Caroline Samoska

T255 Teaching Music

Song: "The Beaver Song"

Musical Element to Teach: Rhythm through Creative Movement - being able to move to the beat.

Grade Level: Third

Concept: The students will feel the beat in the song and will also move their own bodies, however they want, to express the words of the song.

Objectives: The students will: Sing "The Beaver Song" after rote teaching procedures are used. Move with the rhythm of the song Make up their own actions for each verse.

Materials needed:

A good imagination, a desire to have fun, and a big smile!

Preliminary Procedures:

The teacher will question the students about beavers and how they get their work done, and lead students to the fact that beavers rely on their teeth to get lots of their work done.

Procedures:

1. "The Beaver Song" is taught through rote teaching procedure. The teacher will speak carefully about watching the actions taught, but to think about different ways to act out the words. She will also mention that the song as rhythm and a beat, and to remember to stay with the beat.

2. The teacher will explain that the class will sing the entire song together, with the movements, practicing to stay with the beat of the song - XXX XXX XXXXX=

3. The class will sing the song, acting like beavers and dancing in the desired places. The teacher will lead the song, and will alter her actions slightly, emphasizing that different things can be done to "jive" or "climb".

4. The teacher tells the class they are going to sing the song one more time, and this time the class is to make up their own jive, climbs, and dance at the end. They just need to be careful to stay with the beat of the song - XXX XXX XXX.

5. The teacher will start the class again by counting to 3, and remind students to be creative and stay with the beat.

Evaluation:

The entire class sings "The Beaver Song" while acting out their own movements to the beat.

Follow - up:

The teacher asks how they felt doing their movements. The teacher asks if it was hard to stay with the beat of the song while singing and dancing/moving.

"The Beaver Song"Beaver one, beaver all

Let's all do the beaver crawl! XXX XXX XXXX

Beaver two, beaver three Let's climb up the beaver tree!

XXX XXX XXXXXXXBeaver four, beaver five

Let's all do the beaver jive! XXX X2(X XXXX

Beaver six, beaver seven Let's all go to beaver heaven!

XXX XXX XXXXXXX XXX XXX XXXXXXX

Beaver eight, beaver nine - STOP! It's beaver time.

XXX XXX XXXXXXX

References:http://www.lessonplanspage.com/MusicRhythmCreativeMovement.htm

Title - Moving Like Waves By - Will Ayers

Subject - Music, PE Grade Level - 1st through 3rd Module Theme: The Ocean Lesson Topic: Surfing Music Concept: Rhythm Music used: Oldies but Goodies Volume 8 c 1993: Wipe Out by the Surfaris Other media used: Other equipment and materials: Wave Bottles: 2 Liter Soda Bottles half filled with colored water with caps superglued on.

Music Objectives: Students will:Describe melodic contours. (AL Music 2.18)Respond to a melody through movement. ( AL Music 2.19)

Related Arts Objectives: Students will: Demonstrate proper body alignment ( AL Dance 1.1)Demonstrate moving in different directions using various locomotor movements (AL Dance 1.2Demonstrate laterality. ( AL Dance 1.3)Define and move in personal and general space. ( AL Dance 1.7)

Other Curricular Objectives: Students will:Recognize shapes and patterns in nature and in things people make (Al Science 2.7)

Key Terms/Vocabulary: Rhythm, Melody

FOCUS: HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TO THE BEACH. DID YOU SEE THE OCEAN? HOW DID THE OCEAN MOVE? DID YOU EVER WANT TO MOVE LIKE THE OCEAN? TODAY WE ARE GOING TO DO JUST THAT, BECAUSE I FOUND A SONG THAT HELPS YOU MOVE LIKE A WAVE.

Step 1: Pass out wave bottles. DOES EVERYONE REMEMBER HOW WAVES MOVE? IF YOU DON'T, JUST SWISH YOUR WAVE BOTTLE GENTLY FROM SIDE TO SIDE.Step 2. Play Wipe Out ( It is suggested for certain classes that the opening laughter be skipped. Use your own discretion) HOW DOES THE MELODY OF THE SONG MOVE? UP AND DOWN. THAT'S RIGHT. SORT OF LIKE A WAVE. NOW LETS MOVE LIKE WAVES. BE CAREFUL. POLITE WAVES DON'T CRASH INTO ONE ANOTHER, BUT THEY CAN MOVE IN ANY DIRECTION THE SEA TAKES THEM. NOTICE THE RHYTHM OF THE SONG. THE BEAT HITS HARD ON CERTAIN NOTES. TRY TO MOVE YOUR WAVE TO THE RHYTHM ALSO, SO YOUR MAIN MOVEMENTS HAPPEN ON THAT BEAT.Step 3: Direct the class to move in unjular motions, like waves. Tell them to move up and down with the melody. At the drum solos, it's "Low Tide", so the waves are very small and don't move much, but they still move the same way.

SUMMARY: Students will learn the concepts of rhythm and melody.

ASSESSMENT: Students will have demonstrated melodic contours and proper body alignment, as well as moving laterally and in general space by dancing like waves.

FOLLOW-UPSMusic : Students will demonstrate further understanding of the waves and the ocean by moving and singing to Sea Cruise, by Frankie Ford, and Come Go with Me, by the Del Vikings

References:

http://www.lessonplanspage.com/MusicPEMovingLikeWaves13.htm

Title - Fly Butterfly, Fly! By - T Ray Subject - Music, Physical Education Grade Level - Pre-K thru 2nd

Materials needed: 1. Large Space for movement2. CD Player or Tape Recorder3. Waltz No. 1 in Eb (MAJOR Op.18)by Frederic Chopin

Objectives: 1. To encourage dramatic movement2. To introduce music by Chopin

Have your students lay on their bellies. And begin to tell this story. As you tell the story, students are to act out the story: There was a beautiful catepillar that love to (crawl) all around. He would crawl in the trees, on the streets, on the buildings and all around. But one day the caterpillar got very sleepy and decided to (take a long nap). He began to (snore)very loud. A while later, his (eyes popped wide open)and he found that he couldn't move. He (rolled)all around but couldn't get free. He (rolled and rolled all around). He was surrounded by a shell that kept him from moving freely. He then (popped his left arm free). He (popped his right arm free.) He popped his left foot free). He (popped his right foot free). And then he (stood up). He noticed that he was a BUTTERFLY! He began to (flap his colorful wings slowly). And then... AT THIS POINT BEGIN THE MUSIC BY CHOPIN... And say "TAKE OFF!" The students should take off by flying all around the large space. During the A section of the music the students fly. During the B section of the music have the students walk slowly to catch their breath :) and when the A section starts again have them Take Off again. At the end of the piece have the children fly back to where they began. The children love this lesson and I do too. I just made up this lesson to pass the last few minutes of class. And the students ask to do it time and time again.

References:

http://www.lessonplanspage.com/MusicPEFlyButterflyFly-DramaticMovementToChopinIdeaP2.htm

Title - "FIND THE SOUND" By - Tavis Minner Subject - Music Grade Level - K-3

Materials needed: 1. A chair in the middle of the room

2. Favorite percussive and/or pitched instruments. 3. A blindfold.

OBJECTIVES: 1. To help reinforce listening skills. 2. To help children in knowing the particular sounds of certain instruments.

GAME: 1. Choose a student to sit in the chair and blindfold him/her. 2. Choose an instrument and go to certain place in the classroom. 3. Begin to play the instrument with a continuous rhythmic pattern. 4. Ask the blindfolded student to stand up and walk toward the sound. (make sure that their hands are outstretched as to assist them finding the sound) 5. Once they've found you, have them name the instrument being played. If they name correctly, then they get to choose an instrument to play and they choose a student to be the "blindfolded one". I guarantee that the students will love it!!

References:

http://www.lessonplanspage.com/MusicFindSoundGameIdeaK3.htm

Title - cookie jar By - Joe Brolly Primary Subject - Music Secondary Subjects - Grade Level - 1/2

It is a music game that focuses on the rhythm and beat patterns. The song that is used is a very

common song that most children will know, and if they don’t it is a very catchy tune, which can be taught quite easily.

Who stole the cookie from the cookie jar? Is the song.

The words:

Who stole the cookie from the cookie jar?(persons’ name) stole the cookie from the cookie jar.Who me? Yes you! Couldn’t be! Then who...

Then it goes back to the second line. Etc

The students clap to the beat while singing the song. The point of the game is for the students not to miss a beat when they are singing the verse. If they do then they are considered out and go to the cookie jar, but still participate in the game.

I found that children love this game and always try to get to the end without being placed in the jar.

References:

http://www.lessonplanspage.com/MusicRhythmBeatPatterns-WhoStoleCookieFrom-Idea12.htm

Title - Musical Note Go Fish By - Anna Morgan Primary Subject - Music Secondary Subjects - Grade Level - 1 - 3 Concept - Learn to associate same notesObjective - Play game & learn musical notesMaterials - You will need several sets of flash cards with music notes such as quarter, half, whole, eigth and you may even use the treble or bass clef.

Procedures- Put 2 students into each group. Pass out sets of musical note flash cards. Let them play the game as if they were playing the traditional Go Fish game. From each group, take the winner and place with another winner, let them play like they were in a tournament and just keep narrowing them down till you get the final winner.

Closure - This shows students how to work with others, sharing and association of notes.

Evaluation - One could offer a small gift to the winner. Something as a candy bar.

References:

http://www.lessonplanspage.com/Music-MusicalNoteGoFish13.htm

Comma Songto the tune of “My Bonnie” from Chalkboard Songs by Suzy Red

(For added fun, stand or sit whenever you sing the word, "comma.")

