Garrett Moler

Music does not change from simple to complex Native American music was once a way to communicate

with the spiritual realm and bringing aid of supernatural power

Music is a fundamental part of native American culture and can be seen in almost everything they do

Songs from one region are very different from songs with another region

The music is very different than the Europeans which led them to believe it was absent of structure and melody

Indian music is not divided by genre but rather is accepted by what part in your life it plays

Children were often taught through music with a repeated theme in songs

In the Indian world songs are a tribes or single persons property

As property songs can be given as gifts and the right to use a song may be obtained by giving gifts to the owner

Songs rarely have titles in native American music In Indian culture there are no professional artists or

musicians they weave art and music in their lives so well these are unnecessary

The ability of thinking of songs and bringing them to the people was seen as a spiritual gift rather than artistic

Use of harmony or polyphony is rare in native American music

Words in music are much less important than the actual music

Percussion instruments are the most common type in native American music

Wind instruments are also used in native American music with the most common being the flute

When Indian songs are written in European time signature they change time almost every measure

In the dark ages European music consisted of chants of religious purpose

As the renaissance began the idea of harmony in Europe was developed

The jump from chants to advanced polyphonies was a giant leap for music of the era

Music became a structure of notes based on arithmetic proportion

Composers such as Dowland, Murray, and Tomkins produced wonderful melodies and poetry to accompany them

A common theme of music in the 1500s was exploration of form

The major chord as the basis for music was also developed in this era

From 1600-1750 music went into a baroque era Baroque literally translates to bizarre Italy was the center of these musical movements Introduced more complicated melodies and

polyphonies Music now ran on the same basis major and minor

scales Great composers such as bach wrote in the baroque

style The new dominance of melody within harmony also

led to many new changes The keyboard was extended in both directions and

the production of stringed instruments rapidly increased

Not until the 18th century did the classical music era begin

Like Indian music it relied heavily on percussion instruments Music was used in a religious sense and was often accompanied by

dancing The use of the voice and chanting is widely used in west African music Along with percussion instruments string and wind instruments are

used Popular among traditional south African music is the harp such as the

kola Wind instruments such as flutes are used for melody Kosikas, rainsticks, bells, and whistles were all used to add to the

music Africans told childhood stories and lullabies in musical form like the

Indians did Music was an integral part to the west Africans culture West African music is slightly different than that of other areas in

Africa Wandering musicians and praise singers were found throughout west

Africa African music eventually evolved in the Americas and gave us the

popular styles of jazz and the blues

The revolution inspired only a handful of new musical compositions

Jame’s Fulds book of world famous music only lists three songs to come from the revolutionary period British Grenadiers God Save the King Yankee Doodle

Americans often changed the verses of well known music to fit their own lyrics and not composing their own music

Music of the time The music of the time that was considered “popular” is difficult to

the twenty first century listener to understand Unlike music of today music in eighteenth century America was

not written for concert performance Concert music of the time had dynamics and was meant to make

a paying audience feel a certain way Music of the revolution was more functional than artistic

William Billings (1746-1800) The New England Psalm Singer in 1770 was the first full collection

of American music written by Billings Contained 126 pieces Billings was a Boston Tanner who cared about music of the period Billings s aw psalmody as an art and himself as an artist and was one of the

first Americans to do so American Psalmody Took on a different style than British psalmody Most European music and Billings of the time was accompanied

with a piano piece that set order and governess to the piece Francis Hopkinson

The only native born American musician in the colonies that we know of before the revolution who can be called a composer of secular music

Began to study harpsichord at age 17 Could play popular European music of the time but wrote few pieces himself Hopkinson attained a level of skill not matched by the Americans of his

generation The need to master complex tonal harmony and attain keyboard skill made

very few native born Americans capable of writing secular music comparable to their European counterparts

“Songsters” Music of the time relied on text and tunes independent from one

another Songsters were books of the time with printed lyrics and the

name of a melody to which they were sung too Most Americans knew popular melodies of British theatre and

Psalmody tunes Words would simply be replaced and put into the same melody

The idea of musical creativity barely existed in the colonies Instruments and instrumental music Most instrumental music was for solo instruments Popular instruments in the colonies’

Violin Fife Flute

No instrumental tutors existed in the colonies at the time To play the instruments you had to be essentially self taught

