Patricia M. Bissell
1. SWING LOW, SWEET CHARIOT
Refrain (repeated part)
“Swing low, sweet chariot, Comin’ for to carry me home,
Swing low, sweet chariot, Comin’ for to carry me home.
Verse 1:
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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:
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If you get there before I do—Tell all my friends I’m a comin’ too.” Refrain (9)
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1. What words are repeated many times? __________
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2. What did home mean to the early African slaves? __________
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3. Even though the words express suffering, the music itself is (a) angry (b) sad (c) pleasing.
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4. What is a spiritual? __________
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5. Draw a picture to express these words.
2. Spiritual: Walk in Jerusalem Just Like John (10)
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“I want to be ready, I want to be ready, I want to be ready to walk in Jerusalem just like John.
Verse 1:
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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:
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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.”
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1. What words are repeated many times? __________
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2. How is this spiritual like “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot?” __________
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3. What does “walk in Jerusalem” mean? __________
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4. Draw a picture to express these words.
Materials needed:
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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.
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“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:
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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.
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1. “Good Morning, blues, Blues, how do you do? (2 x)
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Good morning, how are you?” ( 17)
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2. “Ain’t got nobody in all this world, Ain’t got nobody but ma self.
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Is gwine to quit my frownin,’ And put my troubles on the shelf.” (18)
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3. “De railroad bridge’s
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A sad song in de air. (2x)
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Ever time de trains pass
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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:
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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.