Reference: http://suzyred.com/commasong.html

A comma goes with a name Chorus:

If that’s who you’re talking tooA comma with quotation marksWill sure keep you out of the stew.

 

 

Before TOO at the end of a sentence,After "yes" and "no" when they come first,A comma with Dear Bob, and Your Friend,Will save you from what is the worst.

 

Appositives need some commas,Dates with the year do, too.Between city and state some commas,Will make a good student of you!

Commas before conjunctions Can join two sentences, too, When dependent clauses come first, A comma will work well for you!

Commas, Commas A listing needs commas,Hurrah, hurrah!Commas! Commas!Oh, PAUSE for a comma today!

Chorus: Commas, Commas A listing needs commas,Hurrah, hurrah!Commas! Commas!Oh, PAUSE for a comma today!

Chorus: Commas, Commas A listing needs commas,Hurrah, hurrah!Commas! Commas!Oh, PAUSE for a comma today!

Chorus: Commas, Commas A listing needs commas,Hurrah, hurrah!Commas! Commas!Oh, PAUSE for a comma today!

 Page 4

Chalkboard Songs, © Suzy Red, 1997, Lockhart, TX

THERE, THEIR, THEY'RE SONG Words by Suzy Red, to the tune of "Bingo"

There was a word that meant a PLACE

And THERE was its name-o. T-H-E-R-E, T-H-E-R-E,

T-H-E-R-E And THERE was the place-o!

There was a word which belonged to them

And THEIR was the word-o. T-H-E-I-R, T-H-E-I-R, T-H-E-I-R, And THEIR was who owned it!

There was a word which meant THEY ARE

And THEY'RE was the word-o. T-H-E-Y (tongue pop) R-E, T-H-E-Y (tongue pop) R-E, T-H-E-Y (tongue pop) R-E, THEY ARE was what it meant-o!

From Chalkboard Songs, copyright 1992, Suzy Red, Lockhart, Texas

References:http://suzyred.com/there.html

References:http://www.canteach.ca/elementary/songspoems64.html

All the Seasons

Seasons I'm glad I liveWhere seasons change -

I like my worldTo rearrange.

Easy seasons

Spring's all buttercupsand breezy.

Summer's hot andbumblebees-y.

Autumn's bright withcolored trees-y.

Winter's snowy,sniffly, sneezy.

Alan Benjamin

Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall

(to the tune of "This Old Man")

Winter, Spring, Summer, FallThere are seasons, four in all.

Weather changes, sun and rain and snow,Leaves fall down and flowers grow.

Winter, Spring, Summer, FallThere are seasons, four in all.

Look outside and you will seeJust what season it will be!

Seasons of the Year

(to the tune of "Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush")

CHORUS:Here we go round the year again,The year again, the year again.Here we go round the year again,To greet the different seasons.

Wintertime is time for snow.To the south, the birds will go.It's too cold for plants to growBecause it is the winter.

Here we go round the year again,The year again, the year again.Here we go round the year again,To greet the different seasons.

In the springtime, days grow warm.On the plants, the new buds form.Bees and bugs come out to swarmBecause it is the spring.

CHORUS

In summertime, the days are hot.Ice cold drinks I drink a lot!At the beach, I've got a spotBecause it is the summer.

CHORUS

Fall is here, the air is cool.Days are short, it's back to school.Raking leaves is now the ruleBecause it is autumn.

CHORUS

Meish Goldish

Lesson Plan

Summary: The handcart was one of many modes of transportation used by the pioneers when

traveling to the Great Salt Lake Valley. The students will listen to handcart stories, construct a paper model of a handcart, play a handcart game as well as learn a handcart song.

Main Curriculum Tie:Language Arts- 4th grade Standard 1, Music 4th grade Standard 1, and Oral Language- Students develop language for the purpose of effectively communicating through listening, speaking, viewing and presenting.

Life Skills:

Responsible Citizenship Complex Thinking

Time Frame:This is going to take approximately 2 class periods that runs 45 minutes each.

Group Size:Large Groups

Materials:

Computer, internet access (for stories and pictures) Scissors, glue, crayons, construction paper, markers Stories of the handcart pioneers Song: ‘The Handcart Song’ from the ‘Sing With Me Book’ of children’s songs

Background for teachers:

This first European group of pioneers using handcarts arrived in the Salt Lake Valley on Nov. 9th 1856. This group of people left late in the season and faced many hardships. The groups had to be rescued along the trail before entering the Valley. There are diary entries about the many men, woman and children who died along the trail. The stories relate the hardships, elements and events that were overcome by the pioneers across the plains by handcart because they were too poor to outfit themselves with covered wagons and oxen. Many of these European pioneers had never been outside their own home villages and yet they were willing to sacrifice all to come to the Salt Lake Valley and be with people of their own faith. Intended Learning Outcomes:

The students will listen to one of the handcart stories, build a model handcart and be able to sing ‘The Handcart Song’.

Instructional Procedures:

Tell the stories about the pioneers that traveled from all over to come to the Salt Lake Valley to be with people of their own faith.

Students will take turns creating an event that will become a part of a creative class story. The first students will provide the introduction and the others will continue building on the other students even until the story is completed. You can also make a song out of this which was my approach. See below

Let the children share their feelings about what if they were traveling by handcart. I would have them choose what they would take and what they would leave behind. Then we would sing the handcart song of:“If I was going to the Valley I’d bring a toothbrush”…Then the next child would say the same thing and act it out. They would say, “If I was going to the Valley, I would bring a toothbrush, a comb, etc” The point of this game is show the kids how little the handcart is and not much can be taken with you. Movement is also used in this lesson which the more subjects the better. Then provide children with materials and show them how to make their own personalized handcart. You could either get an outline for the kids to cut out, or make it up. I made it up. You can make a handcart out of one piece of paper if you tried

Some students could role play the story for another class. Students can make a diorama using the paper handcart model, etc.

Then we will sing the ‘Handcart Song’ to the students and have them sing it several times (there are other pioneer songs that could be learned during this time as well). They could also act out the words of the song.

Then there needs to be review on how the pioneer families felt based on the stories that have been shared. How does the song tell a story about feelings?

Websites:

http://www.uen.org/Lessonplan/preview.cgi?LPid=1070

http://www.lds.org.gospellibrary.pioneer/03_Iowa_City.html

Extensions:Learn other pioneer songs that were sung by the children along the trail. Here is a list of possible songs. ‘Pioneer Children’‘Little Pioneer Children’‘Westward Ho!’‘Crossing the Prairie’ ‘The Ox Cart’

All of these songs can be found in the Sing With Me song book listed in the bibliography.

Assessment Plan:

The finished product (handcart) model should be able to stand. The creative story should have a logical beginning, middle and end. Participation in the role playing as well as singing.

Bibliography:

Jones, Helen Over the Mormon Trial (Children’s Press, Chicago)

Sing With Me (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints)Church stories archive search engine

This lesson plan has been adapted from a lesson created by Lauren Tanner

Advocating arts education A required curriculum may be the key - Nanette Asimov, Chronicle Staff WriterWednesday, May 15, 2002

Call it an art project of monumental proportions.

That's what restoring the arts to public schools amounts to at a time when California is facing a budget deficit of as much as $22 billion, teachers spend their own money for classroom supplies and lawmakers are hell-bent on raising test scores in reading, writing and arithmetic.

Yet no one can accuse artists of lacking creativity, so strategies abound for overcoming hurdles.

"We can do it, and now is the time," said Kristine Alexander, executive director of the California Arts Project, funded by the University of California to "deepen teachers' knowledge of dance, music, theatre, and visual arts."

California is unlikely to spend the millions it would take to give every school the strong, grade-by-grade arts program endorsed last year by the State Board of Education.

Nor is the state all-generous when money is less a factor. Teachers are still steamed that Gov. Gray Davis vetoed a bill in 2000 to aid performing arts; dancers and actors must still earn a credential in language arts or physical education.

Yet the quest for the arts, quixotic as it seems, has attracted the anonymous and the elite:

-- Sharon Davis, wife of the governor, pairs foundations with school districts to fund the arts.

-- Anisa Rasheed of Oakland, a dancer and educator, is among many artists helping districts create "arts master plans."

-- Carol Kocivar of the state PTA prods politicians to write arts-friendly laws and helps other parents lobby for the cause.

These arts activists rely on three tools -- private funding, strong preparation and legislation -- to yank arts education back from oblivion.

ONE SCHOOL AT A TIME

Davis chairs the Creativity Forum, turning foundations and districts into arts partners. Typically, foundations award arts grants one school at a time. That means the only way many schools can offer the arts is if an energetic employee writes a grant proposal that is lucky enough to be approved.

"But if that teacher or principal moves, or if funding dries up, there go the arts," Davis said. "The best approach is through district partnerships."

One dramatic example is "Adventures in Music," which began in 1988 as a small experiment between the San Francisco Symphony and the city school district.

Today, the program reaches every student in grades one through five. Their teachers blend music instruction and regular academics, using the Symphony's own curriculum. Musicians visit each school four times a year, performing and teaching world music, jazz, gospel, percussion and classical. The year culminates in a performance at Davies Symphony Hall.

Funded at $1.3 million from more than 18 foundations, the program is a national model.

"Parents are desperate," said Peter Henschel of the Symphony's education committee. "After the state's breathtaking disinvestment in music education, we've lost a generation and a half."

Few understand that better than Rasheed, who taught dance for 17 years in the Oakland schools and is now the district's arts coordinator. Last year, the school board decreed that middle school students who score below the 35th percentile must take reading instead of art or music.

"There are 14 middle schools in Oakland," Rasheed said. "We lost arts teachers at half of them."

