Ethnomusicology: The Study of Culture and Music

Cecilia Hann

Introduction

My students see and experience music every day in their young lives. In their families, they experience culture. Anthropology includes culture, attitudes, values, beliefs, education and laws. “Culture is a fundamental building block in the development of a child’s personal identity.”1 My unit, Ethnomusicology: The Study of Culture and Music, connects culture and music. It helps my students understand the importance of music especially the folk song in their lives and the community. Folk songs began in the community and were passed along through generations of villages and church musicians taking on characteristics of other societies. My students will learn the history of folk music. They will read and sing North American folk songs. By singing and playing rhythms on instruments, they can experience the music elements of folk music. Analysis of style, form, tempo, call and response, melody and rhythm, dynamics, tempo, timbre, and articulation will let them better understand the structure of folk songs. They can explore questions like “How do folk songs affect my life and the community?” “Do I hear them at school, church and at home?” They will discuss the importance of folk songs. In groups, I will teach my students to compose songs about their lives using the form of folk music, and in turn they will compose and perform songs with their classmates.

Eisenberg Elementary provides academic and visual arts studies for kindergarten through fifth grade. The school reflects a culturally diverse student body of approximately 600 students. Strong academic emphasis focuses on physical, social and emotional development to create a community of learners. Programs offered are Dibels and Accelerated Reader which enable students to succeed by addressing their reading needs. 24 Club strengthens Math skills as well as learning to work together. The Responsive Classroom Behavior Support Program allows students to focus on appropriate encouraging actions in an educational environment. Teachers use research-based methods of instruction (Learning Focus and Responsive Classroom) which are aligned with the Delaware State Standards. In the Arts, students may participate in band in grades 4 and 5. Chorus is offered for grades 3, 4 grade and 5. In second, third, fourth and fifth general music class, recorders, world drumming and guitars are presented as units of study. Second graders participate in a second-grade guitar club which performs in our spring concert and shares music with the guitar students at The Leach School. Fifth grade students perform a musical yearly. My role as a music educator is not only to develop musical skills but also relate music to other academic areas such as English Language Arts, Math, Social Studies and Science. This unit, Ethnomusicology: The Study of Culture and Music relates folk music and the study of Ethnomusicology for

fifth graders. Ethnomusicology is defined “as a holistic investigation of music in its cultural contexts. Combining aspects of folklore, psychology, cultural anthropology, linguistics, comparative musicology, music theory and history, ethnomusicology has adopted perspectives from a multitude of disciplines.”2 I want my students to delve into how folk songs are important to the cultural and social aspects of the people who compose them. In this seminar, I am seeking to learn ways to empower my 5th graders into how to communicate and express various folk songs in their lives by singing and playing instruments.

Rationale/Objective

The Delaware Visual Arts Standards for fifth graders recommend that students demonstrate how interests, knowledge and skills relate to personal choices and intent when creating performing and responding to music (Cn10.0.5a). Students will demonstrate and explain, citing evidence, how selected music connects to and is influenced by specific interests, experiences, purposes or contexts. (Re7.1.5) Right now, I think students need to recognize various folk songs that they know or learn new songs and study how these songs affect cultural and social behavior in their lives, their families and their society. They can discuss these folk songs and then sing and accompany them on instruments.

I want my students to how music is important in their lives. In order to do so, I will explain how anthropology and music are important throughout history. My students will learn and discuss the history of folk music. I will use two examples that illustrate this importance. One example I refers to a group of Parai drummers in Tamil Nadu, who use drumming and folk songs to discuss economic and political reform in India. Their positive message through folk songs is gaining respect at various folk festivals. Another example comes from the Guarani Indians and their connection with the tropical forests in which they have lived for hundreds of years. Then my students will look at folk songs from America. They can study familiar or new songs discovering the message of the song and how it influences society. My lessons will provide examples of folk songs from the Civil Rights Movement. Various examples of folk songs may include “This Little light of Mine”, “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ‘Round” and “Miss Mary Mack” They will discuss the meanings and influences these songs may have on society. Students will read musical books about American folk history such “This Land Is Your Land” by Woodie Guthrie and “America the Beautiful” by Katherine Lee Bates. Vocabulary will include anthropology, ethnomusicology, culture, society and folk songs. Students may also create their own melodies, lyrics and accompaniments with instruments for a new folk song if they wish. I want them to think about the message of the song and how it connects to them and others. For the culminating activity, students will perform their compositions.

