Curated OER
The Blues, B.B. King, Muddy Waters
B.B. King and Muddy Waters are two of the most famous blues performers of all time. In this music instructional activity, middle schoolers study the early careers and lasting musical contributions of both artists, each of whom carried...
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Get Your Mojo Workin': Part 1 Writing Your Very Own Blues Tune!
Upper graders listen to the blues. They discuss blues scale, read a description of the blues, and work together to write an original piece. A lesson like this ties into American history and African-American musical contributions very...
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The History of the "Blues"
Take a quick tour through the history of Blues. Elementary learners will find this presentation easy to understand and full of interesting information. There are web links that direct viewers to additional information but none that...
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Learning the Blues
Students take a virtual field trip to Memphis, Tennessee in their study of the blues, its characterisitics, founding fathers, and histororical influence on modern music. They compose blues lyrics that reflect present-day attitudes and...
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Eric Clapton Crossroads Guitar Festival Chicago - Chicago Blues
Watching Great Performances’ Eric Clapton Crossroads Guitar Festival Chicago launches an investigation into and discussion of how the electric guitar and guitarists have changed the sound of the blues over time. An engaging way to...
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Langston Hughes and the Blues
Students explore the connections between Langson Hughes and blues music. In this African American culture lesson, students compare and contrast blues music with poetry and short stories by Langston Hughes.
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Twelve-Bar Blues
Students examine blues music. In this music genres lesson, students discover details about the history of the musical genre and compositional techniques. Students then compose melodies of their own with 12-bar blues chord progression.
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A Step-to-Step Guide to Playing the 12 Bar-Blues
In this playing the 12 bar blues music worksheet, students follow 4 steps outlined to introduce the 12 bar blues to them and then respond to 3 short answer questions.
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I've Got the Blues!
Students identify the musical form of the 12-bar blues. They identify a problem from the "Farming in the 1940's" section and compose a 12-bar blues song. make comparisons between problems of the 1940's and today.
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American Music Styles: Blues - Lesson 2
Students describe some of the distinguishing characteristics of blues music. They compare and analyze two versions of the same 12-bar blues song. They read and identify notation symbols for rhythm and tempo.
Curated OER
Mississippi Delta Blues Moves: Second in a Series of Three with Barb Hoffman and Steve Hoskins, MGM
Students complete a graphic organizer reviewing Barb Hoffman's prior lesson," Slave Songs (1840-1876)" as well as listen to and discuss Delta Blues music samples. Students research one Delta Blues singer and write a "color coded"...