The blues is like a sonic melting pot, incorporating a variety of cultural and musical influences from a variety of time periods. Spirituals, a type of song that developed from Protestant hymns in the late 18th century, served multiple functions for enslaved Africans in the American South, related to worship, communication, and community-building. Another tradition that influenced the development of certain kinds of blues music was a type of military music called fife and drum. In this lesson, students will actively engage with audio and video recordings that illustrate how the blending of musical characteristics and performance styles shaped the rhythmic and harmonic frameworks within which blues music developed.

Lesson Paths & Learning Objectives

1. Before the Blues: Spirituals

   • Identify some common characteristics of spirituals.
   • Explain how spirituals influenced the development of the blues.
   • 20+ minutes

2. Combining Influences: Fife and Drum

   • Explain the historical context of the Fife and Drums Corps.
   • Describe how and why the Fife and Drum Blues tradition developed.
   • Identify similarities and differences between traditional Fife and Drums Corps and the Fife and Drum Blues.
   • 20+ minutes

3. Fife and Drum: A New Generation

   • Perform rhythmic and melodic patterns commonly used in the fife and drum blues tradition on instruments.
   • Demonstrate understanding of the minor pentatonic scale through performance.
   • 30+ minutes