Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas

MUS 1030: Music AppreciationWriting Assignment 3: Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas

INCLUDE THE RIGHT SOURCES I GAVE YOU NOT RANDOM ONES

Description

Henry Purcell and his opera, Dido and Aeneas, remain as particular sources of pride for the British people. This essay on a website managed by the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) gives some idea of the enthusiasm that the British continue to feel for this, their earliest opera. Then, listen to the three different recordings of the famous aria “When I am laid in earth” that are linked below.

Assignment

• Read
• Then, go to this YouTube posting of
• Next, check out the
• Finally, listen to a
• Respond to the following prompts.

Answer the prompts in your own words. Use specific examples from the audio and your personal experience. (Full credit requires references to the actual audio content.)

1. How would you describe Emma Kirkby’s vocal style and tone? How did the Baroque period instruments (like the harpsichord or strings) affect the atmosphere? Did the historical performance style help you feel more connected to the music, or less?
2. What stood out most to you about Jessye Norman’s performance? Did her vocal power and phrasing enhance the emotional impact of Dido’s grief and despair? Why or why not? How did the full orchestral sound change the impact of the aria?
3. How did the modern setting of Alison Moyet’s version affect your experience of the piece? Did the style, instrumentation, or tempo change how you understood Didos character or emotions? This version may feel like a departure from what you would think of as “classical music”did this version feel like a respectful reinterpretation, a departure, or something else? Explain your perspective.
4. Which version had the strongest emotional impact on you, and why? Which version felt the most musically interesting or beautiful? If you had to recommend one version to someone new to opera, which would you choose and what would you say about it?

Remember:

All answers should be written in proper formal style as an essay. This means that responses should be written in complete sentences with no spelling or grammatical errors, no vernacular speech or contractions, and all sources must be cited. Try to expand on your ideas as much as possible — one-word responses are never acceptable.

Your submission must be:

• Created in Microsoft Word and saved as a .doc, .docx, or .pdf file
• Text should be black, double-spaced, and only in one font (preferably Times New Roman)
• Your writing should be formatted as an essay and should NOT include the prompt questions or numbers

When saving and submitting your writing assignments, please use the following naming convention:

Lastname Firstname WA3.docx

Please address all of the prompts in your response, but in paragraph form with appropriate transitions between ideas. Any response that requires your opinion on the music should be extensive; this is always the most important aspect of the assignment. Do not settle for a simple, surface-level answer; music is complex as are human feelings and reactions to it. You must work to articulate your ideas and opinions clearly and completely. You will not be graded based on your opinions — you will be graded based on your ability to communicate your ideas.

Do not cut and paste any of your answer from another source, including using AI. Plagiarism includes any copying of the words, structure, or ideas of another author without clear citation of that source. If you use the ideas of another author, put these in your own words but still cite the source of the information. Use quotations sparingly and only in support of your response; you cannot use a large-scale quotation and consider this the entire response.

Reminders:

• All work for this course should be written in complete sentences with proper grammar and spelling. Use the spellcheck tool on your word processor.
• Avoid accusations of plagiarism by citing every idea presented that is not your own using MLA style.
• If you use a direct quote from a source, you must put this in quotation marks and cite the source at the end of the sentence. Use quotes sparingly and on a small scale; you should not quote entire paragraphs.
• All work for this course must be done independently; there should be no group collaboration except through sharing ideas on the discussion boards. Assignment submissions must be original work.

CHECK THE RUBRIC GRADE FORM AND FOLLOW IT