Early African Amer Mus/Nation

Catalog description

Early African American Musics and Conceptions of Nation (3) This course explores early African American musics, like royal court music traditions of African kingdoms/empires, the eighteenth and nineteenth century Pinkster and Johnkannu music, dance, and masquerade traditions, spirituals, ring shouts, ballads and early blues that narrate the development of African American national identity during the Antebellum and Reconstruction periods, from the 1600s to the early 1900s. Students engage in this exciting learning journey through readings, film, sound recordings, oral history and archival sources like the WPA Slave Narratives, ethnomusicological and Africana Studies scholarship and field trips to the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture and the Library of Congress. AU Core Habits of Mind: Socio-Historical Inquiry. Note: No prior musical experience or Africana studies coursework required.