Objective:
Students will:
find their voice and recognize an author’s voice
demonstrate an awareness of their voice by writing and performing a poem
Activities:
-
watch and discuss the PBS Bill Moyers “Language of Life” series featuring Sekou Sundiata’s interview and reading of
Blink Your Eyes
(Moyers, 396-98)
-
experiment with voice and movement by reading (poem and commentary), discussing and reciting
A Poem For Magic
by Quincy Troupe (Moyers, 424-26)
-
listen to Pee Wee Crayton’s “Blues After Hours” from
Urban Blues CD Volume 1
and Miles Davis’s “Autumn Leaves” from
Dream Session
and freewrite a poem to be performed while improvising
Materials:
PBS Bill Moyers
Language of Life
video series and
Language of Life
text
Dream Session
and
Urban Blues Volume
1 CDs
Pen and paper
Procedures:
-
Watch and discuss Sekou Sundiata’s interview with Bill Moyers. Discuss the impact of improvisation on poetry and the question of poetry being either academic or performance.
-
Experiment with voice by reciting poetry in contrasting voices in both tone and pace i.e.: fast, slow, mad, and soft. Recall times when these voices came naturally and employ these voices when reading “A Poem For Magic.” Read commentary on the creation of the poem prior to reciting.
-
Listen to Blue Mitchell’s
Down With It
and freewrite. Compose a poem and perform it in the class improvising where possible.
Extension:
Listen to W.C. Handy’s
St. Louis Blues, Yellow Dog Blues, Joe Turner Blues or Beales Street Blues
; Leadbelly’s
Midnight Special
; “Fats” Waller and Alberta Hunter’s
Beale St. Blues
;
Louis Blues
; and Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup’s
My Baby Left Me
and 1) cite patterns in blues and 2) note the regional differences of Mississippi and Chicago blues.