Military Field Music: The United States European military instruments were brought

to the new world and used very similarly As militias formed in towns drummers played

an important role of summoning men to take up arms in rural areas

Revolutionary War drummers and fifers were often used to signal to the soldiers when to fire

Drums Were an important part to the military unit Often decorated with emblems signifying a company

Ballads, operas, and musical evenings in the home were frequent in the principal cities from 1750 on

Music in New England At first the puritans allowed no musical instruments Only allowed music that was to praise god

Quakers advised members not to dance or listen to music

In New York and the South music division was more welcome and accepted

To our knowledge there were no native born composers until Francis Hopkinson (1737-1791)

After the appearance of these three more native composers appeared but none did something that could be considered great

Moravian Colony Settled in 1741 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Enjoyed music unknown to the rest of America Germans who brought their love of music with them Their orchestras and choruses reproduced music worthy of the

masters When Washington visited Bethlehem in 1782 he was serenaded by the

trombone choir Sadly their culture had little effect on the rest of America

After the revolution Foreign musicians came to our shores Especially during the time of the French revolution they came in mass

quantity These immigrants took our musical life in their hands They stifled attempts at native music because the more experienced

European musicians took American’s spots in concerts Most of these musicians were English, French and German

The first public concert in America was held in Boston It was held in 1731 when the new England ban of secular music was beginning to be

lowered Named a “Concert of Music on sundry Instruments” Was held in the “great room” at Mr. Pelhams

by 1754 there was a concert hall at the corner of Hanover and Court Streets After Boston Charleston South Carolina was the next city to see a concert

venue built Then came New York

1736 there was advertised a "Consort of Musick, Vocal and Instrumental for the benefit of Mr. Pachelbel, the Harpsichord Part performed by Himself

Philadelphia heard its first advertised concert in 1757 John Palma offered an affair "at the Assembly Room in Lodge Alley", January

25th

It seems there were concerts before this one in Philadelphia that weren’t on record Philadelphia’s population, besides the Quakers were fond of entertainment Dancing was taught in boarding schools as early as 1728

During the interval of the revolution congress passed a resolution to discourage “every species of extravagance and dissipation” in 1774

Concerts were offered regularly in the principal cities after the revolution

Many pieces of the time have been lost Handel, Haydn, and, in the closing years of

the century, Mozart, were well represented in concerts of the era

the overtures of the London Bach - Johann Christian (son of Johann Sebastian), were played often

typical programs of the period offered a variety of compositions

Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713) - An Italian composer and violinist who exercised wide influence on contemporaries. Born in Italy a generation before Bach he studied in Bologna and formed a distinguished musical career. He can be seen as a teacher, violinist, and composer

  John Dunstaple (1390-1453) – An English

composer of polyphonic music in the renaissance era. Unlike many composers of the time he was not a cleric.

 

James Lyon(1735-1794)- Compiled Urania, a large collection of sacred music, and published it in 1761. James Lyon was one of the First American musicians. Urania is far larger than any previous American music compilation. James Lyon helped develop American Psalmody, one of the first styles of music manipulated in America.

John Arnold(1741-1777)- Wrote Compleat Psalmodist which dealt with distinguishing musical intervals as consonant or dissonant. Americans took his work literally and the hierarchical ordering of harmonies was lost. This peeled away important layers of British tradition and caused Americans to write music in their own unique style.

Francis Hopkinson (1737-1791)-America’s first native composer

William Billings (1746-1800)-writer of the New England Psalm singer and one of the first original American composers

Baroque- musical period following the renaissance from 1600-1750

Kola- traditional West African harp Harmony- a simultaneous combination of

notes Polyphony- a piece utilizing many styles

of sound Melody- musical sound in agreeable

succession

Psalmody- popular pre-revolution music which merged music and psalms of the bible

Songsters- books in the 18th century that took popular melodies and applied different lyrics to them

Consonant- musical intervals deemed acceptable in traditional British musical structure

Dissonant- Musical intervals deemed unacceptable in traditional British musical verse and structure

Harpsichord- musical instrument played by means of a keyboard that produces a sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed

Sonata- a composition of two or more instruments, typically in three or four movements

Suite- an ordered series of instrumental dances generally in the same key

Minuet- a slow dance in triple meter, popular in the 17th and 18th centuries

Overture- musical prelude to an opera, etc.

Finale- the last piece of an opera etc.

