper: Visual Art
10 points / 3. Aesthetic Experience paper: Music
All late materials will be penalized one letter grade (10 of the 100 total assignment points) per day of lateness.
COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTION GRADE:
Welcome to Penn State Brandywine's International Studies program! You are invited to join and build our traveling community. As part of your travel experience, you will be required not only to work with your instructor to complete the assignments specified in the syllabus, but also to contribute to your traveling community as we all work together to make the most of our shared intellectual experience.
Your Community Contribution Grade: In addition to completing papers, projects and workshops, 10% of your grade will be a Community Contribution grade, reflecting your overall contributions to your travel abroad community. In general, your Community Contribution grade will reflect what you do to make this trip an effective and exciting intellectual experience for your community of fellow travelers. A key component of this grade will be four required community meetings over breakfast, in which you meet with your colleagues and instructor to share your experiences and insights. Here are some other factors that will impact your Community Contribution grade: Have your collaborated with one of your colleagues in locating and visiting a museum, performance event, historic sight, etc.? Have you discovered opportunities of sites to visit to meet your course requirements, and shared them with your colleagues (perhaps at a breakfast meeting)? Please note that activities that detract from the traveling community's intellectual experience carry penalties. For example, failing to follow instructions from the travel agent or the instructors in the program (including instructors of courses other than your own) could result in a 0 for your Community Contribution grade. Likewise, violation of Penn State University's Code of Conduct, excessive drunkenness, or violation of the country's laws or customs will be met with severe penalties. In addition to a 0 in Community Contribution, additional penalties may be assigned to you and your academic record by the university's Judicial Affairs office.
PRE-TRIP ASSIGNMENTS:
1. History of Music in Greece (750 words)
Write an essay of at least 750 words (3 pages) in which you recount the history of music in Greece. This paper will prepare you to write the Musical Aesthetic Experience Paper later.
As with every assignment, this essay must be 100% in your own words (see Academic Integrity, below). Be sure to cite all sources (if you wish to cite books, websites or articles, I recommend formats specified in the MLA Handbook of Style or Chicago Manuel of Style).
2. Terminology in the Arts of Greece
Give definitions of each of the following terms. Each definition should be at least 4 sentences in length, and should be entirely in your own words. Including images is recommended. Please turn in all definitions together in a single document.
ParthenonOdeon of Herodes Atticus
Greek Byzantine architecture
kanonaki
neoclassicism
Athens Academy
Church of Kapnikarea / Roman Agora
Hadrian's Arch
Mialis Hatziyiannis
Temple of Olympian Zeus
Panathenaic Stadium
Acropolis
rembetika / outi (oud)
gaida
santouri
bouzouki
syrtaki dance
toumberleki
Mask of Agamemnon
3. Musical Concepts and Terminology Worksheet
Study the Toolkit of Musical Terms included with this syllabus. At the end of this Toolkit document is a Musical Concepts and Terminology Worksheet. Please copy the text of this worksheet into a new Microsoft Word document, and fill in the blanks. When you fill in the blanks, please underline your inserted answers. You’ll submit the new document to me as one of your Pre-Trip Assignments.
Turn in your pre-trip work by the deadline above. If you wish, you can turn in your pre-trip work to me there, in paper form. Or you can email it to me (). Please note: it is very important that you also print out an extra copy of your work to take with you. This will be a useful resource for you to complete the assignments there.
ASSIGNMENT TO BE DONE DURING THE TRIP:
Journal of Arts Experiences. First of all, please read carefully the Post-Trip Assignments. What you do in Europe should prepare you to complete these Post-Trip Assignments. So, it's crucial that you understand the assignments so you can collect the relevant information and explore the appropriate experiences of the arts. To this end, you are to keep a Journal of Arts Experiences, in which you to take notes on your arts-related activities and experiences while in Europe.
Take a blank notebook with you as you go about Greece. Keep your notes in the form of a travel log, specifying day, time of day, the museum, place, or concert you are visiting, and details about your experiences. You can keep this Journal in hand-written form: it's not necessary to type this up. For each site you visit, please write a few sentences of notes.
Describe in detail what you experience. How does this artwork make you feel? Take specific notes about the artwork. If it is music, take notes using the musical terminology you have learned. If it is visual arts, take notes on the colors, textures, shapes, and so on. If it is architecture, reflect on how it fits into the environment. For each site, try to relate your experience to the terminology and arts movements that you have learned about in your Pre-Trip Assignments. Also, feel free to mention in your Journal any contextual factors that may influence your experience of the arts, such as your mood that day, who you may be traveling with, the weather, etc. You will be using your Journal to help you complete the Post-Trip Assignments, and then you will turn in your Journal together with these Post-Trip Assignments.
To complete your Journal you will need to have a photograph taken of yourself at each site, as proof that your coursework is based on authentic, firsthand experiences in the arts of Europe. It is helpful to travel about Greece with other students in this course so they can take your picture. Many museums do not allow photographs to be taken inside, so in that case please arrange for yourself to be photographed just outside the entrance to the building. It's also generally a good idea to supplement your Journal with photographs of art, architecture, musical performances, and cultural life.