MU6006 - Edition of Music

You will be assigned a supervisor who is a specialist in the scholarly, critical editing of music. The pattern of supervision will adapt to the numbers of students taking the option and be responsive to the particular needs of each student. Some sessions will involve tutorials containing small groups of students in an environment in which peer support and encouragement is as important as input from the supervisor. In the early stages of the module, these will include sessions to develop the skills you need to engage in an editing project. One-to-one supervisions lie at the heart of the module, where you will be able to share work in progress and discuss editorial issues that arise.

Your main support will come from your supervisor. Your supervisor will guide you in editorial methods, and on how to interpret written sources of music; will help you to identify a suitable project and to find resources to support your work (e.g. bibliographical material); will offer guidance on specific issues that arise in the course of your project, and discuss more general aspects of your work with you; will provide oral feedback on your progress, and written feedback on the first piece of assessment.

All modules at Northumbria include a range of reading materials that students are expected to engage with. The reading list for this module can be found at: http://readinglists.northumbria.ac.uk
(Reading List service online guide for academic staff this containing contact details for the Reading List team – http://library.northumbria.ac.uk/readinglists)

Knowledge & Understanding:
• You will demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of the history of scholarly music editions, and an up-to-date knowledge and understanding of editorial methods and issues
Intellectual / Professional skills & abilities:
• You will be able to devise, plan and manage a large-scale research project.
• You will have the ability to select relevant primary (mainly musical sources, manuscript and printed) and secondary materials from electronic, print and other relevant sources and use it effectively both for the music edition and supporting introductory material.
• You will demonstrate an ability to produce a scholarly, critical edition of music that has the potential to be used by professionals and/or amateurs in perfromance
Personal Values Attributes (Global / Cultural awareness, Ethics, Curiosity) (PVA):
• You will be able to work independently on a an edition that reflects your scholarly and musical interests, demonstrating determination through self-motivation.
• You will embrace self-critical awareness and feedback from others as you monitor your own progress, and be willing to support your peers by providing them with a critical appraisal of their work.
• You will demonstrate a close attention to detail and a methodical approach to your work which ensures a high degree of accuracy.

There are three pieces of assessment. The first two are designed to help you prepare for the third, which is the dissertation itself.

1. Mid-semester 1: Editing exercise 1 (10%). This exercise will give you some experience of editing music. You will be provided with written feedback in the form of annotations to the edition, a written report form and discussion with your supervisor.
2. End of semester 1: Editing exercise 2 (10%). This exercise will give you some experience of editing a more extended passage of music, and in most cases will be related directly to the project. You will be provided with written feedback in the form of annotations to the edition, a written report form and discussion with your supervisor.
3. At the end of the second semester you will submit a substantial edition of music (80%). The exact make-up of the project will be negotiated in advance with your supervisor, who must approve the size and scope of the project in advance. Possible approaches include editing one source in its entirety (especially in the absence of concordances and/or the necessity to complete missing parts), and editing fewer pieces that survive in a greater number of sources where there is significant variation between the texts they contain.

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The Edition of Music module provides an opportunity to engage with musical texts and the issues surrounding the creation of scholarly, critical editions of music that can be used in performance. It gives a behind-the-scenes insight into how music created in the past can be brought to new audiences through accessible, modern editions. Supervised by an expert in the field, you will work on an extended project resulting in an edition that can be used in performance.