LMUS 3032 A – Music of the Caribbean (Reynolds) Fall 2015

MUSIC OF THE CARIBBEAN

The Course
LMUS 3032 A / CRN 7152

Mon./Wed. 10:00am-11:40pm

66 W. 12th St., Room 002

The Instructor
Dean Reynolds

reynoldd@newschool.edu

Office hours: By appointment

The Materials
Reading materials will be posted
on Course Reserves (accessible
through Canvas) or distributed in
class. There is no required
textbook for this course.
Listening and viewing materials
will be accessible through Canvas.
Most will be posted either as mp3
files or as links to YouTube; some
of the films will stream through
Course Reserves. When listening
and viewing, I strongly encourage
you to use headphones or a good
quality set of speakers whenever
possible.
To access Canvas, log in to your
account at my.newschool.edu and
choose Canvas from the Apps
menu in the upper right corner,
next to your photo. Please make
sure that this course is available in
your Canvas account as of the first
day of class, and let me know if
you have trouble accessing it or
any of the material posted there.
Course Description


This course explores the deep history and vibrant present of the
Caribbean as a musical region. In the first half of the semester, we will
grapple with the Caribbean as a foundational site of the emergence of
the modern world, where the cataclysmic encounters of Amerindians,
Africans, and Europeans under colonialism produced new identities,
social structures, and, of course, musics. Topics in this half will include
neo-African religious musics in Cuba and Haiti, Spanish-derived songs
from the Puerto Rican countryside, and creole musics like son,
merengue, mento, and calypso. In the second half of the semester, we
will turn our attention to the relationship between the Caribbean and
the United States, focusing on the transnational flows of people and the
mass media, the establishment of diaspora communities in the U.S.,
especially in New York, and the volatile foreign relations between the
U.S. and various Caribbean islands. Topics in this half will include the
impact of Caribbean music on jazz, the ascendancy of salsa, and the
global phenomena of reggae, soca, reggaeton, and bachata.
Course Goals
1. To develop a knowledge about Caribbean musicians, genres, and
performances and an understanding of cross-culturally pertinent musical
concepts, techniques, and issues.
2. To situate this music in its relevant historical and contemporary
contexts.
3. To develop listening and analysis skills that facilitate identifying

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LMUS 3032 A – Music of the Caribbean (Reynolds)
Access
Communication – Any student who
would like to discuss material,
assignments, or progress in the
course, or who would like to meet for
any other reason should feel free to
arrange to meet with me. I am
generally available before and after
class on Mondays and Wednesdays,
but may be available other days and
times as well. Brief inquiries can be
made by email; however, please note
that I check my email regularly, but
not constantly. Pursuant to New
School policy, I will ONLY respond to
emails sent from your New School
email address.
Students with disabilities – In
keeping with the university’s policy of
providing equal access for students
with disabilities, any student with a
disability who needs academic
accommodations is welcome to meet
with me privately. All conversations
will be kept confidential. Students
requesting accommodations will also
need to contact Student Disability
Services (SDS). SDS will conduct an
intake and, if appropriate, the
Director will provide an academic
accommodation notification letter for
you to bring to me. At that point, I will
review the letter with you and discuss
these accommodations in relation to
this course. For more information,
please visit: www.newschool.edu/

student-disability-services/
Eugene Lang College / The New School
Fall 2015
selections by ear, to critically engage musical texts, and to participate in
intelligent discussions about music.
4. To broaden conceptions of New York's diverse Caribbean musical life.
5. To develop research skills and techniques for the study of music.
Course requirements and grading
You will be graded on your performance in three principle areas:
Seminar Contributions
• Attend and participate in each class session (30%)
Written Work
• Complete four listening assignments (10%)
• Write two concert reports (15%)
• Create a final project on a Caribbean music topic (20%)
Retrieval of Material
• Complete two quizzes (10%)
• Complete a midterm exam (15%)

Seminar contributions
You are allowed two unexcused absences for the semester. Three
will result in some reduction of the final course grade; four in a
reduction of one full letter grade (e.g from B+ to C+). More than
four unexcused absences mandate a failing grade for the course.
Two late arrivals or early departures will be counted as one
unexcused absence. Absences may be excused on account of: an
extended illness requiring hospitalization or visit to a physician
(with documentation); a family emergency, e.g. serious illness
(with written explanation); or observance of a religious holiday.
The attendance and lateness policies are enforced as of the first
day of classes for all registered students. If registered during the
first week of the add/drop period, the student is responsible for
any missed assignments and coursework.
Please silence your phones and put them away before class
begins. You may use laptops or tablets for course-related purposes
(e.g. accessing readings, taking notes, etc.), although I encourage
you to take notes by hand whenever possible. Please don’t use
them to check email, social media, or surf the web. I reserve the
right to ask you to put your laptop or tablet away if I feel that it
is distracting you or your classmates.
Participation is evaluated according to the levels of preparation
and engagement that you demonstrate during each session. You
may also be asked to work in class in small groups in various
capacities (e.g. discussion leading, breakout sessions, etc.).
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LMUS 3032 A – Music of the Caribbean (Reynolds)
Academic Honesty
and Integrity Policy
Compromising your academic
integrity may lead to serious
consequences, including (but not
limited to) one or more of the
following: failure of the assignment,
failure of the course, academic
warning, disciplinary probation,
suspension from the university, or
dismissal from the university.
Students are responsible for
understanding the university’s policy
on academic honesty and integrity
and must make use of proper
citations of sources for writing
papers, creating, presenting, and
performing their work, taking
examinations, and doing research. It
is the responsibility of students to
learn the procedures specific to their
discipline for correctly and
appropriately differentiating their
own work from that of others. The full
text of the policy, including
adjudication procedures, is found at:
www.newschool.edu/

