At Nathan Hale School, in grades six through eight General Music, there is a wide range of musical abilities. Some students receive outside musical instruction by taking private lessons, or participating in a church or community ensemble, such as band or choir. Other students are music enthusiasts outside of school, but are self-taught. Many enjoy music and can list a number of artists and bands that they listen to for fun. However, for the majority of students in this age group, their only formal music instruction occurs two or three times a week during certain quarters of the school year.
At Nathan Hale School, the student population in grades six through eight General Music is approximately 61% white, 28% Hispanic/Latino, 6% Black/African-American, 1% Asian, and <1% American Indian/Alaskan Native. Of these students, many have expressed to me their personal musical interests, which range from rap and R&B, to classic rock, to boy bands and pop music, and many varieties of rock. Class sizes during school year 2014-2015 included anywhere from five students to 18. Some classes are very outspoken and opinionated about the work we do in General Music, and some simply go with the flow of the class and ask very few questions unless prompted. Some students are fiercely independent, and can work on music assignments quite easily with very little teacher input during the process. Other students frequently check in after each step, making sure they are on the right track.
Given all of this information, I wanted to create a unit that would fit the needs of any music classroom. Diversity presents itself in many different ways, so I wanted my unit to offer students a chance to explore music and culture of the past. I want them to find something they feel is most interesting, or can connect with in some way. I also wanted to integrate more performance opportunities in my class, in the form of learning music through ensemble work or giving students a chance to perform solo for their classmates.
As I began my research, the time period from 1965-1969 stood out to me. Upon first look at the Billboard Top 100 charts, I noticed how diverse the Number 1 Hits were over the weeks of each year, and how frequently the number one song changed from week to week. At a glance, one would notice the many different genres that were able to grab a hold of the top spot: Rock, Soul, Pop, R&B, Folk, and Country. Within each genre, each artist or band had their own performance and writing style. Additionally, the performers themselves were far from a “cookie-cutter” images of each other. In 1969 alone, Number 1 Hits of the year included:
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The Beatles-a four-piece rock band from Liverpool, England that were some of the best in the business as performers, writers, and arrangers.
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Elvis Presley-the rock and roll artist who fused together country and blues, along with pop, gospel, and bluegrass.
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The Temptations-a Motown vocal group from Detroit, MI who impressed audiences with harmonies and choreography.
1965 was a critical year in America and in music. “It was the year rock and roll evolved into the premier art form of its time and accelerated the drive for personal liberty throughout the Western world.”
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With that being said, we cannot try to understand and analyze the musical culture of 1965-1969 without also focusing on the political and social events of the period.
This time period has many musical selections and cultural events to choose from. I do not intend this unit to be all-encompassing, but rather a selection of some of the most important musical figures and cultural events to match. This time period includes its fair share of violence, death, drug usage, and sex. The content I have included in this unit focuses more on how culture contributed to the development of the music, the musicians, and how or why music was created. With modifications, portions could work well with upper elementary school-aged students, while high school students could certainly handle some of the more sensitive details I have left out here. I want to make it clear that if I have left something out, it is not because I do not recognize its merit-teachers who use this unit will obviously make judgement calls about the content their class can handle.
The National Coalition for Core Arts Standards rolled out a set of new standards for General Music that include the three artistic processes of Creating, Performing, and Responding. In order to align with those artistic processes and the time period of 1965-1969, the purpose of this unit will be:
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Identify the social, cultural, and historical context of the decade, and how it informs music of the time period.
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Interpret the creators' and performers' expressive intent, and explain how they applied certain music elements to express intent.
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Understand the structure and context, as well as the musical elements of compositions, in order to prepare for an in-class ensemble performance, displaying the original creator's intent.
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Rehearse music, as an ensemble and/or as a soloist, and develop criteria to refine the music and decide when it is ready to perform.
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Generate lyrical, rhythmic, melodic, and/or harmonic ideas in order to create a new musical work written in the context of an event from 1965-1969.
In order to maintain a frame of reference as students move through the historical information, it would be helpful to introduce or review the basic definitions of the different genres:
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Blues-Usually features a simple three-chord progression. Improvisation is often present. The Blues developed out of African-American spirituals and work songs.
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Bluegrass-country music that is polyphonic in character and is played on un-amplified stringed instruments, with emphasis especially on the solo banjo.
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Country- Basic form, built around three chords, similar to blues. Instrumentation includes guitars and fiddles.
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Folk- Music that is passed down orally. Acoustic instruments are used. Many folk songs have no known author, and evolve over time.
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Funk- Music that combines elements of rhythm and blues and soul music and is characterized by a percussive vocal style, static harmonies, and a strong bass line with heavy downbeats.
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Gospel-A now popularized form of impassioned rhythmic spiritual music, rooted in the solo and responsive church singing of rural blacks in the American South. Central to the development of rhythm and blues and soul music.
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Pop-The term “popular music” refers to music that is most in line with the tastes and interests of the masses. This is the music that sells the most records, has the largest concert audiences, and is played most often on the radio.
The term “pop music” usually refers to a song with a basic form of verses and a repeating chorus. Songs are usually between two and half to five and a half minutes long, and some longer songs are edited for length for radio play.
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Rhythm & Blues, or R&B-A folk-based but urbanized form of black popular music that is marked by strong, repetitious rhythms and simple melodies and was developed, in a commercialized form, into rock-'n'-roll.
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Rock 'n' roll-A style of popular music that derives in part from blues and folk music and is marked by a heavily accented beat and a simple, repetitive phrase structure.
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Soul-Music that originated in black American gospel singing, is closely related to rhythm and blues, and is characterized by intensity of feeling and earthiness.
I have organized the unit using the following sub-topics, and not necessarily presented in chronological order:
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Early Rock 'n' Roll
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The Beatles and The British Invasion
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Civil Rights Anthems and Coming Together
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The Counterculture
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Vietnam
The content of the sub-topics does overlap, but the sub-topics could potentially be presented together or separately depending on class needs. Reading materials, video, and audio, can be presented to the class, and discussion of the context should take place before students are expected to practice, perform, or write music themselves. Because of the amount of information available to teach from 1965-1969, it is also possible for the unit to be split up and different portions taught at different times.