Against that backdrop, Rasheed helped create an arts master plan last spring that tackles the teaching of children -- and teachers.

Student teachers have not had to study music or art since the mid-1960s. Today, that leaves California in a quandary: The state's new arts standards call for more in-depth instruction than California had even when arts education was abundant. Yet many teachers never even had art instruction as children.

"Professional development is the key," said Alexander of the California Arts Project, an expert on the lost art of teaching art.

Teachers will need all the help they can get. In each grade, they are now supposed to delve into five areas: artistic perception, tools, cultural context, aesthetic judgment and creativity itself.

Before the standards, children studying China might have been asked to draw the Great Wall.

"It'd probably be pretty stereotypical, requiring little skill," Alexander said.

Now, at the nine California Arts Project sites, teachers learn a new way. "The teacher might say, 'Let's look at how artists have painted walls in other paintings. Do they go straight across the page? Up a hill? Are they far or close?' That's perception.

"Students might also look for a wall to sketch," she said. That teaches tools and creativity. For context, they might discuss the Great Wall.

"From all this, students begin to develop an aesthetic sense," Alexander said.

The state's standards are voluntary in all subjects but are included on the annual achievement test. Schools live by the adage "if you test it, we will teach it." Only the arts have no exam.

ASSESSMENT DRIVEN

"Everything now is driven by assessment," said Kocivar of the state PTA. She asked state Sen. Richard Alarcon, a San Fernando Valley Democrat, to write a law. He wrote SB1548, authorizing the state to create voluntary arts exams. The bill has passed through the Senate Education Committee and was to be heard this week by the Appropriations Committee, though it asks for no funding.

But arts advocates say that despite these efforts, there is reason to fear for the arts.

Neither arts exams, nor the generosity of foundations, nor arts master plans would have prevented districts like Oakland from eliminating middle school arts classes, they say.

Nor would those efforts keep individual campuses like San Francisco's King Middle School from canceling art, said Sally Ann Ryan, arts coordinator for San Francisco schools. King canceled its classes this year, Ryan said, "because they wanted test scores to go up. They don't understand the arts help academically."

She and other arts advocates say that for any of their far-reaching efforts to take hold, local school boards must use a single, essential word when approving arts curriculum for their districts.

The word, Ryan said, is "required."

E-mail Nanette Asimov at nasimov@sfchronicle.com.

Page D - 3 URL: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2002/05/15/DD77828.DTL

References:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2002/05/15/DD77828.DTL&type=printable

Advocating for better futures for all students: A new vision for school counselorsEducation,  Winter 1998  by House, Reese M,  Martin, Patricia J

This article describes how the role of counselors must change to include social advocacy as a primary component.

Counselors must work as change agents and advocates for the elimination of systemic barriers that impede

academic success for all students. The primary role of school counselors who serve as assertive advocates is to

create opportunities for all students to define, nurture and accomplish high aspirations. Thus, school counselors

become catalysts and leaders focused on removing the institutional barriers that continue to result in an

achievement gap between poor and minority youth and their more advantaged peers.

This article presents a new social advocacy role for school counselors based on the belief that they must be

proactive leaders and advocates for student success in schools. This means working to help all students gain access

to rigorous academic preparation and support for success in these programs. Educational equity in a democratic

society requires that all children-especially poor and minority youth who have traditionally been the least served by

schools-be better prepared for the future. Closing the achievement gap between poor and minority children and

their more advantaged peers becomes the primary goal of every school counselor in this new approach. The

importance of this focus is clear; our global society and our status as a world leader are increasingly dependent on

the development and better use of all of our human resources.

The need to influence and raise academic achievement in our schools is paramount. The achievement gap exists

because we systematically expect less of minority and low-income children (American Association for Higher

Education [AAHE], 1992). As one African-American high school senior recently stated:

We are not only given the short end of the stick in terms of facilities and resources; but inner-city students aren't

expected to excel. We are sometimes granted honors for completing only part of a task, while students in more

affluent areas are expected to do more to get the same recognition. We are pitied by outsiders who sometimes try

to help by giving us undeserved praise. Thus, we often don't expect much more of our own selves. We aren't

pushed hard enough. We are babied by our teachers for too long. (Swasey, 1997, p. 4)

A social advocacy approach is based on the belief that individual and/or collective action must be taken to right

injustices or to improve conditions for the benefit of an individual or group. This kind of social action means that

counselors have to actively intervene in the decision making process of the students and in the social context

affecting them (Lee, 1997). For school counselors, social advocacy is based on the belief that virtually all students

can achieve at high levels, and that counselors must be proactive leaders in closing the existing achievement gap

in schools.

We propose a model of activism where counselors function as leaders, change agents, and as people willing to take

risks. We believe that if counselors adopt an advocacy role they help students become prepared to work in today's

world and move toward becoming active, involved citizens. School counselors working from this model stand for

social, economic, and political justice and advocate for students not being served well by school systems.

Changes in Schools

Through diverse educational reform efforts, many schools are working toward greater equity and improved

achievement for all students. Supporters of standardsbased education have been working diligently to transform

many K-12 functions including curriculum, teacher preparation, and continuing professional development for

teachers. To date, major school reform efforts have focused on setting more rigorous academic standards, building

new assessment strategies and restructuring pre-service and in-service experiences for teachers and

administrators. But, reform leaders have paid little or no attention to school counselors' roles in these initiatives.

Failure to address what counselors do and how they do it could well undermine even the best efforts of reformers,

and risks leaving several million of our young people marooned in low-level classes. A disproportionately high

number of them will be low-income students and students of color.

School counselors are in key positions to be at the vanguard of educational reform. Issues of equity, access and

lack of supporting conditions for academic success come to rest at counselors, desks in the form of data, files and

reports of school failure. Thus, school counselors are in a position to influence academic placement and the

educational futures of all students.

Who is better situated than school counselors to lead the charge for helping all students get a fair chance at

achieving and acquiring success in the future? Who is better situated to serve as a catalyst for causing the school to

see the need to have higher expectations for all students? Counselors have the whole school as their client pool.

They havc access to critical data about student placements, academic success and failure of all students, and

course-taking patterns. They know which teachers are seen as ineffective by students and administrators and are in

a position to provide consultation and staff development for teachers in need of assistance. They are in touch with

parents and they can easily access community resources.

Yet, typically school counselors do not actively urge school and community systems to make high achievement a

reality for all students. We believe that not advocating for academic success for all students violates the Ethical

Standards for School Counselors (1996), which states that the school counselor supports and protects the

educational program against any infringement not in the best interest of students p. 3). The Code of Ethics (1996)

of the American Counseling Association (ACA), states that "the primary responsibility of counselors is to respect the

dignity and to promote the welfare of clients" (p. 1,). The School Counselor Ethical Standards state that the

counselor "is concerned with the total needs of the student (educational, vocational, personal, and social) and

encourages the maximum growth and development of each counselee" (p. 2). Since dignity, welfare, growth and

development are all affected by academic success, we believe that the ethical standards dictate that school

counselors take active roles in promoting academic success for all students.

Current Role of School Counselors

The role of school counselors remains unclear in many school districts. School counselor tasks, expectations and

demands vary from state to state, district to district, and school to school. Typically, school counselors are simply

told what to do by administrators who are more concerned with local expediency than professional priorities for

counselors (Walz, 1997). Frequently, local communities determine what becomes systematized practice. It is

common for parents to make efforts to ensure that such programs as relaxation training, self-esteem enhancement

training or other humanistic tools not be used on their children (Eriksen, 1997). Thus, school counselors are often

responding to administrative or community directives rather than developing and implementing their own guidance

program designed to enhance student achievement.

Why are counselors not more active in determining their role? The answer, though complex, appears to be a

product of conflicting variables including strong administrative leadership, pliable and accepting counselor

behavior, a lack of leadership and vision, little professional development opportunities, and overt and covert

pressures of school, community, and parental special interest groups (Walz, 1997). When counselors fail to define

their role, school administrators, parents with special interests, teachers or others may make their agenda the

counselor's priority (ASCA, 1997). Without a designed program, clear mission, identified role or vision, counselors

function at the direction of others rather than from a well-conceived effort that addresses the needs of all students.

School counselors functioning in this manner serve as gatekeepers of the status quo. In this role, they become

sorters and selectors rather than advocates. As gatekeepers, counselors perpetuate the accepted rules and

systemic barriers that cause an inequitable distribution between achievers and non-achievers based on race and

socio-economic status (Hart & Jacob, 1992). Whether intentional or unintentional, school counselors become

"dream-breakers" rather than "dream-makers and dream-keepers" for large numbers of children in schools.

References:

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3673/is_199801/ai_n8801370

How to Blues

byPatricia M. Bissell

Contents of Curriculum Unit 97.05.03:

Narrative The Blues As A Teaching Unit My African American Music Book The Classic Blues Notes Bibliography Student Bibliography Recordings and Videos

To Guide Entry

Two years ago I opened my Music Educators Journal and read the national standards that had been approved for the arts by the congress for America’s Schools 2000. What a shock! Content Standard number three was improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments. What I had been teaching for years was recognized as important; it was legitimate!

I always had a problem in my piano lessons since I began at a young age. I loved to improvise! I always got yelled at about changing the music; a simple melody for me would become the basis for a composition using the entire keyboard. I was told that I was to stick to the notes. even though I told my teacher the notes as written didn’t sound complete. After studying classical piano for years as an undergraduate at a conservatory, I was encouraged to compose by a teacher. What a change of philosophy! I finally did what I always wanted to do—create my own music. I majored in composition at Yale, and received a Fulbright to study in Paris. An opportunity presented itself to me to create music for women’s gymnastics in 1968. At first I snubbed my nose at such a job because after all, I was a musician, and had nothing to do with sports! Common sense prevailed and I had the opportunity to perform and arrange music for both the Olympics in Mexico City and Munich. What I remembered, besides the many interesting and famous sports people I met was that the music played for women’s gymnastics from other countries derived from jazz and the American theater! American coaches preferred European music, not very suitable to support movement and to be audible in a large gymnasium.