provost/information-for-students/
Resources regarding what plagiarism
is and how to avoid it can be found
on the Learning Center’s website:
www.newschool.edu/learning-
center/virtual-handout-drawer/
Eugene Lang College / The New School
Fall 2015
The following scale may serve as a guide for participation grades:
A – excellent effort and engagement with the reading/listening
assignments and discussions, asks questions and addresses other
students’ questions/comments, draws creative connections among
topics of study and discussion
B – good effort and engagement with the reading/listening
assignments and discussions, asks questions and address other
students’ questions/comments
C – no effort to ask questions or provide comments, but shows an
acquaintance with reading/listening assignments and signs of
preparation if called upon
D/F – no effort to ask questions or provide comments, shows
obvious lack of preparation or disengagement with the class (e.g.
sleeping, private chatting, etc.)
Written work
You will complete four short listening assignments based on
audio or video examples from our course material.
You will write reports (4-5 pages each) on two live performances
of Caribbean music, at least one of which we will attend as a
class. The New School defrays some of the cost of tickets for
these performances, but you should plan to contribute around
$20 towards the cost. Please note that there are no other costs
(e.g. for textbooks) associated with this course!
The final project consists of either a 12-15-page paper or project
of commensurate effort based on a Caribbean music topic of your
choosing. You will make a brief presentation of your paper or
project to the class at the end of the semester.
Listening assignments may be hand written, legibly and in pen.
Concert reports and final projects must be typed in a professional
font of reasonable size, using double spacing and one-inch
margins on all sides. Assignments that do not conform to the
formatting guidelines will be marked down. Late assignments will
be marked down one half of one letter grade for each day late.
Retrieval of material
There will be a quiz around the 1/4 and 3/4 marks of the semester,
emphasizing core concepts and audio identification. Exact dates
will be announced at least one week in advance.
There will be a midterm exam administered in Week 9. Details of
the exam’s format will be announced at least one week in advance.

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LMUS 3032 A – Music of the Caribbean (Reynolds) Fall 2015

Course Calendar
Important Dates

Monday, 9/7 NO CLASS (Labor Day)

Sunday, 9/13 Last day to add a course
Monday, 9/14 NO CLASS (Rosh Hashanah)
Wednesday, 9/23 NO CLASS (Yom Kippur)
Sunday, 10/4 Last day to drop a course
Thursday, 10/29 CLASS CONCERT: Haitian Music and Dance Performance, 7pm
Sunday, 11/22 Last day to withdraw with a grade of ‘W’
Tuesday, 11/24 Classes follow a Wednesday schedule
Wednesday, 11/25 NO CLASS (Thanksgiving)

Reading, listening, and viewing assignments will be distributed in a separate document.

First Half Second Half

Week 1 Introduction and welcome Week 10 Indo-Caribbean music in New York

The Caribbean as a modern area: history The Caribbean as a modern area, redux

Week 2 The Caribbean as a modern area: style Week 11 Caribbean music and jazz: from NOLA to NY

Week 3 West African religion in the Caribbean Cuban music in New York

Week 4 West African religion in the Caribbean, cont. Week 12 Nuyoricans and the rise of salsa

Week 5 Afro-Protestant religion in the Caribbean The ascendancy of salsa

Cuban punto and Puerto Rican seis Week 13 Music in Cuba after the Revolution

Week 6 The Spanish sound in the Caribbean Sound systems in Jamaica

Creole dance music: rumba Week 14 Reggae: from roots to rub-a-dub

Week 7 Creole dance music: bomba and plena Contemporary Caribbean music: dancehall

Creole dance music: contradanza and son Week 15 Contemporary Caribbean music: reggaeton

Week 8 Creole dance music: merengue Contemporary Caribbean music: bachata

Carnival in Trinidad: calypso and steel pan Week 16 Contemporary Caribbean music: Latin rap

Week 9 Midterm exam (project presentations)

Interlude: Haitian music in New York Week 17 (project presentations)

Except for changes that substantially affect implementation of the evaluation (grading) statement, this syllabus is a
guide for the course and is subject to change with advance notice. Changes will be announced in class and by email,
and a revised syllabus will be posted on Canvas.

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