unit ii - history of afro-american music and a survey of jazz styles a. audio-visual materials

38 Pages·2013·9.44 MB·English

UNIT II - HISTORY OF AFRO-AMERICAN MUSIC
AND A SURVEY OF JAZZ STYLES
A. AUDIO-VISUAL MATERIALS: RECORDINGS USED IN UNIT II AND FILMSTRIPS
B. LESSONS
1. Music of West Africa
2. The Caribbean and the Deep South
3. POP Music in America, 1890-1930 (Filmstrip)
4. Ragtime Piano Styles
5. Vocal Blues Styles
6. Instrumental Blues Styles
7. George Gershwin
8. Pop Music in Alnerica, 1930-1945 (Filmstrip)
9. The Big Band Royalty: the "King," the "Count," and the "Duke"
10. Bop and Cool JclZZ
11. Progressive and Avant-Garde Jazz
12. Review
13. Exam
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RECORDINGS AND FIL.\1STRlPSUSED IN UNIT II
Lessons 1-2 African Music Folkways 8852
Best of Herbie Hancock Columbia JC' 36309
Negro Folk Music of Africa Folkways FE 4500
and America
Sound of the Sun-Steel Band Nonesuch H- 2016
The Gospel Sound Columbia G 31086
Lesson 3 Pop Music in America EAV Filmstrips ~ 1 and 2
Lesson 4 Piano Rags by Scott Joplin Nonesuch H- 71248
Classic Jazz Piano Styles RCA Vintage Series LPV 543
Lesson 5. Take This Hammer - Leadbel1y Folkways SLP l7A
The Bessie Smith Story - Volume 1 Columbia CL 855
Crying Time - Ray Charles ABC-Paramount 544
Lesson 6 The Original Dixieland Jazz Band RCA Vintasge Series LPV 547
Classic Jazz Piano Stvles RCA Vintasge Series LPV 543
An Anthology of British Blues Immediate Z12 52006
Lesson 7 George Gershwin Rhapsody in Blue Mercury SR 90002
Porgy and Bess Columbia OL 5410
Lesson 8 pop Music in America EAV Filmstrip #3
Lesson 9 The Great Benny Goodman Columbia CL 820
The Best of Basie Roulette SR 52081
The Best of Duke Ellington Historia H 621
Lesson 10 Dizzy Gillespie RCA Vintage Series LPV 530
Miles Davis - Birth of the Cool Capi tal DT 1974
The Greatest Jazz Concert Ever prestige PR 24024
(Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, Max Roach)
Lesson 11 Time OUt- Dave Brubeck Quartet Columbia CL 8192
The Heliocentric Worlds of Sun Ra ESP- 1014
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UNIT II - LESSON 1
AIM How does West Afr.ican music differ from traditional American folk music?
PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES Students will be able to:
1. define and identify the following a-spects of West African music:
responsorial singing, melodic and rhythmic ostinato patterns, metronomic
sense of tempo, polyrhythmic use of percussion instruments, melismatic and
quarter tone singing style shouting tone quali ty, ethnomus j,cologist.
f
2. contrast and compare differences between European style of melody and
accompaniment to traditional African approach.
MOTIVATION
Refer to a map and ask students to name regions of Africa from where most
Afro-Americans can trace their ancestry.
Ask class which book and TV serial told the story of a man who was able to
trace his family history using the folk legends he heard from his
grandparents?" (Roots by Alex Haley)
Point out that the black ciyil rights movement stimulated a great interest
in the study of African culture in the 1960s and 70s.
Explain that the musical examples which follow have great importance
because of their influence on the entire development of jazz and rock and
that American popular music now has world-wide influence due to advances in
record ing-,TV and mov ies.
PROCEDURES
1. Terms and Definitions
Write these terms and their definitions on the board and have students copy
them into their notes. Reiterate when mentioned in discussion.
ethnomusicologis~ - scholar who studies the music of a given region
improvisation - making up music as you go along
• responsorial singing (call and response) - leader answered by a chorus
melodic ostinato - repeated melody
• rhythmic ostinato - repeated rhythm
tempo - speed of beats
• metronome - a clock-like device for producing beats at a variety of speeds
• melisma and quarter tones - singing styles
• polyrhythms - many different rhythms played at the same time
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2 (Play African Music, Band 4 (second half of band).] This is ceremonial
music of a chieftain and his tribe. It was recorded by an
ethnomusicologist.
