Music LiberationProject: 
A Standards Based Learning Guide for Grades 9-12©

Developed by Art Sanctuary and Kimmel Center for Performing Arts.


      Lesson One: The Sound of The Drum

“He who cannot dance will say: "The drum is bad.” 
                                                --African Proverb

“I always resented the role of a drummer as nothing more than a subservient figure.” Max Roach

Estimated Length of Lesson: Two 45 minute class sessions/periods

# of Participants: 20-25 students

National Standards Addressed:

Addresses the National Social Studies Curriculum Thematic Strand on Culture and Time, Continuity and Change:

·      Framing Question #1 (Thematic Strand; Culture) How did African culture initially present itself in the African’s interaction with Europeans?

·      How has the culture of West Africa influence music in the United States?

·      Framing Question #2 (Thematic Strand; Time, Continuity and Change) How do we learn of the past, what indicators inform us of another time?

Learning Community Objectives:

Upon completion of Lesson #1, students will be able to:   

·  Construct a meaning from the term “Middle Passage, and “Door of No Return.”

·  Answer framing/focus questions

·  Create a journal describing a first person experience of their own “Door of No Return.”

·  Identify tools used by Africans to survive and resist the ordeal of enslavement.

Discussion or Focus Question(s):

·  How did West Africans use the djembe or drum in their culture?

·  Why was the drum considered dangerous to American enslavers?

·  What innovations did the Africans employ to continue their plan of resistance and survival?

·  How has the djembe or the drum impacted American music?

Supplies/Materials:

·  Plastic spoons

·  Pens/pencils

·  Looseleaf paper or notebook

·  Laptop with screen projector

·  Composition Notebook (for Journaling)

Learning Documents/Resources:

·  PBS Link of the Middle Passage: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part1/1p277.html

·  Youtube Link of The Door of No Return: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mX3AVaZB9Rg

·  Narratives of Enslaved African (Enclosed).     

·  PBS Link of the Stono Rebellion: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part1/1p284.html

·  Web Link of a Hambone (Patting Juba) Apprenticeship: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BCzIjY-taY

·  Film: Feel Like Going Home; A musical journey in search of the origin of the blues, Directed by Martin Scorsese.

Lesson Narrative:

       The enslavement of Africans which began in the middle of the 15th century through their interaction in trade with the Portuguese, would eventually bring the African to North America, and with them came their cultural traditions.  Through the human exchange with Europeans, the Africans provided a great gift to the outpost of the emerging Western nation, the gift of “ the djembe.”  (Pronounced Jem-bay; d is silent)

The drum is known as the djembe in West African and has great cultural significance.  The Djembe is the drum of the Mandinka people, and its origins dates back to the great Mali Empire of the 12th century. The djembe is also known as djenbe, jembe, sanbanyi, jymbe or yembe.    

Upon their settlement in what Africans described as “Maafa” (a great disaster, or African holocaust).  Africans used their drum much in the same form used in their homeland, as a means of communication, for ceremonies and for entertainment.  For its former use, Europeans began to see the drum as a danger to their budding institution and banned its practice by those Enslaved Africans. 

Utilizing their sense of creativity or what Maulana Karenga describes as “Kuumba,” the Africans morph their drum into less threatening instruments, such as the “bango,”  which became a central instrument for the American genre of folk music. 

       The Africans also used their own body as an instrument to create “Hambone, or Patting Juba” a style of body percussion also known as “slapjazz”, which served as a substitute for drums, as it served a rhythmic function for music. To play hambone, a person uses his or her hands to hit the chest and thighs to create different slapping sounds. Playing household objects also became necessary. Just as instruments were made in Africa from natural materials that were available to people when they were free, enslaved Africans used the resources available to them in their environments. An example of this is the playing of spoons, another type of body percussion.

Lesson Procedure for Class Session/Period #1:

Key Terms:

1.    The Middle Passage –refers to the “Triangular trade” which involved Europe and North America (The New World), with Africa at the center or in the middle.

2.    Djembe – the meaning for drum in many African nations

3.    Maafa –a swahilli term for disaster or great tragedy, used to describe the African Holocaust also known as enslavement or colonialism, which lasted for more than 500 years.