In the 1970’s I developed a group keyboard curriculum to enable adult students to gain an understanding of the basic elements of music, and to play the keyboard creatively within a limited period time. I wanted to teach students to improvise from the very first lesson; I wanted to rewrite the piano books I had so disliked as a child! I continued to develop my curriculum for elementary students as a teacher in the New Haven schools. Eventually I learned how music technology (computer music) could be a vehicle for teaching improvisation as part of musicianship. I have been pursuing this vision of music teaching in the New Haven schools to meet this national standard number three, my favorite one! The teaching of the musical elements of the blues has been an important part of my course; however, the improvisation associated with the blues and jazz has always been challenging for me, since I studied European music all my life. My goal in pursuing this unit is to develop depth in the understanding of the blues improvisational practices, and take this knowledge and share it with my keyboard students in a meaningful way.

The word improvise is defined as “to invent, compose, or recite without preparation . . . to make or do something using whatever you have or without arranging it or planning it in advance . . . play music, speak, or act without set music or words, using. . . . imagination instead.”(1) This word could also be said to mean unforeseen, deriving from the Latin word provisus, to foresee. In simple words, one could say to improvise means to make-up as you go along. As an important factor in the blues philosophy of poetry and music, improvisation will be the focus in my unit about the blues.

THE BLUES AS A TEACHING UNITAround the turn of the century, this unique African-American music and poetry art form was born. It was more than just music and poetry about feeling “blue,” “low,” or “troubled” coming from the African American culture, as commonly defined. The philosophy of the blues is a universal one—by confronting your situation, sharing your troubles with others, and being self-reliant in learning to deal with your problems, you have learned how to live; you have become a hero, so to speak. The improvisation of lyrics and music with style and flexibility in this art form addressees the pain of discrimination, oppression and personal discontent.

Through readings in prose and poetry, I learned to more fully appreciate the philosophy of the blues, which has given me greater perspective and depth of understanding of this art form. Cane, by Jean Toomer, (2) is a literary masterpiece of the Harlem Renaissance from the early part of this century which is part drama, part poetry and part fiction. In a contemporary criticism of this book it is said that “the difference between the possibility of black life and the reality of black life is the blues. Yet the blues idiom itself celebrates life; it celebrates the will to endure and the necessity of survival, to keep on keeping on.”(3) In this book, a character named Kabnis is tortured as he confronts his problems of being a northern teacher in the South; he is one of them, yet set apart from them. He gives intellectual expressions to the burdens of oppression and persecution through descriptions of his personal pain and dialogues with his friends. In a book by Gwendolyn Brooks (4), a woman by the name of Maud Martha had to confront poverty, an unsatisfactory social life and the feeling of being trapped. She did this by being thankful for little things, such as the dandelions in his yard, or freeing a mouse from a trap; she used her imagination to cope with a distressing reality.

My unit is for fourth grade students in the Martin Luther King and Lincoln Bassett elementary schools in New Haven who are mostly materially disadvantaged African Americans. They need to become knowledgeable about their African American heritage in order to develop more self-esteem and pride. As they learn about, and participate in, various African and African American experiences in poetry and music that are a part of the blues, they will increase their knowledge of geography, historical events, contributions of musical performers, vocabulary associated with this art form and most important, a relevant philosophy of life.

In addition, many of the nine national music standards, part of the legislation of America’s schools 2000, are addressed through this unit. These include: standard a) singing alone, and with others, a varied repertoire of music, b) performing a varied repertoire on instruments, c) improvising melodies, variations and accompaniments, d) composing and arranging within specified guidelines, e) listening to, analyzing and describing music, f) evaluating music and music performance, and g) understanding relationships between music, the other arts, and disciplines outside the arts.

Students have music two one-half hours per week. Throughout September and October, my strategy is to have everyone first read aloud a brief background of a section of the unit (five minutes), and then learn to sing either an African song or African American spiritual or worksong with the accompaniment of at least one African type percussion instrument (twenty minutes). The last five minutes will be an oral assessment through questions, or visual or written assessment (to be handed out as homework, such as answering questions or expressing text through drawings). The musical elements explored will

include singing, playing instruments using particular patterns, the call and response form, syncopation, ostinatos, polyrhythms, and vocal and instrumental improvisations.

From January through March, students will continue to read together a brief historical and musical background (five minutes), and listen to and sing the blues (fifteen minutes). In the second class of the week, they will learn to accompany their singing by playing a sequence of chords in the blues form on the small keyboards, as well as the C major and pentatonic scales and two blues notes (twenty minutes). The last five minutes of each class will incorporate some type of assessment, whether oral, or visual or written homework. Students will write, sing and accompany their own blues verses as a culminating project. The musical elements explored will include singing, playing scales, blue notes and chords on a musical keyboard, vocal and instrumental improvising, and listening to and recognizing instruments, compositional form and various vocal and instrumental performers and styles related to the blues.

Eleven sections comprise this unit. They are:

1) African Roots, 2) Spirituals, 3) Work Songs. 4) The Blues, 5) The Classic Blues and Bessie Smith, 6) The Country Blues and Blind Lemon Jefferson, 7) Leadbelly, 8) The Chicago and Urban blues with Muddy Waters and B.B. King, 9) The Blues and Louis Armstrong, 10) The Blues and Duke Ellington, and, 11) Playing and Writing the Blues.

Objective One:Students will learn the roots of the blues in African culture, and demonstrate or describe the form, instruments, vocal techniques, scale, rhythm and improvisation.

Activity 1:Students will read about music in African society. (5)

Music is a vital part of African life from the cradle to the grave and covers the widest possible range of expression, including spoken language and all manner of natural sounds. It means poetry, singing, dancing and playing on instruments which is shared by, and serves the whole community. Music marks the special events of life, as well as being a comprehensive preparation for life.

Vocal music is center of such music. The utilization of the voice includes its different qualities obtained by such means as stopping the ears, pinching the nose, vibrating the tongue, and producing echoes. The objective is to translate everyday experiences into living sound. Anyone can sing, and everyone does; it is not a specialized affair. This is the essence of the collective aspect of African music. People perform it everyday of their lives as a confirmation of the importance it has in their society.

A great variety of musical instruments are used, all hand made. Children even make their own instruments at an early age. Instruments, critical to African music, are primarily used to support the spoken or sung language. The xylophone and drum are especially important. Drums are always present in this music, or hand clapping and stamping as a substitute. They are even used to communicate messages from one place to another. The types of drums used differ in construction and techniques from region to region.

African music is structured to promote participation of all peoples, such as in call and response song. Improvisation (to make up as you go along) is encouraged and individual contributions are welcomed; thus from a young age, as children learn traditional songs, they also learn to improvise around these songs, both with their voices and instruments.

Activity 2:Students will read a definition of improvisation. Selected students will demonstrate improvisation on three African types of percussion instruments—the conga drum, agogo bells, and affouchet, and the pentonic scale on the xylophone.

Activity 3:Students will learn an African call and response song “Kye Kye Kule” (6) by repeating each short phrase with movement after it is demonstrated by the teacher. It is a very popular motion game played by young children in Ghana. The words do not have specific meaning, and the emphasis is on mastering the traditional movements. A student leader will then sing the call alone, followed by the student response.

Activity 4:Students will read definitions of ostinatos—short repeated patterns. and polyrhythms—contrasting rhythms heard at the same time. They will then create ostinatos and play them together to create polyrhythms on African type instruments for a musical accompaniment to the African song.

Materials needed:

a) Copies of the student group reading and question sheet, b) conga drum, agogo bells, affouchet and xylophone.

Objective Two:Students will learn the roots of the blues in spirituals, the church music of early African Americans, and demonstrate or describe the form, instruments, vocal techniques, scale, rhythm and improvisation.

Activity 5:Students will read about the history and musical practice of African-American spirituals.(7)

Slaves were brought from West Africa to the United States from around 1600 to the 1800’s, especially from Senegal, the Guinea coast, the Niger delta, and the Congo. The first expressions of these enslaved peoples in music were limited to the spirituals—church songs, and work songs. As African vocal performance practices included slides, slurs, notes slightly flatted or sharped, whistles, yodels and changes in rhythm and types of sound, when they combined their musical style with the church hymns of white people, a whole new type of music was created—the spiritual.

There was always tension in the words of the spirituals, and, despite the troubles they faced and the wish to leave, the early African Americans expressed an affirmation of life in that there was always a hope, a faith in the ultimate justice of things. The spirituals were a striving for humanity in a society of oppression and racial hatred For example, in the spiritual “This Little Light of Mine,” (8) the hope of people was symbolized by a light that was going to shine or endure through the pain of the black experience in this society. Improvising the music as a solo singer or collectively with the group was a way through by which each person could express his or her joys and sorrows, and somehow get the courage and strength to make it through. The music united them as a community. and gave them power; the music was functional in their life, as in their home in Africa.

The African American tradition of singing these spirituals was in a cappella (without instrumental accompaniment) style using the pentatonic or five tone scale, commonly used in Africa. As a part of congregational hymn singing, the call and response form that was used would include a proposition or call by a lead singer, with the congregation responding to the soloist in the same convincing tone, mood and emotion. A strong beat was kept throughout the singing. Each singer would be encouraged to improvise to better express the lyrics, and improvisation was collective—a group of singers simultaneously asserted itself within a group. There was space for innovation; this caused a healthy competition. Foot stomping and clapping with up beat tempos were sometimes used in this religious music.

