History and Artistry of Rock and Roll The Voice Your Choice project are inspired by a similar project at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum in Cleveland, Ohio.

The objectives of the project are for you to:

• demonstrate an understanding of reasons why people value music and a respect for diverse opinions regarding music preferences.
• learn to evaluate the history and artistry of rock and roll.
• analyze and understand the process of induction into the Rock Hall of Fame Museum

Your final project will be to submit an essay or presentation that demonstrates these above objectives (see below).

History and Artistry of Rock and Roll Questions to Consider

To begin to think critically about the value of rock and popular music, consider some of the following questions.

• What does musical excellence mean to you?
• What does musical excellence mean to musicians, scholars, and critics?
• Can musical excellence be evaluated objectively or is musical excellence purely subjective interpretation?

In considering such questions for your project, you should begin to articulate and justify your own musical preferences. However, the project also asks for you to consider the evaluation of music you do NOT “like,” so that you learn to appreciate the value of music beyond your aesthetic preferences. Being a “scholar” of rock music means setting your “fan” mentality aside to evaluate musical excellence as fairly as possible.

Research rock and pop music history

Once you have considered these issues, you should consider the breadth of topics covered in this course and the artists and non- musicians associated with the music studied. Consider these questions:

• Who are the men and women who have made rock and roll history?
• What have they contributed to the art form?
• How would you describe their music?
• How would you describe their musical skill and artistry?
• Regarding non-musicians, what contributions make them important to rock music history?
• Who have these musician/non-musicians influenced and who were their influences?
• How do music critics/music historians view their legacy?

Once you have explored the history and music of the rock era you should create your own Inductee class. You can follow the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Process as a model, or establish your own criteria and/or categories. The “25-year rule” need not apply for this project, meaning recent artists, e.g., Katy Perry, can be considered. Using the given established criteria, make critically informed judgments about who to induct.

Your “induction class” should include a minimum of THREE inductees. At least ONE of these inductees should represent a musical style that you dislike (or your least favorite) that would still be accepted by the Rock Hall (e.g., Ludwig van Beethoven would not be eligible). As such, your choices and supporting materials will demonstrate an understanding of reasons why people value music and respect for diverse opinions regarding music preferences.

For each nominee, you must articulate your decision-making process and provide supporting evidence to justify your choice. Essentially, you are answering why these nominees deserve to be inducted. Your argument is intended to convince others of their musical excellence given your established criteria, persuading those who may have no prior knowledge of the given artists or their music or even someone who is not a fan. Arguments should be thoughtful, informed, and should reflect an understanding of “musical excellence.” Again, the “fan” mentality is not acceptable – likes and dislikes should not be the foundation of your argument.

Consider it a formal paper, keeping it academic in tone, syntax, grammar, etc. Present clear evidence to support your choices and use formal citations from whatever discipline is your major (e.g. MLA, APA, Chicago, Turabian, etc.) Indicate which of your three choices is the “non-preferred” choice from your “non-fan” perspective, keeping in mind that you are to argue for their induction anyway. Remember that just because an artist sold a lot of records doesn’t necessarily make them excellent. (Think “Friday” by Rebecca Black.) Internet resources, such as www.rockhall.com or www.allmusic.com, are acceptable and you must use at least one primary source (journal article, book, essay, interview). All sources must be appropriately cited.

Create a slide presentation (at least 8 slides), as well as an accompanying 2-3 page (600 words+) essay defending your induction choices. This option gives you the chance to organize your thoughts visually.

Your essay must explain your presentation in full (as if it were the notes to your slides). Appropriate documentation is required, just as outlined in option 1 above

. Powerpoint presentations are preferred (.ppt or .pptx), but if you use another software (e.g., Keynote), please be sure to indicate this along with your post and how others can access it, e.g., Prezi.