The Music Integration Blues

Who Am I?

Who are you?

At the end of this session..

WE will have developed some Strategies that use

the Blues as a tool to integrate music into the core Curriculum of our classrooms

What do We Know about the Blues?

African-American writer Ralph Ellison said ….

that although the blues are often about struggle and depression, they are also full of determination to overcome difficulty "through sheer toughness of spirit." This resilience in the face of hardship is one of the hallmarks of the blues poem.

Where do the Blues come from?

We don’t know for sure but…..

The Sound that Jazz Makes

The Objectives For the sound that Jazz makes Lesson Plan

The students will become familiar with important historical periods from an

african American perspective.

The students will be able to say where the Blues and other american musical

styles come from

The students will become familiar with the importance of African american

music and culture

Where do the Blues come from?

We Do know this

• The Blues are distinctly American

•They probably come from Field Hollers and work

songs•They dealt with hard

Times

We Also know

That the blues are the most important musical

root for all american popular music styles

Without the Blues there would be no•Rock n’ Roll

•Country•Rn’B

•Jazz•The Beatles

•Brittney Spears•Hip Hop

•Led Zeppelin

•Eric Clapton•Lady gaga

•Cold play

•Jonas Brothers

•Aretha Franklin

What do you think?

Alexander, Blues, and onomatopoeia.

Objectives for the Alexander Lesson Plan

The students will make connections between literature and music

The students will create onomatopoeia’s

The students will be introduced to the idea that anybody can write a blues

song and that the blues are an appropriate way to deal with sad

feelings.

What do you think?

Langston Hughes and the Blues Poem

http://www.milforded.org/schools/foran/turtola/hughesblues.html

http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/aa/hughes

Objectives for the Blues Poem Plan

The students will make connections between literature and music

The students will create a blues poem/song

The students Will become familiar with a distinctly american poetic Form

One of the most popular forms of American poetry, the blues poem stems from the African American oral tradition and the musical tradition of the blues. A blues poem typically takes on themes such as struggle, and despair, among others. It often (but not necessarily) follows a form, in which

1. a statement is made in the first line 2. a variation is given in the second line, 3. an ironic alternative is declared in the third line.

Teacher, what’s a variation?

Another Objective

vocabulary both musical

and non-musical

Homesick Blues

By Langston Hughes

De railroad bridge’sA sad song in de air.

De railroad bridge’sA sad song in de air.

Ever time de train passI wants to go somewhere.

I went down to de station.Ma heart was in ma mouth.

I went down to de station.Ma heart was in ma mouth.

Lookin’ for a box car toRoll me to da south.

Homesick blues, Lawd.‘Sa terrible thing to have.

Homesick blues isA terrible thing to have.

To keep from cryin’ I opens ma mouth an

laughs.

Now You write one

You don’t need to use the voice that he used

Use your own voice

Use your own material

If you have questions I will help

What do you think?