Fieldwork project

Your project is to document some aspect of music making in the Boston area, or perhaps in your hometown.

In order to get full credit, you must get my approval for your choice of topic before you proceed. If you do not do so, you run the risk of getting a zero if your work does not meet the requirements of the assignment.

You can choose one of the following ways of documenting music making:

Type of project	What you turn in	Technical specifications
A recorded interview, 5-15 minutes long. (If the subject talks longer than 15 minutes, choose the most important excerpts.)	After conducting the interview, transcribe your own words and the respondent's words as exactly as possible. Turn in this transcript, not the original recording. You must use a recording device (after asking permission); do not attempt to write down a respondent's words during an interview.
5-15 minutes of audio or video recording of musical performance. (This does not have to be continuous. You can edit a longer performance down to a few excerpts.)	Turn in your recording, along with a short written statement explaining the following: when and where the recording was made who is heard/seen what style of music is featured what equipment you used to make the recording	Acceptable formats: standard audiocassette (not microcassette) VHS videotape audio CD DVD audio file (.wav, .mp3, .ogg only) video file (.wmv, .mov, .mpg only) Unacceptable formats: microcassettes .dvf file (Sony audio) .msv file (Memory Stick audio)
A portfolio of 15-25 still photographs that illustrates a coherent theme. (They should document a single performance, or perhaps a group of related performances. Imagine you are a newspaper photographer on assignment, and you want to give your editor as many different views of your subject as possible.)	Turn in your photos, either as prints or digitally. Each photo should have a caption explaining its importance.	Acceptable formats (if done digitally): PowerPoint (.ppt only, not .pptx) .jpg files .png files Unacceptable: Pictures taken from a cell phone or similar low-fidelity device
A 4-6 page paper that discusses the people involved in a musical performance, the social context of the performance, and the musical material presented at the performance.	If you pursue this option, attach to your paper a program, ticket stub, or other document from the musical event you attended.

General guidelines for all projects:

1. Your project must be your own work. Turning in other people's writings, photos, or recordings constitutes plagiarism.

2. You must always have permission before using anyone as a subject of a recording, photo, or interview. Tape recording someone without their permission is illegal in the states of Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and it is unethical everywhere.

3. Avoid e-mailing large files to me. Either burn your files to a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM, or else use a free service such as YouSendIt to send the file to me.