So, the last few weeks, we have been looking at early American Music including Folk& Mountain music, Classical, Cajun, Klezmar, and finally African American Slave music. All of these styles led the way for most of the music we hear, play and sing today.
Today we got to experience the Blues. The very distinct sound of the Blues came straight out of the hardships and suffering of the slaves. Music was the best way for them to express the suffering and hardships of the slave life, After the Civil War, the freed slaves needed to make a living. The most common options-hard, manual labor and performing music and skits. Life was still hard, and music still a great way to express-the blues.
The Pathfinders and Navigators listened to 3 different samples of blues(by Bukka White, Muddy Waters, Chris Thomas King) and compared them, paying attention to all the sounds and rhythms that make the blues sound the way it does. We discussed how the rhythms came from the slaves, who used to use African drumming to communicate with slaves on other plantations. To illustrate this form of communication pairs of students created 4-line conversations with one another using only percussion.
We also listened to and imitated the back beat and the shuffle beat. Both started in blues music, and are still used in a lot of the more modern forms of music.
The pathfinders got to see 2 videos of modern performing groups-STOMP and Blue Man Group. Both of these groups use their creative beats and rhythms to communicate with their audiences.
Manchester, NH based fine arts program for homeschool students