The goal of Ethnomusicology: The Study of Culture and Music, is to introduce students to ethnomusicology through folk music. Then my fifth graders can explore the social and cultural aspects of these songs. What is the meaning? How does it affect my life or the lives of others? Can I create a folk song that will impact others in a positive way? What musical elements such as rhythm, melody, tempo, tone color form, style and texture, do I need to compose a folk song? They can then discuss and perform folk songs using a variety of rhythm instruments and singing techniques.

Background Information

Anthropology or Culture

Anthropology is defined as “the scientific study of the origin: the behavior: and the physical, social and cultural development of humans.”3 In seminar, Dr. Guerron-Montero defines culture as learned and shared knowledge that people use to generate behavior and interpret experience. It is the study of human societies and the development of cultures. Through my research, culture is essential to the development of a child’s individualism. I can use the definition of culture discussed in seminar to teach my students to understand that their values, beliefs, attitudes, laws and ways of doing things are in fact their culture. As their teacher, I will analyze students’ language, family, religion, government, music and education to understand their cultures. I will talk to their families to learn about their traditions, origin, cultural heritage and their connections with music (whether music is played or sung). By focusing on cultures, I want my students to learn that they are not isolated. They hear and encounter each other’s music. As an audience, my students can react while the musicians perform in a concert. Music through culture is a collaboration among societies. Charles Seeger defined the anthropology of music as “studying the way music is a part of culture and social life.”4 Multicultural musical collaborations cause people to work together and not be isolated.

As an overview, anthropology combines natural science and the humanities. Biology and culture distinguish man from other forms of life. History is linked with culture as a form of change and growth for society. In the twentieth century, anthropologists were separated into five field of research. 1) Physical anthropology differentiates man from other species. 2) Archaeology is based on physical remains of past cultures usually found in the earth. 3) Linguistic anthropology is the capability of humans to communicate using diverse languages. 4) Social or Cultural anthropology distinguishes the characteristics of human societies through similarities and differences. 5) Applied anthropology studies the commonality between culture, social structure and the human being.5

Ethnomusicology

Ethnomusicology is “the study of music from the cultural and social aspects of the people who make it.”6 It combines folklore, culture, music theory and music history. Ethnomusicology began in the 1950’s. Before that it was known as comparative musicology and it looked at all aspects of music and anthropology studying all characteristics of man and his culture. Bruno Nettl, a well-respected ethnomusicologist notes that “Music of any sort, and folk music especially should be examined in two ways: 1) for itself, its structure and its aesthetic effect, and 2) in its cultural context, its function and its relationship to other aspects of life.”7 Studies in comparative musicology which is the scientific study devoted to the cross-cultural education of music, involved fieldwork and laboratory study. In the early 1950’s, the fieldworker was only trained to record music. The lab worker did the analysis of the songs. It was found recently that the same person should gather and analyze the music for more accurate results.8 Fieldwork study in ethnomusicology has been conducted where the musicologist learns the music and language. He takes on the role of a participant and observer playing and recording the folk music of a people. Folk music describes traditional customs, stories, proverbs and dance of a society. An ethnomusicologist researches their culture in advance. He travels to a village generally with a tape recorder, generator and a tent. Once at his destination, he must use certain techniques to be sure that he gains access to the individuals who know the songs. He should not record only one type of song. If he does so, he may miss some valuable material as well as alienate musicians in the ethnic group. He must get to know the people well. A brief three to five-day trip is usually not successful. Fieldwork requires months and possibly years of stay with several follow-up visits to see how the songs have evolved. Attitudes about their music may also have changed.9

Just recording the songs is only one part of the work of the field collector. The cultural aspects of the music are equally as important but more difficult to obtain. The field worker should discover what his informants think about the songs they sing and perform, what they consider a good or bad song and why it’s good or bad. He should find out how they learn songs; how they compose; who the good musicians are and what makes them better that other musicians; what kinds of terms they use when they discuss their music; what outside music do they enjoy; what activities or jobs accompany songs, what is the social status of the musicians. Each field worker may use specific techniques that he finds necessary to obtain the best results. “David McAllester, widely known for his collecting of Navaho music, says that he persuades the Indians to sing for him by singing folk songs, or even Indian songs to them.”10

