Our X-Term Experience

I've been teaching Spanish at a private high school in Richmond, Virginia for almost six years.  For the past five years, we have reserved the last week of February and the first week of March for a time known as "minimester".  This two week time period allowed for the senior class to take a trip overseas, enroll in some type of alternative course, or work on some type of independent project of interest.  This year, what was formally known as "minimester" is now called "X-Term Week" and it will involve all students, from grades 9 to 12.  Faculty were asked individually to design a week course for students to enroll, based on each teacher's personal interest.  I fumbled around with some ideas, and finagled a way to create a course that would be of personal interest to me.   I proposed a course that would allow me to spend countless hours talking to students about the history, culture, artistic value, and appreciation of vinyl records.  Here is the course description that I came up with:


Vinyl Revival:                    

Students will study the history of vinyl records, recordings, and album covers.  They will also explore and experience the art of collecting and preserving an original format of recorded music.  Field trips to recording studios, record shops, museums and music venues, as well as guest speakers, will contribute to the appreciation of vinyl as a currently relevant art form. 

Enrollment filled up quickly, and I now have a total of 17 students in my class.  Some are interested and have exposure to vinyl records, and others do not.  We have met a total of three times so far to discuss various topics, including: the history of vinyl records, pressing of vinyl records, proper turntable setup, record cleaning and care, and the many differences of various record labels.  In February, the students will spend many hours digging for records and exploring new music through the vinyl format.  Currently, here are some of their responses to discuss some of their interests or influences, along with some genres that they would like to research more.  

 "My very first CD was one my father gave me of the greatest hits of The Clash, one of his favorites.  He was the influence of most of my early music tastes.  I’m currently a fan of 80’s-90’s alternative like R.E.M. and Nirvana, jazz and swing like Count Basie and John Coltrane, modern indie bands like Modest Mouse and The National, and some hip-hop that ranges from the West Coast rap of the 90’s to the mainstream rap of today.

Only being sixteen years old, I do not have much experience in the field of vinyl, but it has been an interest of mine for a while now.  I hope this project will allow me to learn about this wonderful medium of media and to allow me to find new and interesting music.  Some ideas I have for research are bands on the Sup Pop label as well as old jazz records."

Jim P.

 Top 5 Artists:

1. Sly and the Family Stone  (Stand! vs. There's a Riot Goin On)

2. Jimi Hendrix (Live at Woodstock vs. Greatest Hits)

3. Herbie Hancock  (Man-Child, Headhunters coming a close 2nd)

4. Marvin Gaye (I Want You vs. Let's Get It On)

5. Simon and Garfunkel (Parsley, Sage, Rosemary, and Tyme)

6. Funkadelic  (America Eats Its Young)

7. The 5th Dimension (The Age of Aquarius vs. The Magic Garden)

8. Bob Dylan (Greatest Hits)

9. Earth, Wind, and Fire  (Head to the Sky)

10. ?????

Jabriel H.

"Finally getting back to you about the musical interests! I had a hard time figuring out what bands to put down so i figured i would just give you the names of the last couple i have listened to. These are Nick Drake, Iron and Wine, Sun Kil Moon, The Weepies, Belle and Sebastian, Neutral Milk Hotel, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, The Libertines, and The Rakes. Other bands i feel i should mention are Fleet Foxes, Arquitechture in Helsinki, Beirut, Arcade Fire, The Shins, and Of Montreal. I am probably forgetting something, but these are all the bands that pop into mind. As for what i hope to accomplish, i hope to buy some records, research some new bands, and figure out the ins and outs of records and record players. My sister said she would buy me a record player, and even though she is more than a month late, i am still holding out hope that one day i might see it. The main thing i am hoping to focus on will be starting my record collection and researching new musicians, hopefully of the folk genre, but i am also looking forward to the other aspects of this study."

Robert H.

"I like Bad Brains, Black Flag, Bad Manners, Big Star, Koffin Kats, Eater, The  

Fluid, House of Freaks, Joy Division, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Uncle  

Tupelo, The Cramps, Siouxsie & The Banshees, Violent Femmes,  

Weedeater, Zombina & The Skeletones, Municipal Waste"  

Scottie P.

"My musical taste is largely improvisational music, specifically Grateful Dead and Phish.  However, I love the counter culture music and the music of the 60s.  Other specific bands are The Allmans, Zeppelin, The Band, and The Who.  I love the guitar sounds of the 60s and 70s and older music is what i am interested in.  In terms of exposure to vinyl, i really have none.  I collect all of my music over the internet and through cds.  Being into bands like phish and the dead i do collect a lot of music because the live show is so important.  So i am into cataloging and organizing music by years and am interested in distinguishing between the different eras of the band. "

  

Nelson M.

"I like R.E.M, talking heads, the beatles, and the beach boys.  My parents grew up in the late 70's early 80's and i like to listen to the music that they had in high school and college.  I am willing to listen to bands with similar styles and influences of many of these bands.  I do not collect vinyal my dad just has a large CD collection from high school and college.  I have put must of these CD's on my itunes library.  I am not sure on what i am going to do my project on yet but am still looking for new interests."  

Hamilton S.

Thanks for reading!  More posts, pictures, and videos will follow of our experience soon!