MUSI 1001/Peterson—Music Appreciation
UConn-Stamford
Concert Report Guidelines DUE: DECEMBER 7!!
General Information
You will attend a concert and write about your experience this semester. It shall be turned in no
later than: December 7, 2017 (Please plan accordingly!) You may turn it in earlier.
Reports turned in late will be reduced by one letter grade, if accepted at all.
Each report should be a minimum of 4 pages.
Type of concerts:
• Professional, or professional-level, orchestra, choral, opera, or chamber music concerts.
Ask if you’re not sure whether or not your concert meets the criteria.
• Concerts with relevance to course material will be the easiest to write about.
• You must submit a copy of the program with your report.
• Only current concerts—occurring between now and the end of the semester—will be
acceptable. You can’t write about a concert you went to last month…or last year.
How to find a concert:
Finding a suitable concert takes a little research and planning, but there are many to choose from!
Start your planning soon! One of the more important aspects of this assignment is just simply to
raise your awareness of what’s out there. Too often, students choose the first concert they see
without really doing much looking. Among the best places to search are the following:
• HuskyCT—under “Concert Report Information”. Listings of concerts by category
(orchestral, chamber music, opera, choral, school) will be updated throughout the
semester, so check regularly. The links will send you to websites with ticket information,
program information, and directions, etc.
• The resource list at the end of this handout—the website of selected music organizations
in Connecticut are listed; it is not an exhaustive list but it will be enough to get you
started. (Most of these are the same links found on HuskyCT)
• Local papers—particularly the lifestyle/arts/culture sections; the Metropolitan section of
the Sunday New York Times has a concert calendar which includes Connecticut.
• Flyers around town/campus/coffee shops/bookstores/grocery stores, etc.
• Concerts in New York are not off-limits! Check out the NYT Arts/Leisure section
(particularly on Sunday) or The New Yorker magazine which has an extensive calendar
section.
• Churches and libraries—several churches and some libraries around the area have concert
series
• Word of mouth—if you hear of something, feel free to share it with me and I will make it
available to the rest of the class.
Basic Things You Should Know
Cost:
Ticket prices can vary from free to over $100 depending on where you go! Always ask about
student discounts. In most cases, tickets don’t need to be ordered in advance, especially for free
recitals, but if there is a number given, it is a good idea to check with the box office before hand.
Before the concert:
• Do your homework—if you know ahead of time what pieces are on the program, look up
information like style periods, composer, etc. so that you go to the concert with some
specific expectations. A little preparation can make any concert more enjoyable!
• Make sure you know where you’re going! There’s nothing worse than arriving late
because you got lost . . .
• Bring a pen or pencil to take some notes
• Read through the section on “how to write the paper” so you’ll have an idea of what you
need to do!
During the concert:
• Observe general concert etiquette: Plan to arrive early to find your seat, read through the
program, get comfortable with your environment! Turn cell phones, beepers, pagers,
etc off. Don’t talk or whisper or make other kinds of noises while the music is playing—
you are bound to get dirty looks from other concert goers. Feel free, however, if someone
else is talking to give them a dirty look! (Just kidding.) If you want to take notes, get
your pen out before the music starts; you may write comments on your program. Don’t