When arriving back to the office with recordings, the field worker analyzes and describes the music. He may listen and/or write it down using notation. This transcription only saves or preserves the music. It does not reflect on the performers’ actions or musicality. When writing the recorded music, the field worker must consider form, polyphony, rhythm or tempo, melody or scale and tone quality. It must be remembered

that music from non-Western cultures is often difficult to transcribe using Western notation. There may be some adaptations necessary in some or all transcription techniques. When listening to the form of a piece, the fieldworker may hear large sections. Are they the repeated of different? Are the rhythms and melody the same or different? Do they vary in length? Does the music match the words in length? The music should be analyzed with A for a section, A1for a variation and B for a new theme. Some songs may just have two sections AB. Others are more complex such as AABAABAB. Musical examples may be monophonic or polyphonic. Monophonic songs are melodies of single notes. It is usually unaccompanied or simple drums, sticks or rattles. Most African folk songs are monophonic. Polyphony, as heard in Western European music, consists of a singer accompanied by a chorus, guitar or a group of instruments with complex form, rhythms and melodies. Polyphonic music may have parts sung or played at various times like a fugue, which is a composition of two or more melodic lines in which a short melody is introduced by one singer or instrument and then expanded upon by other singers or instruments. The listener tries to decide if one part has a leading significance over the other lines. Do they have a relationship of being the same or different? Are there variations of the same tune? Can the performer choose to improvise?

When listening to various examples of music, my students can analyze the rhythm just by listening and tapping a foot. This can help find the steady beat, strong and weak beats and meter of the songs. Tempo can be fast or slow. To measure tempo, my students can “divide the number of notes in a melody by the number of beats the piece takes; this would express the tempo in terms of average number of notes per minute.”11 Melody must be listened to for its contour. Students listen for the rise and fall of a melody, the large or small leaps and a high or low range. The scale is a tonal arrangement used in a song. Students can listen and count the number of different tones. Examples may be heptatonic or seven notes, hexatonic or six notes, pentatonic or five notes, tetratonic or four notes and tritonic or 3 tones. When listening to non-Western music, the intervals often do not coincide with what we normally hear. Half and whole steps and quarter tones are heard and may seem abnormal. They are not. The students’ music or the non-Western songs are both normal as each are used to the sounds. Each culture creates its own sound or musical system. When analyzing music from different nations, students will find it similar to studying a foreign language. It may be confusing and not structured. However, music from other countries is more than just chant. It is intricate and complex. After listening to several examples from the same ethnic group, the recurring sounds will not seem so foreign. All Western, non-Western folk songs will not sound the same. Each style is unique. Finally, the tone quality or timbre of folk songs is important for my students to hear. They can listen for specific drums, shakers, guiros, a stick with a ridged block, and sticks. Music of a certain culture is usually performed with similar timbre, either harsh, gentle, tense or simple. “Thus, North American Plains Indians sing in tense, harsh manner, while Bulgarians may sing with many trills, turns, grace notes, and other ornaments.”12

When my students listen to a sampling of folk songs, they may deduce that a lot of music from various countries does not have a lot in common. If the countries are a great distance away, the music is different. Songs from neighboring tribes may exhibit similarities because they have been in contact with each other. Music is transmitted mostly aurally. Discussing the use of a familiar instrument like a flute, the use of a similar rhythms or melodies and the playing of different themes at different pitch levels are ways to help them organize and clarify the musical format.

History of Folk Music

Folk music is a combination of traditional and contemporary folk music. Folk music is really a type of world music “Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted orally, music with unknown composers, or music performed by custom over a long time.”13 Folk music began in the 18th century as it grew out of classical music. My unit, Ethnomusicology: The Study of Culture and Music will focus on contemporary folk songs. These songs are tunes either instrumental or a melody, often with repetitive sections. They often repeat numerous times as an AABB binary form. Folk music is transmitted orally. Because of ethnomusicology, field workers have recorded and transmitted these songs into songbooks. Folk music is culturally related to a certain region or country. Immigrant groups often created their songs and dances after their grandparents. Most folk music recalls historical and personal events. Generations have performed songs and dance for holidays such as New Years, Christmas, Easter, weddings, birthdays, funerals and moving up ceremonies. Religious celebrations always use folk music to bring children and congregations together in praise. Folk songs are for and by the people, so no copyrights are required.14

Folk songs started in societies as anonymous creative songs. They were created by individuals usually in villages and churches. The repertoire of a folk songs was passed on orally for generations thus being affected by diverse communities. Societies passed songs down from parents to children, educators to students and church musicians to congregations. The folk songs were constantly changing in words and style. “An important characteristic of a song or piece in traditional folk culture is, thus, its dependence on acceptance by a community—that is, by a village, nation, or family—and its tendency to change as it is passed from one individual to another and performed.”15