The philosophy and style of this singing as a powerful and unique expression of early oppressed African Americans provided the roots for the later blues and jazz.

Activity 6:Students will read a definition of syncopation—shifting the rhythmic accent to a normally weak beat of music, and sing a cappella the familiar spiritual “This Little Light of Mine,” (8) with clapping on the second and fourth beats of the measure to demonstrate this element, important in African rhythm. They will tell what the words mean to them.

Activity 7:Students will improvise the pentatonic scale on small xylophones.

Activity 8:Students will learn to sing “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot,”(9) as well as other spirituals. Students will sing each phrase after it is modeled by the teacher, and then sing the whole spiritual. A selected student will sing the verses in an improvised style, followed by the group singing the response “Comin’ for to carry me home.”

Activity 9:Students will create their own African American music book by having a page for the words of each spiritual with questions to answer, and a space to draw a picture to accompany such words, such as shown in a sample lesson. They will tell how these peoples expressed hope and joy in a difficult situation.

MY AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSIC BOOK

1. SWING LOW, SWEET CHARIOTRefrain (repeated part)

“Swing low, sweet chariot, Comin’ for to carry me home,

Swing low, sweet chariot, Comin’ for to carry me home.

Verse 1:

I looked over Jordan, and what did I see, Comin’ for to carry me home? A band of angels comin’ after me, Comin’ for to carry me home. Refrain

Verse 2:

If you get there before I do—Tell all my friends I’m a comin’ too.” Refrain (9) 1. What words are repeated many times? __________ 2. What did home mean to the early African slaves? __________ 3. Even though the words express suffering, the music itself is (a) angry (b) sad (c) pleasing. 4. What is a spiritual? __________ 5. Draw a picture to express these words.

2. Spiritual: Walk in Jerusalem Just Like John (10)“I want to be ready, I want to be ready, I want to be ready to walk in Jerusalem just like John.

Verse 1:

John said the city was just four square, Walk in Jerusalem just like John, And he declared he’d meet me there, Walk in Jerusalem just like John.

Verse 2:

Oh, John, oh John, what do you say? Walk in Jerusalem just like John. That I’ll be there in the coming day. Walk in Jerusalem just like John.” 1. What words are repeated many times? __________ 2. How is this spiritual like “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot?” __________ 3. What does “walk in Jerusalem” mean? __________ 4. Draw a picture to express these words.

Materials needed:

a) Copies of the student group reading and question sheet, b) African American music books.

Objective Three:Students will learn the roots of the blues in early African American work songs, and demonstrate or describe the form, instruments, vocal techniques, scale, rhythm and improvisation.

Activity 10:Students will learn about the history and practices of African American work songs through a group reading.(11)

Songs were a natural part of group work in the African tradition. Early African American slaves in the South developed songs to help lighten the load, and keep up the pace. They cleared and ploughed the land, as well as harvested crops on plantations and prison farms. They also built roads and railroads, and worked on the boats.

The work songs had a steady rhythm and short rhymed phrases, and were sung in a call and response style between a leader and the work team. Often the leader would holler in a higher type voice, in order to be heard. The song had to engage the imagination of the workers in order to get the work done, and keep up the spirit. The leader had to be able to improvise on topical events; being a lead singer meant being excused from the regular labor. The early blues came out of this tradition, particularly in the Mississippi Delta region. “Take this hammer—huh! (in a growl) Carry it to the captain—huh! (3 times). Tell him I’m goin’—huh! Tell him I’m goin’—huh!” (2 times) (12)

Activity 11:Students will read about the background of the song “Pay Me My Money Down.”(13)

The call and response work song “Pay Me My Money Down” comes from Georgia. The story is told of men who loaded the boats being cheated out of their pay, because the captain took the boat away in the middle of the night.

Activity 12:Students will sing each phrase of the song after it is modeled by the teacher, and then sing the whole song. A selected student will sing the verses in an improvised style, followed by the group singing the response “Pay Me My Money Down.” A strong, steady beat will be kept with clapping and stamping, and an improvised tambourine accompaniment. Students will tell how a difficult situation is made more bearable with words that are direct and often humorous.

Activity 13:Students will read about John Henry. (14)

John Henry was a famous folk hero; there are many songs and stories about him. He was a six foot African American who could outsing and out-drive any other man on the job. He worked on the Big Bend Tunnel in the West Virginia mountains for the C & O Railroad. When the newly invented automatic steam drill was brought to the Big Bend, a contest was staged between the man and the machine. John Henry was said to have swung 20 lb. hammers for thirty-five minutes of the test, and beat the machine.

Activity 14:Students will sing the work song “John Henry” in a call and response style.

“Oh John Henry-Oh John Henry, Told his captain-Well a man’s got to-Act like a man-And before-Steam drill beats me-I will die-Hammer in my hand.” (15)

Materials needed:

a) Copies of the student group reading and question sheet, b) African American Music Books.

Objective Four:Students will learn the meaning of the blues through its philosophy, history and definition, and demonstrate or describe the word form and content and the musical elements of form, scale and chords.

Activity 15:Students will read a definition, philosophy and history of the blues. (16)

Around the turn of the century, a unique African-American music and poetry was born—the blues. The early blues singer, with guitar accompaniment, confronted his life situation, shared his troubles with others, and learned to deal with the problems in his world through improvisation in this special form of song which had a length of twelve bars using three basic chords, such as C F and G.

The roots of this music lay in Africa, where music was at the core of daily life, and in the early African slave music of the spirituals and work songs. After the Civil War, as African Americans looked for employment, they wandered from one migrant labor to another, facing discrimination and difficult lives. The blues came about as a response to this life; they affirmed the essential worth of African Americans, and expressed through words and music their strength to survive.

The form of the text was AAB, with the first line of text (A) a statement which was then repeated (A), and followed by a comment, (B) often humorous, or with an ironic twist. The musical style, coming from African roots, included what is known as blue notes, high cries, hums, growls, moans and shouts. The singer improvised with his voice or on his instrument in the “break,” the space between each line of text, which later evolved into jazz, America’s unique contribution to music in this century. The pentatonic or five tone scale was used with blue notes, the flatted third and seventh notes of the common major scale, such as E and B flat of C major scale.

Activity 16:Students will read three blues verses, find the repetition. and explain the problem and how it is addressed.

1. “Good Morning, blues, Blues, how do you do? (2 x) ____Good morning, how are you?” ( 17) 2. “Ain’t got nobody in all this world, Ain’t got nobody but ma self.

____Is gwine to quit my frownin,’ And put my troubles on the shelf.” (18) 3. “De railroad bridge’s ____A sad song in de air. (2x) ____Ever time de trains pass ____I want to go somewhere”(19)

Activity 17:Students will learn to sing two verses of “The St. Louis Blues” (20) by imitating each phrase as modeled by the teacher.

“I hate to see the evenin’ sun go down (2x) Cause my baby, he done left this town. Feelin’ tomorrow, like I feel today (2x), I’ll take my bag, and make my getaway.”

Materials needed:

a) Copies of the group reading and question sheet, b) words and music of the “St. Louis Blues,” by W. C. Handy. (20)

Objective Five:Students will learn about the role of W.C. Handy in the blues development, and demonstrate, identify or describe the form, instruments, vocal techniques, scale, rhythm and improvisation of the classic blues style as expressed by Bessie Smith in”The St. Louis Blues.” (21)

Activity 18:Students will read together short biographies of W.C. Handy and Bessie Smith.

THE CLASSIC BLUESW.C. Handy was a composer, bandleader, cornetist and music publisher. He was born in Alabama in 1873, and died in 1958. He has been called the “Father of the Blues” because he valued the universal appeal of the blues, and wrote the first and several of the most famous of the published blues, thereby bringing about a fundamental change in popular music in this country. One of his most famous blues is “The St. Louis Blues.” (20)

Bessie Smith was born in Tennessee in 1894, and died in a car accident in 1937. She began to sing professionally in her early teens in what is called the classic blues tradition. These blues were in demand as a form of entertainment in the theater in the cities. She recorded over fifty records in the twenties, one record selling over a million copies. She was so successful that she was earning close to two thousand dollars for a personal appearance, and was known as “Empress of the Blues.” This type of blues was for a female singer, and accompanied by ragtime or stride style piano, or a New Orleans style jazz band. In the recording of “The St. Louis Blues,” (21) she is accompanied by a harmonium, a kind of organ, and a trumpet, played by a most famous jazz musician, Louis Armstrong.

Activity 19:Students will identify the trumpet improvisation in the “St. Louis Blues” (21) by putting their thumbs up.

Activity 20:Students will identify the emphasized words “sun”, “see”, “tomorrow” and “feel” with changing pitch and tone quality by clasping their hands.

Activity 21:Students will sing the two verses of the “St. Louis Blues” (21) by first following the recording, and then the teacher’s piano accompaniment, changing the third line of verse one to the words “I’m on my last go-around,” as sung by Bessie Smith.

Activity 22:Students will answer the following questions orally.

a. What problem was expressed by the singer, and how was it addressed? b. Choose some of the following adjectives to best describe Bessie Smith’s voice. -soft-strong-loud-sweet-direct-entertaining. c. How did she improvise? Did she use few or many notes? d. Was the music slow or fast? e. What words did she improvise for the third line in the first verse. f. How was the trumpet’s part a contrast to the singing? How did it support the singing? g. Does an improviser repeat or constantly vary his or her musical lines?