Ask: Which are the main stylistic characteristics?
Responsorial singing - leader answered 0y a chorus
Choral singing in harmony
Short phrases repeated constantly (ostinato) although the leader tends to
vary his part slightly each time and improvise changes. The chorus tends
to repeat the same phrase.
Multiple percussion instruments in the accompaniment - drums, rattles,
sticks.
Metronomic sense of tempo and pulse
~ - speed of beats
Metronome - a clock-like device for producing beats at a variety of
speeds from 40 to 208 per minute
Singing tends to feature melismas and quarter tones
Harsh, forced timbre in singing
3. (Play African Music, Band 6, Side 2.] This is an example of polyrhythms,
the chief characteristic of African music. European music stresses
harmony. Each drum plays this pattern separately. Drums have varying
sizes and pitc~es.
4. [Play African Music, Band 5, Side 2.] This is a secret society dance song
using the five drums heard in the last example. Ask:
- >'ihichAfrican elements do you recognize?
- What is the psychological state induced by the drums played over a lo~g
::he'
period of time to the listener or dance.r in ceremony? (trance, ,
frenzy, ecstasy, fainting)
5. [Play an appropriate example to demonstrate improvising.]
Improvisation is a main stylistic ingredient of West African nusic. Since
there was_no written music, they had to make it up as they went along.
European music has, since the Middle Agjjes, come to rely on written
transcription of music.
Contemporary example: fusion-disco-jazz. write this on the board and play
Herbie Hancock's, d"Tell Everybody," listening for improvisation.
Ask: How does disco use some of these elements?" (responsorial singing,
melodic/rhythmic ostinato and a steady tempo)
POINTS FOR FURTHER DISCUSSION
How do these recordings differ from th·etraditional American and British
folksongs heard in unit I?
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UNIT II - LESSON 2
AI~ How did West African music influence L~e music of the Caribbean and
southern united States?
PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES Students will be able to:
identify similarities between West African examples heard in previous
lesson and New world examples.
name Cariobean instruments which have African origins: maracas, c1aves,
bongos, congas, marimba.
discuss reasons why African music developed differently in the Caribbean
from the Deep South in North America.
MGrIVATION
,Hold up maracas, claves, guiro and demonstrate. Ask class to name each
instrument. use pictures if the instruments are not available.
In the Caribbean, African istruments received new names. write these notes
on the board and have students copy them into their notebooks.
a) rattles became maracas
b) sticks became claves
c) drums became bongos, cOIlgas
d) xylophone became marimba
Music sung and played by persons of African descent in the islands of the
Caribbean_and parts of Central and South America is often virtually
indis~inguishable from West African music with the exception of the
language used, whic.'lcoul& be a mixture of African dialect with Spanish,
French, Dutch, Portuguese, or Englis'h (patois).
Some of the reasons for the retention of African culture:
- Isolation of the islands
_ Africans formed the majority of the population on many islands; tribal
and family units remained together, often working on large plantations
under a few European overseers.
_ The predominantly Catholic religion allowed for the inclusion of tribal
gods as new saints. Many African religious customs, such as voodoo and
other cults, continued to survive.
PROCEDURES
write on the board all terms, definitions and recording$. Add descriptions.
1. [Play Example I - "Lucumi Songn - sung in Eastern Cuba by descendants of
Yorubas from Nigeria. Play Side 2, Band 18 of Negro Folk Music of Africa
and America.] Notice the po1ycythmic and responsorial elements. The
refrain features two words very clearly - Buena Noce (Good 'Night -
pronounced as Booehnah Nocheh from the Spanish).
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2. (play Example 2 - "Steel Drums of Trinidad" (see back of record jacket)
Side 2, Band 6 (sounds like a stroshic lolksong).J
In Trinidad (an island off the coast of Venezuela which has large oil
refineries), island natives in search of rhythmic instruments (After drums
and stick bands had been outlawed by the colonial government.) discovered
that oil drums of various sizes and indentations made fine musical
instruments when struck by rubber mallets. The soprano drum is dented to
produce 32 different pitches. In addition, there are also alto, tenor and
bass drums.