Folk Music in North America

This section should be called America Sings-A Folksong Map because folk music played such an important role in forming North America. Folk music in North America includes American Indian music or Native American music and African music. In North America (north of Mexico), there are six main areas: Northwest Coast-Eskimo, California -Yuman, Great Basin of Nevada, Athabascan (Apache and Navaho tribes), Plains-Pueblo, eastern portion of the United States and southern Canada.16 The most important

characteristics of Native American music is singing and percussion instruments. Vocal folk song may be solo, choral, call and response, unison and part-singing. Songs are most often accompanied by percussion instruments, such as drums, rattles, guiros and djembes. These accompaniments help keep a steady beat for the performers. Usually the singers use their native speech. Often vocables or non-sense syllables are sung. Accompaniments usually begin with slow and steady beats that grow gradually faster and more rhythmic with drum and rattle trills, shouts and emphasized patterns add diversity and can be a sign for singers, dancers and musicians to change the form in their music.17 The text or subjects of Native American songs are both sacred and secular. Sacred songs and ritual speeches are very rhythmic and melodic. Ritual speeches often explain the meaning of religious ceremonies. Secret songs are sung in their ancient tradition and do not change.

The six types of music in North America are described by region, culture and musical characteristics. First, the Northwest Coast-Eskimo are in British Columbia, Canada and Washington State inhabited by the Salish Indians. These 2 groups migrated from Asia but do not have the same cultural characteristics. The folk songs do possess many same musical qualities. Their music has complex form using minor seconds which limits its range. Rhythms are strong with percussive beats using drums and shakers. “In spite of unity, however, the Inuit music is generally simple while that of the Northwest is complex and, in its relative wealth of instruments, indicate some relationship to the culture of the Mexican civilizations.”18 Next, the California-Yuman live in Central California and Southwestern states. These Yuman-speaking tribes sing in a calm style which contrasts from most Indian tribes. Their singing is somewhat in the European folk style. The form of their songs has multiple sections that are repetitive intertwined with each other. The most unique characteristic is called the rise as identified by George Herzog. “The rise itself is a section of a song that is slightly higher in pitch than the rest of the song.”19 Most of their songs contain a rise in pitch which is like a high voice. The third type of music is in the Great Basin of Nevada, Utah and northern California. This terrain is mainly dry and desert-like with tribes gathering to hunt and fish. Their music is a relaxed singing style with repeated phrase and small melodic range. Their style is called Ghost Dance. The songs are unstructured with few melodies. The Ute tribes uses songs to narrate a story. The fourth Indian music is Athabascan where the members speak the Athabascan language. They are Navajo and Apache tribes. Even though they are different tribes, they have similar musical styles. They both have a pulsing rhythmical structure with sudden changes in tempo. Simple quarter and eighth note values are used. The Navajo songs are complex and influenced by its Pueblo neighbors. The melodies have a wide range, large intervals and use of the rise. The Apache music has a smaller range of notes and rhythmic singing. The fifth area is two cultural tribes, the Plains Indians (Blackfoot, Crow, Dakota, Comanche and Kiowa) and the Pueblo Indians (Hopi, Zuni and Taos). The Plains Indians are nomadic and hunt buffalo. The Pueblo tribes have organized religious ceremonies and have a structured family life. Both tribes have rhythmic tension in their two-part songs. Their singing is tense with low melodic tones. It is unmetered. The sixth type of music in North America combines the eastern portions of

the United States and southern Canada. These two become one musical culture. Their songs are call and response with shouting between the leader and group. Forms are complex. A predominance of songs are dances with 2 sections. A section uses shakers and B section plays drums. Vocal technique is terse with a descending line. Music is very rhythmic.

Another important type of folk songs in North America is African music from the African American community. American anthropologists confirmed that the slaves brought their songs with them from Africa. Their music was often created, recreated, preserved, mixed and transformed when not around whites or American Indians. The style was simple musical syllables. When they were influenced by whites and Indians, their music was changed to the style of the whites and Indians. This in known as acculturation which is cultural changes of an individual or groups of people who adapt by borrowing traits from one another. “Thus, their musical acculturation takes three possible forms: they may simply learn songs of the whites with their performance practice; they may learn the performance practices of the whites and superimpose these on their own songs; or, conversely, they may learn the songs of the whites and superimpose on them the African performance practices”20. All three of these can be found in African American music. The African slaves learned music from their masters, white neighbors and church leaders. Most often they took these songs and put their own style on them. This formed a new style combining African and white cultures. The style emphasizes rhythm with a variety of percussion instruments. A strong rhythmic accompaniment pattern uses syncopation and complicated rhythms accompanied by hand-clapping drums, shakers and sticks. Call and response pattern is common and a popular way of learning songs. A leader song the song and was answered by a choir of mixed voices. Improvisation is used in both singing and playing percussion instruments. Anthropologists who study African and African American cultures and music confirm that African characteristics are present in African American songs and spirituals. Their music plays a major role in their daily life at work and play, religious rites and dances.