4.    Kuumba – a swahilli term which means creativity

5.    Hambone (Juba Dance; Giouba Haiti) a style of dance that involves stomping, patting or slapping the arms, legs, chest and cheeks.

6.    The Door of No Return-refers specifically to “Goree Island,”(and symbolically to different spaces which served as the last space of familiarity for Africans before being sent to foreign spaces for exploitation)  a holding center for Africans before being shipped to other locales for enslavement.

7.    Diaspora – means to disburse, in reference to people of African descent it is used to describe those (Carribean, South America, North America etc,) of African descent no longer living on the continent of Africa

8.    African homeland-refers to the continent of Africa

9.    Enslavement-used to describe the act brought upon African people, as opposed to referring to African people as “slaves” which connotes an acceptance of the status.

10.  Exploitation –the act of using something or someone in a cruel and/or unjust manner.

Resources for use on Class Period/Session 1:

·       PBS Link of the Middle Passage: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part1/1p277.html

·      Youtube Link of The Door of No Return: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mX3AVaZB9Rg

·      Web Link of a Hambone (Patting Juba) Apprenticeship: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BCzIjY-taY

·      Journal Notebook

 

 Lesson Procedure for Class Period/Session #1:

Introduction (15 minutes) Question: How did the culture of West Africa influence the music in the United States?  What would have been their (people of West Africa and the people occupying the United States) first opportunity to influence each other’s culture? Who knows what is referred to in the term “middle passage?”

During this period of introduction; the teacher will use framing questions as well  as additional questions to illicit background knowledge about the subject from students.

Activity 1 (Middle Passage Narrative on PBS Website, 10 minutes): After the Q&A, Teachers should put up the narrative of the Middle Passage on screen for students to view to gauge the accuracy of their background knowledge, and have students read aloud sections of the passage (This is a great interdisciplinary lesson for both English/Social Studies Teachers).  

Activity 2 (Door of No Return, 10 minutes): As students have discussed and read about the meaning of the “Middle Passage,” The Teacher should pose additional questions on the “Door of No Return.”  Questions: (Teacher) Know that you have a clearer understanding of what the “middle passage” represents, let’s think about the journey of Africans from another viewpoint.  (Introduce the term djembe) Who is familiar with the term djembe (Jem-bay) and its use? Djembe is a swahilli word for drum.  For what purposes did Africans use the djembe or drum?  Explain to students that the drum was used to signal people in the village of the impending threat of the Europeans who were coming to take them for enslavement.  So failure to hear the drum or pay attention to the sounding of the drum may have meant that you were caught, and lose forever to your family, brought to what is referred to as the “Door of No Return.”

Activity 3 (You tube video of the Door of No Return, 10 minutes/Last Classroom Activity of Day One):

Extended Lesson; Teachers should assign a 1st person essay for homework, having students describe what it would be like to be captured and taken to a place (Door of No Return) where you are assured that you will never see your family/community again.

Extended Activity; Following the homework assignment, Teachers should provide spoons for the students to illustrate how Africans used spoons to create “Hambone, or Patting Juba,” as a result of not having access to the drum and/or of the drum being banned due to African resistance to enslavement.  The Teacher should also show the youtube video of the “Patting Juba apprenticeship” listed under the learning documents/resources for Lesson #1.

Assessment/Evaluation; Teachers should use an exit ticket and the concept chart to evaluate whether students understood and made appropriate connections to lesson one, and also the homework assignment, which should provide some clarity as to the level of the students understanding of the lessons intent.

                       Middle Passage Exit Ticket

Circle Correct Answer

1. The middle passage was the middle leg of the trade triangle.  True/False
2. Enslaved Africans were viewed as cargo by the traders.          True/False
3. Enslaved Africans who became ill or sick were taken to the ship's doctor. True/False

4. Many enslaved Africans developed sores where the chains rubbed their flesh. True/False
5. Enslaved Africans were well fed on board the ship. True/False
6. Those enslaved who did not do as they were told were punished. True/False
7.The middle passage was a journey of illness, disease and death for the enslaved. True/False

Bibliography

Let Nobody Turn Us Around, Marable, M. 2000. Rowman & Littlefield Publishing

Once a Slave: the Slave’s View of Slavery, Feldstein, S. 1971. William Morrow Publishing

Lessons In Africana Studies, Carr, King, D., King, J. Watts, D, 2004. School District of Philadelphia.