3. Why in general did black music in America not retain its Africanisms in as
pure a form as in the Caribbean? (think of Roots)
a) family and tribal units were systematically broken up; small
plantations needed fewer workers
b) blacks formed a minority of the population in many areas
c) protestant missionaries introduced hymn tunes that were incorporated
into black church service
d) much closer relationship between black and white culture in the south
and more repression
4. Example 3 - Spiritual - "Mississippi"
[Play: Negro Folk Music of Africa and America Side 2, Band 23. (6)]
This was recorded in an isolated country church in 1949 sung by old
parishioners whose parents still remembered the times of slavery.
Spiritual - early religious hymns sung by southern blacks.
[Play: "My Name Has Been written Down" from Negro Folk Music of Africa and
Amer ica.]
a) Notice the responsorial singing.
b) Since drums were not allowed by the authorities, the polyrhythmic
accompaniment is created by hand clapping, footstamping, and
fingersnapping. In this example, however, only hand clapping and
foots~amping occurs.
5. Gospel style - (play: "Said I Wasn't Gonna Tell Nobody" from the Gospel
Sound Side 3, Band 7 recorded 1960 by the Abyssinian Baptist Gospel Choir
in New Yor k City (Harlem) .J
a) Elicit similarities to African style.
b) "Notice hand clapping, accompanying instruments."
c) "What is the mood conveyed?"
d) "How does the religious ecstasy compare to ceremonial music previously
heard in lesson l?" (trance, frenzy, ecstasy, fainting)
POI~TS FOR FURTHER DISCUSSION
Which popular performers have been influenced by .this type of gospel
singing? Many famous jazz, soul, and rock musicians began their musical
careers singing in church. They then transferred this style ':0 their type
of music. Examples:
Black performers influenced by gospel singing:
Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, singers for Motown records.
White performers influenced by gospel singing:
Janis Joplin, Tom Jones, Elvis presley, Rolling Stones
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UNI'f II -, LESSON 3
AIM How did jazz develop in America from 1890-1930?
PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES Students will be able to:
name early jazz styles such as: ragtime, blues, Dixieland, Tin-Pan Alley,
and describe how jazz influenced popular songs.
identify mechanical inventions which helped to spread the popularity of
jazz such as: piano rolls, record player, radio, talking movies.
identify the musical styles of Victor Herbert, Scott Joplin, Irving Berlin,
Louis Armstrong, Stephen Foster, John Philip Sousa, George M. Cohan, George
Gershwin, Original Dixieland Jazz Band, Bing Crosby, Al Jo1son, Paul
Whiteman's Band, Rudee Valee.
discuss sociological reasons for the development of popular music in
America (World War I, Prohibition, flappers, automobiles, post-war
prosperity and depression) .
MarI~TION: Mention that the two filmstrips show the background for the
development of American popular music in this century. This
development has worldwide influence.
PROCEDURES:
1. Show filmstrips I and II of EAV series Pop Music in the 20th Century.
2. Summar ize:filmstrips by the following chalkboard notes and have students
copy these notes and discuss implication of technologicaT and societal
changes resulting from the items listed below.
Musical Influences 1890-1930
a. John Philip Sousa ••••••••••••••••. marches
b. Stefhen Foster •.•••••.••••••.••••• ballads show Afro-Amer ican influence
c. Tin Pan Alley ••••.•••••••••••••••• song publishers
d. pianola (player piano) •• piano rolls
0 ••• 0 •••••
e. Scott Joplin •.•..••.•.•••••••••.•. rags
f. Irving Berlin ••..•.•.••..•..•.•.•• "Alexander 's Ragtime Band"
g. ragtime dances •..•..•••..••.•••.•• Castle Walk, Charleston, Black-bottom
h. Victor Herbert •••.•••.•••••••...•• operettas
i. George M. Cohan ••••••••••••••.•••• war songs
j. victrola (record player) •••••••.•• 78 rpm records
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k. original Dixieland Jazz Band•..•... ragtime, blues
:<ing 01iver •
Louis Armstrong
Ai Jo1son Sojil ie Tucker
Paul l'lhiteman
George Gershwin
1. radio
m. microphone ...••.•..•.. ~••••.••••••• Bing Crosby
n. prosperity •.. post world War I
pleasure seeking
flappers ••••••• , ., •••.••••••••••.•• women s suffr age movement
I
o. depression
p. talking movies
q. age of dance marathons
r. automobile
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UNIT II - LESSON 4
AIM How did ragtime synthesize European and African musical styles?
PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES Students will be able to:
define the fOllowing terms: ragtime, syncopation, bass, afterbeat, slide
piano, cutting contest, technique
identify prominent ragtime and stride pianists such as Scott Joplin, Jelly
Roll Morton, Eubie Blake, Fats Waller
*1
recognize elements listed in recorded examples
MOTIVATION (Playa short excerpt of "The Entertainer."] Ask students to
identify the style, composer, title, and movie which popularized
this selection. (The Sting). Use the piano or recording. Piano
Rags by Scott Joplin-Side 1. Band 2.
PROCEDURES
1. Write the following terms on the board and add the brief definitions as the
terms appear in the lesson. Have students copy them into their notebooks.
-ragtime = piano jazz style in 2/4 or 4/4 timer earliest written
jazz
-syncopation - accenting the weak beats
-bass - l~west sounding note on the downbeat
~afterbeat - upbeat
-stride piano - action the left hand makes alternating between
a low note and a chord
-cutting contest - piano competition held to raise rent money
~technique - finger dexterity
2. Define ragtime - a piano jazz style in 2/4 or 4/4 time in which the bass
part or accompaniment maintains the basic pulse and the treble or melody is
syncopated.
a) Mention that this style was the earliest written form of jazz; was
popularized by piano rolls (forerunners of recordings); melodies were
derived from marching band music and European - American dances such as
the polka, quadrille and schottischee
b) It had a great impact on development of American popular music (Tin Pan
alley, Broadway shows).
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9. Define syncopation - a rhythmic device of stressing a weak beat, accenting
notes in between beats or omitting normally stro!.g beats. (Although it '.vas
used in European music, it is a feature of African music.
Demonstr ate syncopa tion - page 2 or 3 of the Maple Leaf Rag is a good
choice. Show the basic bass note and afterbeat left hand accompaniment
patterns occurring on the regular beat and the syncopated right hand, or
have the class count or clap 1-2-3-4 but accent or emphasize the numbers 2
and 4.
4. (Play Maple Leaf Rag (1899) either as a piano solo or on Piano Rags Side 1,
Band 2, Scott Joplin's most famous rag.]
Ragtime had a rather low-class origin, evolving in saloons, houses of
ill-repute (sporting houses of New Orlean's red light district "Storyville."
5. Another famous ragtime pianist from New Orleans was Jelly Roll Morton.
Eubie Blake at 97 was the subject of a recent Broadway show called "Eubie"
which featured his rags.
6. A post-ragtime pianist was Fats Waller. The show Ain't Misbehavin'
featured on Broadway is based on his music.
waller had a prOdigious piano technique. He exemplified a style known as
stride piano.
Waller perfected his stride piano technique in cutting contests which 'Here
informal piano competitions held in black neighborhoods in rent-party
sessions. A party was held to raise money to pay the rent; the piano
winner usually received a free dinner. "Fats" must have won lots of
contests. (technique - finger dexterity)
7. [Play Jazz Piano Styles Side 1, Band 4, Handful of Keys by Fats Waller (see
back of record jacket).J
8. Make a list on the chalkboard of the players and composers of ragtime
mentioned in this lesson. Add descriptions.
Ragtime composers and performers:
- Scott Joplin - "The Entertainer," "Maple Leaf Rag"
- Jelly Roll Morton
Eubie Blake d)
- Fats Waller - "Handful of Keys" - stride piano
POINTS FOR FURTHER DISCUSSION
How did ragtime and stride piano combine European and African elements?
European African
1. written - not purely improvised 1. syncopation or jazzing
2. used piano and traditional piano 2. some improvisation
technique 3. played by performers of
3. 8 and 16 bar phrases African lineage
4. Melodies based on marches, dances
and popular songs
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