Materials needed:

a) Copies of the group reading and question sheet, b) a recording of “St. Louis Blues” by Bessie Smith. (21)

Objective Six:Students will learn the history of the country blues style, and demonstrate, identify or describe the form, instruments, vocal techniques, scale, rhythm and improvisation as expressed by the blues singer Blind Lemon Jefferson in “The Matchbox Blues.” (22)

Activity 23:Students will read together about the country blues style, Blind Lemon Jefferson and the words to the first verse of “Match Box Blues.” (23)

The country or downhome blues originated around 1890 to 1905 in the Mississippi delta and east Texas. A male singer accompanied himself with an acoustic steel-stringed guitar. All singers used the blues inflections, that is, the lowered 3rd and 7th and sometimes 5th notes of the major scale, but varied the voice quality, contour, enunciation and range. Typically, rhythms were layered, called polyrhythms, an important of African music, and avoided a stressed rhythm, such as a march in European music. Individuality was very important; each blues singer had a unique expression. The guitar bottle-neck technique was sometimes used. This practice originally started by stretching a broom wire on a board, and striking the string while sliding a glass bottle along its length.

This region produced the most blues artists during the early part of the century. This rich agricultural land had opened up in the late nineteenth century, and big plantations were established. The prosperity and opportunity attracted African-Americans to work on the farms. Blues musicians provided entertainment for this large African-American community, as well as for the cities and towns nearby. The blues derived from the field holler style in which the singer sang at the top of his range in loose rhythms from high to low pitch, using the pentatonic or five tone scale, important to African music, as well as the work songs, which emphasized a steady rhythm and short rhymed phrases.

Blind Lemon Jefferson was a famous country blues singer. He was a great virtuoso on the guitar. He was born blind in 1897 in Texas, and performed in his early teens. He used the Texas style of guitar playing by thumping the rhythm on the bass string, while playing a rhythmic figure on the higher strings. He would freely improvise on the guitar after each vocal line, and often accused of breaking the time, and people could not dance to his music. He was known for his strong, expressive, high and clear voice, and for his ability to improvise lyrics. He recorded over one hundred blues. He traveled much of his life, like many blues singers, between Texas and Mississippi towns, and Chicago and Memphis. His tragic death occurred in Michigan after he lost his way; he froze to death in the snow. Matchbox Blues-“I’m sittin’ here wondering, will a matchbox hold my clothes. I’m sittin’ here wondering, will a matchbox hold my clothes. I got so many matches, but I got so far to go.”

Activity 24:Students will identify the guitar improvisations in the “Matchbox Blues” (22) by raising their right thumb; they will cross hands when a change occurs.

Activity 25:Students will answer the following questions orally:

a. How is poverty expressed in the words of this blues? b. Compare with Bessie Smith.

Materials needed:

a) Copies of the student group reading and question sheet, b) a recording of “Matchbox Blues” by Blind Lemon Jefferson. (22)

Objective Seven:Students will learn the role of the Leadbelly in the development of the blues and popular American music, and demonstrate, identify or describe the form, instruments, vocal techniques, scale, rhythm and improvisation as expressed in his “Good Mornin’ Blues.”(24)

Activity 26:Students will read together a short biography about Leadbelly, and the words to the first verse of “Good Mornin’ Blues.”(17)

Huddie Ledbetter, better known as Leadbelly, is one of the most influential figures in all of twentieth-century American popular music. He was born in 1889 in Louisiana, and performed all kinds of songs as he traveled around the area when he was young, even working with Blind Lemon Jefferson. He used a twelve string guitar which produced a stronger sound than the regular six string guitar. Unfortunately, he got into trouble with the law several times, and spent much time in prison. He was discovered and recorded in the Louisiana prison by John and Alan Lomax, who were recording and writing about African American folk music in the United States. He was released from prison, gave concerts around the country, married and went to live and perform in New York. He was the first folk blues singer to give concerts to white people, and even toured France. He initiated a revival in the country blues and other folk music, and many of his songs gained great popularity, such as “Good Night, Irene.”

Good Morning Blues

“Good morning blues, blues how do you do? Good morning blues, blues how do you do? I’m doing all right, good morning, how are you?”(17)

Activity 27:The blues use a particular harmonic structure in the twelve bars. Using the C, F and G chords, Chord C would be used for bars one to four, and chords F C G C would alternate every two bars, with the last

bar being a bridge for a return to the beginning. Students will identify the chord changes in “Good Mornin‘ Blues” (17) by raising their right thumb.

Activity 28:Students will identify spoken improvisation by clasping their hands.

Activity 29:Students will answer the following questions orally.

a. What words does Leadbelly use to confront his troubles in a positive way? b. Does Leadbelly sing in a higher or lower voice? c. Describe his style of singing. Is it fast, loud, clear, slow, energetic or soft? c. How does he differ from Bessie Smith or Blind Lemon Jefferson? d. Name the instruments that accompany him in a New Orleans jazz style.

Materials needed:

a) Copies of the student group reading and question sheet, b) a recording of “Good Mornin’ Blues” by Leadbelly. (24)

Objective Eight:Students will learn about the role of Muddy Waters and B.B. King in the Chicago and urban blues, and demonstrate, identify or describe the form, instruments, vocal techniques, scale, rhythm and improvisation as expressed in “Long Distance Call Blues.”(25)

Activity 30:Students will read about Muddy Waters, B.B. King and the Chicago and urban blues, and the words to the “Long Distance Call Blues.”(25)

McKinley Morganfield, known as Muddy Waters, was born in Mississippi in 1915. As a country blues singer, he was recorded in 1941 by Alan Lomax, a researcher of African American folk music in the United States. He migrated to Chicago in the mid 40’s like many African Americans from that area, and at first found work in a paper mill. He aggressively sought out club jobs, and eventually won fame with his first recorded blues hit “I Can’t Be Satisfied” in 1948. As an important leader in the development of the Chicago electric blues, so called because of the use of electronic amplification, he made this music very popular in the postwar era.

In the Chicago and urban blues style, a male singer led an instrumental group. The composed lyrics often told a story. They expressed the group experiences of rootlessness and anxiety of the city. Marvelous improvisations were heard by the harmonica, piano and electric guitar players with such blues singers as Muddy Waters, showing the influence of gospel music. The form was the regular blues form, but with the drums and bass establishing strong dance rhythms with ostinatos or repeated patterns. In the urban blues as represented by the famous blues singer of today, B.B. King, saxophones or brass sustain chords and play riffs (short melodic ideas or motives) in the accompaniment, thus sounding closer to the jazz band style. The words of the “Long Distance Call Blues” are “You say you love me, Darlin,’ please call me on the phone sometime.(2x) When I hear your voice, Hear that word of mine.”

Activity 31:Students will clap a steady beat to “Telephone Conversation Blues;” they will identify each line of words by raising their hand.

Activity 32:Students will identify the polyrhythms (layered patterns of rhythm, deriving from African musical practices) in the improvisations by the harmonica, guitar and bass players by raising their right thumb.

Activity 33:Students will answer the following questions orally.

(a) What is the problem expressed by the singer? What is he going to do to solve it? (b) What instruments besides the guitar are used in this blues? (c) How does the singer improvise the words in music? Does he shout, hold and change notes, or speak? (d) Does he use a high or low voice? (e) How would you describe the quality of his voice—rough or smooth, and how does he compare to Bessie Smith, Blind Lemon Jefferson and Leadbelly?

Activity 34:Students will see a short video of B.B. King. (26)

Materials needed:

a) Copies of the student group reading and question sheet, b) a recording of “Long Distance Blues” by Muddy Waters (25), c) a B.B. King video. (26)

Objective Nine:Students will learn about the development of jazz from the blues, and demonstrate, identify or describe the form, instruments, vocal techniques, scale, rhythm and improvisation of the “West End Blues,” a jazz masterpiece by Louis Armstrong. (27)

Activity 35:Students will read together about jazz, blues and Louis Armstrong.

Jazz can mean a style of playing, or a piece of music. It developed from the pauses or breaks between the lines of the blues, which were filled in with improvisations by the singer or instrumentalists, and were called “the jazz.” (3) In the blues played by the instrumentalists in the band led by W. C. Handy, such as “The Memphis Blues,“ these breaks developed into solo variations on the theme with the repeat of each chorus (the twelve bar blues), and were called hot jazz, and became standard technique with all the bands traveling up and down the Mississippi. Such improvisations provided an outlet for individual expression, as well as dialoguing and competing with each other, in the framework of set parameters, such as musical form and chords, and improvising together. An important element of jazz, besides the polyrhythms and syncopation (African roots), is the unpredictable music (improvisation), which can surprise, shock, or provide a grim humor for the listener. In addition, unusual instrumental tone qualities and sounds are utilized, as in the solo blues singer’s style.

Louis Armstrong, a trumpet player, was one of the greatest jazz musicians. He was born in a New Orleans slum in 1900, and was raised by his mother. He got into some trouble as a young boy, and was sent to a special home for boys where he learned the cornet (like a trumpet). He joined Kid Ory’s Jazz Band in his late teens, and, following the closing of many of the clubs in New Orleans, in 1922 he joined King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band in Chicago. He became famous and toured across the United States; later he performed in Europe. He also appeared in many films. He made significant recordings from 1922-28 with his “Hot Five” and “Hot Seven“ bands, one of the most famous of which is “West End Blues.” He became famous for his “scat” singing—using nonsense syllables and other peculiar vocal effects, which can be heard in this recording showing a dialogue (call and response) with the clarinet.

Activity 36:Students will identify the chord changes in “West End Blues” by Louis Armstrong’s Hot Five Band by raising their right hand.