When discussing the types of folk music in North America, cowboy songs, sea chanteys, ballads from England and blues along with the “African American slave songs” played an important role in the early music of America. In the early 1900’s, John A. Lomax, traveled by train, horseback and by foot through the western states studying folk songs. His son, Alan Lomax continued studying the history of American music and was an ethnomusicologist. Together, they wrote books and studied folk music in North America. Dr. Alan Lomax writes, “Everywhere in the New World we find songs that were popular in the days when the colonists set sail from their homelands. Thus, American folk song is, I one aspect, a museum of musical antiques from many lands.”21

The cowboy songs were sung while cowboys cared for their herd at ranches and lead their cows from Texas, New Mexico and Arizona north to Montana. Cow-punching, or the act of herding cattle, was most prominent before the Civil War. In Texas, there

were wide-open areas of green grasslands for the cattle to roam. After the winter, cowboys would drive their cattle northward or “going up the trail” from Texas to Montana. Men would sing songs, called “doggie songs,” as a group telling stories of stampedes, life and loves. Songs were also used to keep the cattle together with strong rhythmic yells. Night herders often sand lullabies to comfort the herd.22

Sea chanteys were songs sung about life on the Atlantic coast, Great Lakes and Gulf of Mexico. Paddling songs could be heard being sung along the waterways in New England. Ballads were brought over to the New World from England. These familiar songs brought comfort during travels and setting up new communities. The blues originated in Mississippi and New Orleans. These songs were sung by the Creoles with rich sounds of blues notes sung accompanied with brass band. Negro songs and chants were sung from the Carolinas to Texas explaining their work on railroad tracks and fields.23

Examples of Folk Music Accompanied by Drumming

African American music is performed with various rhythmic accompaniments using rattles, bells, guiros and hand-clapping. The most important instrument however is the drum. Drummers hold a high status and are considered as excellent musicians. Melville Herskovits studied Afro-Brazilian cultures and music. He says that the master drummer “moves about the scene, confident, respected …. relaxed, the drum between his legs, he allows the complex rhythm to flow from his sure, agile fingers. It is he who brings on possession through his manipulation of these rhythmic intricacies, yet he himself never becomes possessed.”24 Each ethnic group has its own master drummer who holds a high place in the society. In Afro-Brazilian musical traditions, singing does not hold as much prestige as drumming. Men are the drummers and women do the singing. Drums in the Afro-Brazilian cult are in sets of three in varying sizes with other instruments such as gongs. They are played with hands or sticks. The larger drum plays more complex rhythms while the smaller drum beats a steady pulse or single rhythm. When making a drum, a ritual is performed allegedly giving the drum powers to communicate with the gods. In African music, songs were also sung or played as work songs, social dance songs, story songs and love songs.

Folk music is important in their worship of the gods. African and indigenous religions are syncretic religions, such as Candomblé, that have numerous followers, mainly Afro-Brazilians . They live in large urban centers in the Northeast, such as Salvador , Recife , or Rio de Janeiro in the Southeast. South of Brazil the most common African influenced Ritual is Almas e Angola, is an Umbanda like ritual. Now, there are over 70 "terreiros" (temples) in Florianópolis, which are the places where the rituals run. In addition to Candomblé which is the survival of West African religion, there is also Umbanda which blends Spiritism , indigenous and African beliefs. The religions of

1 Wallace, All Day, Every Day in the Early Childhood Classroom, 32.

2 “Ethnomusicology”, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnomusicology .

3 Wallace, All Day, Every Day in the Early Childhood Classroom, 263.

4 “Ethnomusicology”, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnomusicology .

Candomblé, Umbanda, Batuque, Xango , and Tambor de Mina, were originally brought by black slaves shipped from Africa to Brazil. These black slaves would summon their gods, called Orixas , Voduns or Inkices with chants and dances from Africa. Their beliefs were mainly pagan and satanic. These religion were legalized by the Brazilian government to separate church and state in 1889.25

In other cultures, drums also play an important role in the lives of its people. In India, outcaste Parai drummers play at neighborhood park on stage in Tamil Nadu, Chennai. Their message is to bring together people from other villages to share rhythms, ideas and musical talents. It is called a Chennai Sangamon which enables audiences enjoy a little folk and classical music.26 Sangamon is derived from the Tamil word sang am meaning the coming together of two rivers. It can also be traced back to Sanskrit meaning confluence.27

