Final Goodbye
Dear Doc, I did not know what to expect from this class. This semester was very challenging for me and I just wanted to say that this class definitely lifted my spirits with all of the music that I was exposed to. I appreciate your enthusiasm while teaching the class and would also like to […]
We Want the Funk
Funk has always been a very interesting word to describe a genre of music to me. The word itself makes me want to scrunch my nose up and make a sour face. Ironically, this facial expression is seen a lot when listening to Funk music. As I grew older, the word “funk” adequately describes the […]
A Family Affair: Ragtime
The origin of ragtime comes from the African American culture and music derived from New Orleans. This genre was stemmed from those involved in the secular, classical, and spiritual music of the 19th century and transformed into a complex style that had no focus on actual lyrics or singing. Ragtime grew in popularity and by the […]
A Classic
During the beginning stages of classical music in the African American culture, artists like Newport Gardner would get their influences from the White Europeans who were immigrants before Emancipation existed. After Emancipation, there was an increase in the exposure of African American artists and composers which prompted black colleges and universities to introduce trained professors to […]
Folk Music
My take on Folk Music, specifically in the African culture, I used to think about a black man holding a banjo and singing what I would considered American Folk. After reading the chapter on Secular Folk Music, I discovered that when the enslaved Africans were brought here against their will, their culture was stripped from […]