1. Why were the Europeans so perplexed by Native American music? A. It lacked structure and melody

B. It possessed complex polyphonyC. The use of many instruments led them to misinterpret the musicD. Europeans possessed little musical knowledge

2.How were West African and Native American music similar?A. They used string instrumentsB. They used complex lyricsC. Both used many percussion instrumentsD. West African and Native American music was not similar

3. Name one traditional West African instrumentA. GuitarB. The rattleC. The violinD. The kola

4. In Native American culture who owned music?A. The chiefB. The person who paid the musicianC. The child of the musicianD. The tribe or inventor of the song

5. When was the Baroque era?A. 1300-1400B. 1400-1500C. 1500-1600D. 1600-1750

6. How were West African and Native American music different?A. One used string instruments more than the otherB. The use of drums was only applied in West African musicC. Only native American music used the fluteD. West African music and Native American music was similar in every way

7. What often accompanied traditional West Africa Music?A. PoetryB. Complex lyricsC. DanceD. A celebration

8. In Europe when did music become structured based on arithmetic proportion?A. In the medieval eraB. During the renaissanceC. The period between the renaissance and baroque eraD. The classical era

9. In what ways did music affect Native American life?A. ReligionB. AgricultureC. Teaching childrenD. All of the above

10. What styles emerged from West African music in the Americas?A. ClassicalB. Jazz C. BluesD. Both B and C

 

1. A 2. C 3. D 4. D 5. D 6. C 7. C 8. C 9. D 10. D

1. Music of the RevolutionA. Produced prolific creativity and new composersB. Did not veer away from British music at allC. Produced a handful of original American tunesD. Music was not important to the lives of Americans at the time

2. Three original revolutionary songs includeA. British Grenadiers B. God Save the KingC. Yankee DoodleD. All of the above

3. Music of the pre- revolutionary time period was written toA. Serve as functionalB. Be listened to C. Be performed at a concertD. Music was not present in America at the time

4. How was music passed on during this time period?A. Oral tradition B. Few printed booksC. Sheet musicD. Both A and B

5. William Billings WroteA. Symphony 40 in B minorB. The New England Psalm SingerC. Handbook for the Modern American Psalmody ComposerD. Compilation of Modern American music

6. American PsalmodyA. Was identical to that of British psalmodyB. Possessed random note structureC. Was taken from British psalmody but possessed different qualitiesD. Was all written to be played on a keyboard

7. The only native born American musician in the colonies that we know of before the revolution who can be called a composer of secular music was?A. William BillingsB. James LyonC. John Arnold D. Francis Hopkinson

8. Songsters applied the use of the same structure with different lyricsA. MelodicB. NoteC. TimeD. Instrumental

9. A popular musical instrument of the time wasA. ViolinB. Fife C. FluteD. All of the above

10. Each regiment in the British and American Army possessedA. Two fifers and two drummersB. 200 soldiersC. Only one drummerD. An officer for every 10 soldiers

1. C2. D3. A4. D5. B6. C7. D8. A9. D10. A

1. Military drummers were used toA. Call soldiers to armsB. Signal troops to fireC. Amuse soldiersD. Both A and B

2. The following were popular in the home from 1750 onA. BalladsB. OperasC. Musical eveningD. All of the above

3. QuakersA. Supported musical creativityB. Had a wide variety of composersC. Did not support their followers listening to musicD. Never heard music

4. The first manuscript of Hopkinson’s bears the dateA. 1756B. 1759C. 1761D. 1764

5. The Moravian colony was made up ofA. EnglishB. GermansC. FrenchD. Spanish

6. After the revolutionA. Musical creativity went stagnantB. Many European composers came to AmericaC. American composers were greatly influentialD. Continental congressed banned concerts for 3 years

7. The first public American concert was held inA. Philadelphia B. New YorkC. BostonD. Charleston

8. The first public concert was held in the yearA. 1731B. 1733C. 1735D. 1737

9. During the interval of the revolution continental congress passed a lawA. Encouraging people to write musicB. Discouraging dance and musicC. Banning all music in the coloniesD. that destroyed all instruments in the colonies

10. A composer popular in concerts of the timeA. HandelB. HaydnC. MozartD. All of the above

1. D2. D3. C4. B5. B6. B7. A8. A9. B10. D

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Native american music. (2000). Retrieved from http://nativeamericancultures.com/music.htm

Charry, E. (n.d.). West african music. Retrieved from http://echarry.web.wesleyan.edu/Afmus.html