Activity 37:Students will identify the order of instruments by placing a number one to five beside the correct instrument. Trumpet _ Trombone _ Vocal _ Clarinet _ Piano _

Activity 38:Students will answer the following questions orally.

____(a) What is the main function of the banjo and drums in this piece? (b)Describe the trumpet solo. (c) New Orleans jazz style is referred to as Dixieland jazz, and features everyone improvising together. How is this achieved in West End Blues? (d) Could you describe the styles of improvisation used, whether slow or fast, energetic or calm, direct or timid? (e) Where is scat singing heard in this piece?

Materials needed:

a) Copies of the student group reading and question sheet, b) a recording of “West End Blues” by Louis Armstrong. (27)

Objective Ten:Students will learn the contributions of Duke Ellington to the development of jazz, and demonstrate, identify or describe the form, instruments, vocal techniques, scale, rhythm and improvisation of his “C Jam Blues” with jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald. (28)

Activity 39:Students will read together about Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald. (29)

Edward Kennedy Ellington, known as “Duke,” is considered the most important jazz composer, band leader and pianist. His greatest genius was in his ability to produce distinctive, inventive sounds in his orchestra. He was able to use the individual qualities in each of his instrumentalists and vocalists and weave them together into a unique musical sound. He was a visual artist, and thought of each of his musicians as a particular color on his palette; he liked to mixed them in startling combinations. He became a world figure, receiving 119 awards and citations from nations around the world, including fifteen honorary degrees from colleges!

He was born in Washington, D.C. in 1899, and died in 1971. His parents provided a comfortable life style for the family, and he was raised a Christian. He began taking piano lessons after he had been hit with a baseball bat, and formed his own band in high school with himself being the agent. In 1923 he went to New York, and was hired by the Kentucky Club. Later he played at the Cotton Club. He increased the size of his orchestra from nine to fifteen pieces in order to realize his arrangements. He was in a movie and appeared onstage in New York. He made many recordings, and toured Europe several times; he was especially famous for his “Take the A-Train.” He attracted the greatest instrumentalists of his day, and they stayed in the band normally for decades. He paid them all very well, even when he had to use his own funds.

Ella Fitzgerald was the most well-known jazz vocalist. She was born in 1918, and died recently. She was an orphan at 15, and tried out in talent shows; she became a star at a young age, and sang with many important jazz bands. She made many recordings of jazz, show tunes and popular songs. She is most famous for her scat singing.

Activity 40:Students will clap a steady beat to “C Jam Blues” by Duke Ellington, and improvise scat-singing with Ella Fitzgerald; selected students will dance after being shown a video which illustrates people dancing to this music. (29)

Activity 41:Using the numbers one to five, the students will indicate the order in which they hear a featured instrument or the famous Ella Fitzgerald jazz singer.

Trumpet ___ Piano ___ Ella Fitzgerald ___ Saxophone ___ Clarinet ___

Activity 42:Students will answer the following questions orally.

(a) What is the problem expressed? How is it addressed? How are the words varied? (b) How does the musical style help convey the meaning of the words? (c) What type of vocal improvisations does Ella Fitzgerald use? Circle the appropriate ones. Scat singing-shouts-bending-slurs-speaking voice-held notes-wide range/volume (d) Which instrument s(or voice) improvised alone, then were accompanied by a band?

Materials needed:

a) Copies of the student group reading and question sheet, b) a recording of “C Jam Blues” by Duke Ellington.(28)

Objective Eleven:Following a curriculum book, students will learn how to perform the keyboard accompaniment for the blues, using the chords C F and G and pentatonic scale and blues notes, as well as to sing both a traditional and an original blues to such accompaniment. Activity (a): Students will play/improvise the C major and pentatonic scales and blues notes E and B flat. Activity (b): Students will play the C, F and G chords. Activity (c): Students will play and improvise the C, F and G chords in the following twelve bar blues form. Each bar or measure has four beats.

(figure available in print form)Activity (d): The class will be divided into two sections; one will improvise the accompaniment of chords or melody, and the other will sing the “St. Louis Blues,” beginning the second and third lines when the F and G chords are played. Selected students will add the drums and bass part to complete the musical sound. Activity (e): All students will write a three line blues, and a selected student will improvise one vocally with the chord and melodic accompaniment as performed by the class. They will begin by finishing the lines “I hate......................... (2x), ‘Cause....................., and then write their own, based on this model. Activity (f): A final “Blues Book” will include all the students’ verses. Activity (g): Visual interpretations of the blues poetry studied by the students will be done at the Lincoln Bassett school, in cooperation with the art teacher. Activity (h): A music program in March will include a presentation of original blues by one or more selected students; if possible, a blues singer will be invited to participate.

Materials needed:

a) Copies of the curriculum book. b) musical keyboards. In conclusion, the blues is a twentieth century African American music which is the foundation of many other musical styles, such as evidenced in great jazz compositions of Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, as well as in gospel, rhythm and blues, soul, rock, pop and rap. By learning the musical and poetic elements that comprise the blues, my students have developed a greater appreciation for the contributions of African Americans to the world

For myself, it has been an enlightening journey to view the world from an African American perspective; not to just read about, but to understand the black experience as told by black writers. The use of symbols and improvisation, such as in Train Whistle Guitar,(30) by Albert Murray, were a revelation to me; for example, he wrote “I use to say My name is also Jack the Rabbit because my home is in the briarpatch, and Little Buddy (than whom there was never a better riddle buddy) used to say Me my name is Jack the Rabbit also because my home is also in the also and also of the briarpatch because that is also where 1 was also bred and also born.” The briarpatch is the thorny and problem-filled world; Jack the Rabbit is a description of the main character as someone that can move quickly, and that confronts where he comes from. The bear refers to the oppressive world that puts him down. This prose writing helped me to unlock the mysteries of the musical elements of jazz, which, although I have listened to, and can play to some extent, never really understood as musical composition, having been trained in European classical music for twenty years.

I could relate to the conflicts in the religious attitude towards the blues expressed through the course readings, as I was raised in a Protestant home and had a rigid attitude about what is correct music to study and perform, reinforced by music teachers and the church. Fortunately, my father’s love of the big band music of the 30’s and 40’s, which was played much at home, was important to me as later in life I developed an interest in the blues and jazz. At least I had some knowledge of American music.

I look forward to listening to, and playing the blues and jazz with greater comprehension and understanding, as well as sharing with my students the new insights I have gained with a study of the blues, truly the most unique musical and poetic art form of this century. In the preface to Nothing But the Blues, Lawrence Cohn states my feelings perfectly—“The blues has helped me through troubled times . . . afforded lessons in American history that could not be gained through books . . . blues is not only a people’s music, blues is the music of the people.”(31)

Notes1. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. New York: Houghton Mifflin Co, 1992. 2. Toomer, Jean. Cane. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 1988. 3. Ibid. 4. Brooks, Gwendolyn. Maud Martha. Chicago: Third World Press, 1953. 5. Bebey, Francis. African Music, A People’s Art. New York: Lawrence Hill Books, 1975. 6. Adzinyah, A.K. ed. Let Your Voice Be Heard! Songs from Ghana and Zimbabwe. CT: World Music Press, 1984. 7. Spirituals and Gospels. New York: Wise Publications, 1975. 8. Ibid. 9. Ibid. 10. Ibid. 11. Lomas, Alan. The Folk Songs of North America. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1960. 12. Busnar. Gene. The Rhythm and Blues Story. New York: Julian Messner, 1985. 13. Lomax, Alan. The Folk Songs of North America. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1960. 14. Ibid.

15. Kersey, Dr. Robert E. Ed. Just Five Plus Two. USA: Belwin Mills Corp., 1975. 16. Randel, D.M. ed. The New Harvard Dictionary of Music. Cambridge: Belknap Press, 1986; Handy, W.C. ed. Blues: an Anthology. New York: Collier MacMillan Publishers, 1975. 17. Mann, Woody. The Blues Fakebook. New York/Paris/London: Oak Publications, 1995. 18. Brown, Sterling and Hughes, Langston, Selected Poems CT: Yale Teachers’ Seminar, 1997. 19. Ibid. 20. Handy, W.C. ed. Blues:. an Anthology New York: Collier MacMillan Publishers, 1975. 21. Legends of the Blues, Volume One. #7464-46215-2. 1990 CBS Records, Ind. 22. Blues Masters, Volume 3: Texas Blues. #8122-71 123-2. 1992 Rhino Records Inc. 23. Mann, Woody. The Blues Fakebook. New York/Paris/London: Oak Publications, 1995 24. Negro Folk Songs for Young People. 1967 Folkways Records VC 7533. 25. Chess Blues Classics, 1997 MCA Records Inc., CHD 9369. 26. Blues 1 Video. Bennett Group Presentation: Produced by Skylark Savoy Production Ltd For Genesis Production. Catalog-CVOO3 Venice, CA 90291 27. The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz. 1987 CBS Records, LP R033 P7-19477 28. Essentially Ellington. The Lincoln Center High School Jazz Band Competition, 1942. 29. Harlem Harmonies Video. Volume II. 1987 Jazz Classics. 30. Murray, Albert. Train Whistle Guitar. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1974 31. Cohn, Lawrence. ed. Nothing But the Blues: the Music and the Musicians. New York: Abbeville Press, 1993.

BIBLIOGRAPHYAdzinyah, A.K. ed. Let Your Voice Be Heard! Songs from Ghana and Zimbabwe. CT: World Music Press, 1984.

Nineteen unusual call-and-response songs, story songs, game songs and multipart songs from the Akan people of Ghana and the Shona of Zimbabwe.

Albertson, Chris. Bessie Smith, Empress of the Blues. New York: Walter Kane & Son, 1975.