The Guarini people are one of the largest native groups of people in South America. They live in tropical forest near the Amazon River in the countries of Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia and Brazil. They are semi-nomadic and take advantage of the natural resources of the forest. Women farm while the men hunt and fish. The Spanish came over in search of gold and intermingled with the Guaranis. The Jesuits missionaries converted many Guaranis to Christianity. They learned to play guitars and harps along with their skill in drumming. This blend can be seen in art and music.28

Learning Objectives

The objectives for Ethnomusicology: The Study of Culture and Music unit are that the learners first learn about ethnomusicology through folk songs. In groups, they discuss how music affects their lives at home, school and church. After listening to some folk songs from different countries, they analyze style, form, tempo, call and response, melody and rhythm, dynamics, tempo, timbre, and articulation of the songs. Students can then create a folk song music composition about their life using the previously listed elements of music. A final evaluation is written explaining how the folk song applies established criteria. Music Standards that have recently been adopted by Delaware have overarching concepts of Performing, Responding, and Connecting. By creating a unit on ethnomusicology, I hope to encourage my students to select, evaluate, refine and connect to folk songs. The following are the Delaware Music Standards to be addressed. (Pr4.3.5a Performing) Students interpret decisions based on the students understanding of context and expressive intent. (Re7.1.5a Responding) The educator selects musical works that are influenced by their interests, experiences, understandings and purposes. (Re8.1.5a Responding) Students provide clues to their expressive intent. (Cn10.0.5a Connecting) Using background knowledge, they connect personal interests, experiences, ideas and knowledge to creating, performing and responding. (Cn11.0.5a Connecting) Students connect daily life with musicians’ performing, responding and connecting.

Content Objectives

The Enduring Understandings were extracted from the Delaware Visual Arts Standards adapted in 2016. Students develop personal interpretations that consider the creators’ intent. Educator or students choose music appropriate for a specific purpose or context. Reviews by students support interpretations of musical works that reflect the creators/performers expressive intent. Using previous knowledge, they synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make music. A relation is made between musical ideas and works with varied context to deepen understanding.

The Essential Questions were developed from the Delaware Visual Arts Standards adapted in 2016. Students will discuss and learn facts to answer questions. How do performers interpret musical works? How do individuals choose music to experience various rites of passage? How do we discern the musical creators and performers expressive intent? How do musicians make meaningful connections to creating, performing and responding? How do the other arts, disciplines, contexts and daily life influence our lives?

Music Strategies

Students need to use 4 specific musical strategies in Ethnomusicology: The Study of Culture and Music: Call/Response, improvisation, long-phrased melody and active listening are musical skills that will assist the students in better understanding folk songs. Of course other approaches such as collaborative learning, working in small groups and think/pair/share will be used. Fifth graders use these strategies in other classes. I want to incorporate those strategies as well as add musical methods when learning and analyzing the songs.

Call/ Response

In music, call /response is a technique where one musician sings or plays a phrase and a second player answers with an exact or improvisational response to the phrase either sung or played on an instrument. Call/response depicts an AB form using a solo/chorus, solo/solo or chorus/chorus. For example, students sit in a circle and one calls, “This Little Light of Mine”. All respond “I’m gonna let it shine”. Students can also individually take turns singing the call and response. Another example of call/response would be for me to sing “Whisper to me.” The class then sings “softly, softly.” An exact echo call/response would be for me to chant “We are the Eagles, the mighty, mighty Eagles” and the class then would echo, “We are the Eagles, the mighty, mighty Eagles.” One of the great elements of call and response is that it can be a powerful unifying tool. Those who respond learn to listen carefully to the leader, and in many cases, they gain a sense of belonging by completing or repeating the call. Sometimes, people use it as a way to get

collective ideas across to others.

Improvisation

In many cases, particularly in spirituals when call and response involves a choir or ensemble, the director or caller often improvises once he’s established the main melody. Changes usually get more intense and complex as the music progresses to the climax of the composition. The answer remains fairly unchanged, providing a framework to fit the harmonic, rhythmic and phrasing structure of the piece. The leader often sings with what he’s feeling in the moment. However, he has to use a basic knowledge of how the song goes or musical order to make everything line up and sound good. Students create chants and percussion accompaniments. They improvise simple melodies. Often students create movements to emphasize the meaning of the words. Improvisation strengthens and nurtures a child’s creativity.

