Teacher's Guidelines:This presentation - History of the Blues, is a 40 to 45 minute program designed to demonstrate how blues music reflected key elements of African American history in the United States. Through various instruments, songs and stories I describe the social conditions that led up to the Great Migration from the time period of the 20’s up to the 50’s. The origins and development of blues music is also discussed, as it is my experience that to understand the music of a people leads to a deeper understanding of their culture and how that culture shaped American history.Topics that are covered include the origins of blues music and how that music changed as the musician’s life styles changed. Additionally, I will decribe how sharecropping, racism, Jim Crow laws, tenant farming, and severe weather conditions ultimately led to the Great Migration of African Americans from the rural south to the industrial north. All of these subjects, along with invaluble related materials can be located on the following website: In Motion: The African American Migration Experience. Although I will briefly touch on these topics I would recommend that your students be familiar with them beforehand. For more infomation, visit this page on 'Blues History.' Finally, I demonstrate how blues music influenced one of the most popular forms of American music - Rock and Roll. Various songs (listed below) are availble for download in a mp3 formats. It is highly recommended that the students listen to these examples prior to my visit. This program is designed primarily for grades 7 through 12. Although it can be performed inside a classroom or an auditorium, I prefer to work with the middle school students in a close classroom setting. The program can be done in either one period or several, depending on how in depth the teacher would like the material presented. In some cases I provide writing workshops where the students are taught to compose thier own verses of blues lyrics. Writing Workshop:Writing Workshop Instructions (.pdf format for download) Writing Workshop Songs For Study (.mp3 format - right click to download ) Additonal Songs For Listening (.mp3 format - right click to download ) |
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