This book is a collection of thirty-three songs with vocal/piano arrangements that were sung by Bessie Smith, and includes a short biography.

Bebey, Francis. African Music, A People’s Art. New York: Lawrence Hill Books, 1975.

This book is about African music; its forms, musicians, instruments and the place of music in the life of the people. It has many illustrations and an excellent discography.

Brooks, Gwendolyn. Maud Martha. Chicago: Third World Press, 1953.

A story about how an African American woman who had to face poverty, an unsatisfactory social life and the feeling of being trapped, was able to overcome her problems.

Brown, Sterling and Hughes. Langston, Selected Poems CT: Yale Teachers’ Seminar, 1997

Busnar, Gene. The Rhythm and Blues Story. New York: Julian Messner, 1985. The times, sounds and the people that inspired the music of today; from the slave songs to rock and roll, Motown and to Soul and Rap.

Cohn, Lawrence, ed. Nothing But the Blues: the Music and the Musicians. New York: Abbeville Press, 1993.

A collection of expert overviews on the major aspects of the blues by different writers, including its roots, the country tradition, women and the blues, the gospel tradition, urban blues, East Coast Piedmont styles, white country blues, and the blues revival of the 60’s.

Cone, James. The Spirituals and the Blues. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1972. A history and criticism of the spirituals and blues.

Ferris, William. Blues from the Delta. Garden City, New York: Anchor Press/Doubleday, 1978.

Recordings of, and interviews with, Delta blues musicians from 19678-1976 explain how records and a new generation of blues singers were reshaping earlier blues songs. The singers explained how they composed lyrics for performances.

Handy, W.C. ed. Blues: an Anthology. New York: Collier MacMillan Publishers, 1975.

Fifty three of the very best blues compiled by W. C. Handy, called the “Father of the Blues.” They are arranged for voice, piano and guitar.

Kersey, Dr. Robert E. Ed. Just Five Plus Two. USA: Belwin Mills Corp., 1975 Over seventy American folk songs with lyrics designed to promote a systematic introduction of tonal configuration from the basic pentatonic scale to the complete diatonic scale.

Lomas, Alan. The Folk Songs of North America. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1960.

Over three hundred folk songs with musical notation and lyrics, representing the north, the southern mountains and backwoods, the west, and the negro south, and including their history and related practices.

Megill, Donald D., and Demory, Richard S. Introduction to Jazz History. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1993.

This book is a cohesive introduction to jazz by an examination of its’ history from the beginning to the present, and concentrating on two specific areas—an exposition of jazz styles as they evolved, and biographical sketches of significant musicians.

Mann, Woody. The Blues Fakebook. New York/Paris/London: Oak Publications, 1995.

This book is a collection of tunes, lyrics, and rare photographs of eighty years of blues performers, representing many styles and composers.

Morrison, Toni. Jazz. New York: Plume/Penguin Publishers, 1993.

This is a story of a triangle of passion, jealousy, murder and redemption, of sex and spirituality, of slavery and liberation, of country and city, of being male and female and African American. Its lyric style plays on elemental themes, as in the blues and jazz styles of music.

Murray, Albert. Train Whistle Guitar. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1974. This novel is about coming of age in the south in the 1920’s, and resonates with the cadences and idioms of African American speech and music.

Randel, D.M. ed. The New Harvard Dictionary of Music. Cambridge: Belknap Press, 1986

Seminar: The Blues Impulse, Yale Teachers Institutes. Dr. Maurice Wallace, 1997.

Spirituals and Gospels. New York: Wise Publications, 1975.

Fifty great spirituals and gospels together for the first time; arranged for piano vocal/easy organ, plus an organ registration page.

The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. New York: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1992.

Titon, Jeff Todd. Early Downhome Blues. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1977.

This is a musical and cultural analysis of the early blues, based on recordings from 1926-1930, interviews, recollections of singers and audiences and workers in the record industry.

Toomer, Jean. Cane. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 1988

This book was originally published in 1923, and is considered a principal literary masterpiece of the Harlem Renaissance. It is an innovative literary work—part drama, part poetry and part fiction.

Student BibliographyAdoff, Arnold, ed. My Black Me: A Beginning Book of Black Poetry. New York: Macmillan, 1974.

Bess, Clayton. Story for a Black Night. Boston: Houghton, 1982.

Brooks, Gwendolyn. Bronzeville Boys and Girls. New York: Harper LB, 1991.

Bryan, Ashley, ed. All Night, All Day: A Childs First Book of African-American Spirituals. New York: Macmillan, 1991.

Case, Dianne. Love David. Los Angeles, CA: Dutton, 1991.

Clifton, Lucille. Everett Anderson’s Goodbye. New York: Henry Holt, 1983.

Clifton, Lucille. Some of the Days of Everett Anderson. New York: Henry Holt, 1976.

Climbing Jacob’s Ladder Heros of the Bible in African American Spirituals. New York: Margaret K. McElderry Books, 1991.

Ellis, Veronica F. Afro-Bets First Book about Africa. East Orange, NJ: Just Us LB, 1990.

Erlich, Lillian. What Jazz is all About. New York: Julian Messner, 1975.

Farmer, Nancy. Do You Know Me? New York: Orchard LB, 1993.

Gordon. Sheila. The Middle of Somewhere: A Story of South Africa. Culber City, US: Watts LB, 1990.

Greenfield, Eloise. Honey, I Love, and Other Love Poems. New York: Harper LB, 1978.

Greenfield, Eloise. Nathaniel Talking. Sonoma, CA: Readers, 1988.

Grimes, Nikki. Something on My Mind. Dial Paper, 1986.

Haskins, James. Black Music in America. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell, Publisher, 1987.

Higginson, Vy, ed. This is My Song, A Collection of Gospel Music for the Family. New York: Crown Publishers, 1995.

Hudson, Wade, ed. Pass It On:. African-American Poetry for Children. New York: Scholastic LB, 1993.

Hughes, Langston. The First Book of Jazz. New York: F. Watts, 1955.

Hughes, Langston. First Book of Negroes. New York: F. Watts, 1952.

Jacobs, Shannon K. Song of the Giraffe. Newburyport, US: Little, 1991.

Johnson, James W. Lift Every Voice and Sing. Indianapolis, IN: Walker LB, 1993.

Jones, Hettie. Big Star Fallin’ Mama; Five Women in Black Music. New York: Viking Press, 1974.

Keats, E. J. John Henry An American Legend. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1965.

Kroll, Virginia. Masai and I. Indianapolis, IN: Macmillan, 1992.

Langstaff, John, ed. What a Morning! The Christmas Story in Black Spirituals. Indianapolis, IN: Macmillan, 1987.

Little, Lessie Jones. Children of Long Ago. New York: Putnam, 1988.

Marie, D. Tears for Ashan. Panorama City, CA: Creative, 1989.

Mattox, C. W. ed. Shake it to the One That You Love the Best. CA: Warren-Mattox Productions, 1989.

Mattox, C. W. ed. Let’s Get the Rhythm of the Band. TN: JTG of Nashville, 1993.

Mattox, Cheryl W., ed. Shake It to the One That You Love the Best: Play Songs and Lullabies from Black Musical Traditions. Oakley, CA: Warren-Mattox, 1990.

Monceaux, Morgan. Jazz, My Music, My People. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Publisher, 1994.

Robinson Adjai, ed. Singing Tales of Africa. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1974.

Ryan, Ashley, ed. All Night, All Day, A Child’s First Book of African American Spirituals. New York: Atheneum Publishers, 1991.

Slier, Deborah, ed. Make a Joyful Sound: Poems for Children by African-American Poets. Fairless Hills, PA: Checkerboard, 1991.

Surge, Frank. Singers of the Blues. Minneapolis, MN: Lerner Publications Co., 1970.

Recordings and VideosLegends of the Blues. Volume One. #7464-46215-2. 1990 CBS Records, Ind.

Blues Masters, Volume 3: Texas Blues. #8122-71123-2. 1992 Rhino Records Inc.

Negro Folk Songs for Young People. 1967 Folkways Records VC 7533.

Chess Blues Classics. 1997 MCA Records Inc., CHD 9369.

Blues 1 Video. Bennett Group Presentation: Produced by Skylark Savoy Production Ltd. For Genesis Production. Catalog-CV003 Venice, CA 90291

The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz. 1987 CBS Records, LP R033 P7-19477

Essentially Ellington. The Lincoln Center High School Jazz Band Competition, 1942.

Harlem Harmonies Video Volume II. 1987 Jazz Classics.

References:

http://www.cis.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1997/5/97.05.03.x.html

LESSON ONE: STARTER STUDIES

Welcome to "PianoNanny.com." The graphics in this tutorial will be minimal so that the loading speed into your browser will be as fast as possible. You will need to have at least a small portable keyboard in front of you as you go through these lessons so that you can look at it and become familiar with it. Learning a keyboard is like typing. You

need a typewriter keyboard in front of you to learn to type. The same is true of the piano. You need a piano keyboard in front of you to learn to play piano.

As you first look at the piano keyboard, it looks like there are lots and lots of notes to learn. Not so! You only need to learn 12 notes. The shaded area on the keyboard above shows the 12 notes you will need to learn. Notes on a piano are grouped in sets of 12 notes.

Each group has 7 white keys and 5 black keys. Look at the keyboard above and count the 7 white keys and 5 black keys in the shaded area. This is one group. This group is repeated over and over, up the keyboard and down the keyboard. Each group starts with a "C" note. See the note labeled "C" above? On any keyboard, "C" is always the first white key that is to the left of two black keys.

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References:

http://www.pianonanny.com/start.html