Slow, long-phrased melody

Long phrased melody is more common than Call/response, improvisation or syncopation. Instead of short fragmented lines, long complete sentences were sung. Students who do not like to sing will probably not like this strategy. Choral singing best demonstrates long-phrased melody. Melodic contour can be analyzed for duration, upward and downward motion, repetition, imitation, sequence, steps, leaps and modulation. Examples of long phrases are in the song, “This Land Is Your Land.” Some phrases include “This Land is Your Land, This Land is My Land” An effective method to feel long phrases is to have students move their arms in long arcs to the musical expressions.

Active Listening

Active listening means listening to music with focus and intensity, without diverting attention to any other activity. Active listening can be any form of listening activity where the students are engaged in the music 100% of the time. Being engaged in the music means that, while they are listening to music, the students are committed and fully present. By listening, they are immersed in, captivated by, and preoccupied with the music. In other words, they are interacting with the music.

Classroom Activities

This unit is divided into three lessons discussing ethnomusicology and folk songs.

Lesson One – Dramatic Structure

How do performers interpret folk music through the arts?

This introductory lesson gives students the opportunity to learn about the folk songs. Focus will be on style, form, tempo, call and response, melody and rhythm, dynamics, tempo, timbre, and articulation of the folk song, “Miss Mary Mack.” A list of these

elements of music will be charted.

Anticipatory Set: KWL chart for rites of passage. Students fill in the K “Think I Know” and W “Think I’ll Learn.”

Directed Instruction: Introduce definitions for anthropology and ethnomusicology. Discussion will center on how folk song influence their lives.

Activity: Pair students to complete a Frayer model (definition, traits, examples and solutions) for rites of passage. Students listen to “Miss Mary Mack” while completing this activity. Then ask the group to share their answers and make revisions.

Assessment: Acrostic Summary: In groups, students complete an acrostic for the word ETHNOMUSICOLOGY using each letter to tell something the students think about a characteristic of the rites of folk songs.

Lesson Two – Improvisation

How do individuals create folk songs?

This lesson focuses on how musicians create folk songs using style, form, tempo, call and response, melody and rhythm, dynamics, tempo, timbre, and articulation as well as everyday life situations and experiences.

Anticipatory Set: Students activate “What’s Already in my Head?” They fill in a thought bubble with words or pictures to show an idea for a folk song. Students show ideas.

Directed Instruction: Students listen to facts about folk songs. They read the book and listen to the music of “This Land is Your Land” and “America the Beautiful”. They discuss in pairs how the music of “This Land is Your Land” could show the life of the composer and the elements of music.

Activity: Students in small groups discuss of the different geographical areas in the lyrics of “This Land is Your Land”. How do the words relate to style and form of a folk song?

Assessment: Learning Log: Students responds to the prompt on post-it notes the answer to “Something new I learned today is……”

Lesson Three: Active Listening

How can other artistic expressions be used to create, perform and respond to rites of passage?

This lesson focuses on creating music and improvising a scenario about a folk song.

Anticipatory Set: Have students read the lyrics and listen to “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ‘Round”.

Directed Instruction: Students sing the song of “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ‘Round” Words are grouped in small sections and the meanings are discussed. How can these words show form? What is the style of “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ‘Round” ?

Activity: Students will agree on a topic for a folk song. Students in groups will discuss style, form, tempo, call and response, melody and rhythm, dynamics, tempo, timbre, and articulation. They will come together to write the words and title of their folk song. Groups then will compose accompaniment using drums, shakers and rattles. Other groups will sing or chant the lyrics. They may also choose to write a Call and Response song and

improvise on instruments. Speaking or pantomime will be used to portray the story. Students discusses the various strategies used in creating a folk song. Then, students set up centers with various ideas for folks songs for the fourth graders to rotate through. They create their own melodies, lyrics and accompaniments with instruments.

Assessment: Have student Think, Pair and then Share their ideas on “I would like to learn more about…”

Final Assessment: Students will be able to perform their folk song at a school assembly. After the performances, the audience will discuss what the performance meant and how folk songs impact in their lives. Students will then discuss why the lyrics and music in these songs show awareness, management decision making and relationship skills in creating folk songs. Also, the class will give ideas for the L “I Learned” on the KWL chart. They then review the KWL chart.

Please check my website for Ethnomusicology: The Study of Culture and Music

for updates. http://cmhann.weebly.com

Bibliography

"Anthropology." Encyclopædia Britannica. https://safe1.britannica.com/registrations2/signup.do?partnerCode=EBOPHPSUB_LP_MDL_B.

"Art, Music of the Guarani Tribe." Study.com. https://study.com/academy/lesson.

"Ethnomusicology." Wikipedia. August 20, 2018. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethnomusicology. Definition of Ethnomusicology.

"Folk Music." Wikipedia. October 23, 2018. https://www.wikipedia.org/.

