For this assignment you are to study and analyze the tone poem Don Juan, op. 20, by Richard Strauss. In addition to the music itself, you will read one article about this programmatic work, and you will then write a paper that focuses on a programmatic intrepretation of the work, and in particular, that also addresses the issue of the work's form.

For this project you are to use the following materials:

• Richard Strauss, Don Juan, op. 20 (any full score of the work).
• James Hepokoski, "Fiery-Pulsed Libertine or Domestic Hero? : Strauss's Don Juan Reinvestigated," pp. 135-175 in Bryan Gilliam, ed., Richard Strauss : New Perspectives on the Composer and His Work (Durham and London: Duke University Press, 1992). [Item scanned]
• Any recording(s) of this work that you choose. Several are available in the UCF Library (CD recordings include: CDR 1, CDR 146 & CDR 845), as well as through the "Classical Music Library" database. I also have personal CD recordings of this work that you may borrow (briefly).
• Any sources of your choice concerned with Richard Strauss and this work. [not required, but recommended]
• Any sources of your own choice concerned with programmatic music in the late 19th century. [not required, but recommended]

In your paper you should do the following:

• Provide a brief, general introduction to the tone poem Don Juan, Strauss as a composer of orchestral and programmatic music (particularly in the 19th century), and related issues.
• Discuss briefly the problem of program music, summarizing either from Hepokoski's article or elsewhere.
• Describe the "program" of Strauss's Don Juan. What is it, where does one find it, and is it limited to only what can be found in the score (or other relevant sources)? What do you believe to be the program of the Don Juan (for purposes of your analysis)?
• Describe the "musical form" of Don Juan, especially as you view it both in terms of traditional "textbook" forms and formal procedures, and of its programmatic essence. Be sure to identify clearly any specific passages that you mention, e.g., through rehearsal numbers or measure numbers, in your discussion.
• Provide a summary of your paper.

Type (word-process) your paper in the usual format (1" margin on all edges, double-spaced, paragraphs indented, etc.) and submit it to me via email (as an attachment compatible with WORD) by 5:00 pm on Monday, 25 April 2011.

Reminder: You must footnote (or otherwise cite) any references to either Hepokoski's article or other sources that you use in the writing of this paper. Failure to cite any significant quotations, paraphrases, or other borrowings may be considered plagiarism (and treated as such).

Minimum acceptable length = 1500 words for undergraduates (MUH 4361) and 2000 words for graduate students (MUH 5365).

Grading will be based on (1) clarity of expression and correct usage (spelling, grammar, etc.) (40%), (2) your introduction to the work and to programmatic music in general (20%), and (3) your explication of this specific work (40%). For undergraduates (MUH 4361), this assignment counts for 10% of your course grade, and for graduate students (MUH 5365), this assignment counts for 15% of your course grade.

Reminder: This assignment counts for 10% of your course grade in MUH 4361 and 15% of your course grade in MUH 5365.