"Folk Music." Encyclopædia Britannica. https://safe1.britannica.com/registrations2/signup.do?partnerCode=EBOPHPSUB_LP_MDL_B.

Higgins, Kathleen Marie. The Music between Us: Is Music a Universal Language? University of Chicago Press, 2014. Folk music.

"Indigenous Music of North America." Wikipedia. October 23, 2018. https://www.wikipedia.org/.

Lomax, Alan. The Folk Songs of North America: In the Engl. Language. Dolphin Books, 1975.

Lomax, John A., and Alan Lomax. Cowboy Songs and Other Frontier Ballads: (16. Print.). 1966.

Nettl, Bruno. An Introduction to Folk Music in the United States. Wayne State University Press, 1962. Folk music.

Nettl, Bruno, and Helen Myers. Folk Music in the United States: An Introduction. Wayne State University Press, 1979. Folk music in the U.S.

Nettl, Bruno, Gerard Behague, and Valerie Woodring Goertzen. Folk and Traditional Music of the Western Continents. Prentice Hall, 1990. Folk music.

"Religions in Brazil." Wikipedia. October 23, 2018. https://www.wikipedia.org/.

"Sangamon." Wikipedia. October 23, 2018. https://www.wikipedia.org/.

Melanie Wallace. Social Studies: All Day, Every Day in the Early Childhood Classroom. Thomson Delmar Learning. Folk music lessons.

Anupartha. YouTube. January 17, 2008. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=viGpaR-U9Tc&itct=CAoQpDAYCSITCJy0gd-mn9oCFQbynAodgxgPAjIHcmVsYXRlZEjw7_r47cHXqLcB&app=desktop. Drumming folk music from India

Appendix A

Delaware Music Standards

In my unit, Ethnomusicology: The Study of Culture and Music, students will synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences about music in their lives. MU: Cn10.0.5a Students will connect and demonstrate how interests, knowledge, and skills relate to ethnomusicology when creating, performing, and responding to music. MU: Cr2.1.5a Students will create selected and developed musical ideas for improvisations, arrangements, or compositions to express intent, and explain connection to purpose and context. MU: Cr3.2.5a after creating folk song, students will present the final version of created music for others that demonstrate craftsmanship, and explain connection to expressive intent. MU: Pr4.1.5a Students will perform and demonstrate and explain how the selection of music to perform is influenced by personal interest in music, passage, knowledge, context, as well as their personal and others’ technical skill. MU: Pr4.3.5a Students will perform and demonstrate and explain how intent is conveyed through interpretive decisions and expressive qualities (such as dynamics, tempo, timbre, and articulation/style). MU: Re7.1.5a Students will respond, demonstrate and explain,

citing evidence, how selected music connects to, and is influenced by specific interests, experiences, purposes or contracts. They will discuss how the folk music helps convey a message.

Delaware History Standards

In my unit, Ethnomusicology: the Study of Culture and Music, (H.1) Students will employ chronological concepts in analyzing historical phenomena. When studying folk songs, (H.1.4-5a) students will study historical events in Africa and early North American music within a given time-frame in order to create a chronology and identify related cause-and-effect factors. (H.2) Students will gather, examine, and analyze historical data. (H.2.4-5a) Students will draw historical conclusions and construct historical accounts from primary and secondary source materials. (H.2.4-5b) Students will examine historical materials relating to particular regions such as deserts and wetlands, society, or theme; chronologically arrange them, and analyze change over time. They will then create a folk song.

Delaware Theatre Standards

In my unit, Ethnomusicology: The Study of Culture and Music, students will generate, organize, develop, refine, analyze and interpret ideas about the ethnomusicology using theatre arts. TH: Cr1.1.5 Students will create and identify physical qualities that might reveal a character’s inner traits about a folk song in the imagined world of a drama/theatre work. TH: Cr2-3. Students will create and compare ideas with peers about the folk songs and make selections using improvisation, tableau, puppetry or pantomime that will enhance and deepen group drama/theatre work. TH: Cr3.1.5 Students will create, revise and improve an improvised or scripted drama/theatre work through repetition and self-review. TH: Pr4.1.5 Students will perform and use physical choices to create meaning in a drama/theatre work such as pantomime. TH: Pr5.1.5 Students will perform and demonstrate the use of technical elements in a drama/theatre work. TH: Pr6.1.5 Students will perform and present drama/theatre work informally to a school audience of peers. TH: Re7.1.5 Students will respond by explaining personal reactions to artistic choices made in a drama/theatre work through participation and observation.

Notes