 

SOCIAL STUDIES CONCEPT CHART WITH NATIONAL SOCIAL STUDIES STANDARDS(NSS) AND FRAMING/FOCUS QUESTIONS

 

THEMATIC STRANDS (NSS)

FRAMING QUESTION

FOCUS QUESTION

LESSON OBJECTIVE

LEARNING COMMUNITY OBJECTIVE

Culture

How has the culture of West Africa (or those West African enslaved Africans) influenced American culture?

What impact has the djembe, or the drum had on American music?

Students will be able to identify central cultural material brought to the Americas by the African, (specifically the sound of the drum) and use the cultural material to track the movement of the African across time/events.

Teachers/Students/Parents will learn:

The history of the African drum (djembe) and its influence in American music.

The impact of African culture on all of the Americas.

The genius of those enslaved Africans in their use of instrument for freedom and entertainment.

Time, Continuity & Change

How do we learn about the past? What are the indicators informing us of another time?

Why was the sound of a drum viewed as a danger for European enslavers?   How were the Africans able to re-create the sound without objections from the enslavers?

Students will be able to discern different sounds of  the percussion to understand how Africans recreated the sound without the drum.

Students/Teachers/Parents will learn;

How the percussive sound continued without using the drum.

People, Places & Environments

Why are the musical sounds similar in Cuba as they are in the United States?

What is a “backbeat,” and why does it sound the same in Cuba as it does in African/African-American music?

Why does the theme to “I love Lucy” have a backbeat?

Students will be able to chart the movement of the African from the

Caribbean to the Americas through their shared sound of the drum.

Students/Teachers/Parents

Will learn;

Of the connectedness between those called “Latin People or Caribbean People,” and those of Africans in the Americas.

Individual Development & Identity

How do individuals grow and change physically, emotionally and intellectually?

How do contemporary Americans view Jazz and the contributions of the art form by those of African descent?

Students will be able to identify the contemporary sentiment about Jazz, and the contributions of African-Americans to the form, as well as compare the attitudes of Jazz during the time of its inception and those of the framers of the sound.

Students/Teachers/Parents will learn;

About the evolution of attitudes/values towards the art form known as “Jazz,” and its founders.

Individuals, Groups & Institutions

How do institutions change?

How did the African’s gift of the sound of the drum, and music overall change the institutions that oppressed them?

What is my role in institutional change?

Students will be able to identify strategies that have influenced the evolution of institutions in the world through narrative and discussions.

Students/Teachers/Parents will learn;

How individuals like Paul Robeson, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Max Roache, Oscar Brown Jr., Hannibal Lokumbe and others used their talents to reshape the institutions that were used to oppress their people.”

Power, Authority & Governance

Under what circumstances is the exercise of political power legitimate?

Was Senator McCarthy use of political power in the House of Un-American Activities Committee a legitimate use of power?  Was the HUAAC committee correct in attempting to silence Paul Robeson and singers such as Harry Belafonte about their political views?

Students will be able to compare and contrast the arguments of patriots in different eras in their desire to free themselves from what they viewed as an illegitimate sovereign?

Students/Teachers/Parents will learn;

How the political systems have been used to silence/promote individuals or groups with unpopular/popular political views.

Production, Distribution & Consumption

What is the relationship between the production and consumption for a community?

Why has so many early Blues singers died/Jazz/R&B singers died in poverty?

Students will be able to analyze and infer the effect on a community when the distribution of product is owned through outside sources (i.e. record labels).

Stud Students/Teachers/Parents will learn;

The plight of creativity during the period of “Jim Crow,” for African-American entertainers.

Global Connections

How the sound that originated with the African drum is being heard around the world

How the internet has changed our listening habits and music taste.

Students will be able to identify the connection between the exponential growth of the internet and the popularity of the African sound throughout the world.

Students/Teachers/Parents will learn;

How central the internet has become to increasing the knowledge of African musical forms throughout the world.

Civic Ideals & Practices

What is the balance between rights and responsibilities?

What responsibilities does the artist have to create music that reflects the culture of the community?

Students will be able to analyze and the current arguments around the criticism of hip-hop as an art form that has lost its way, and compare the argument to previous arguments relating to artist from unpopular groups/communities.

Students/Teachers/Parents will learn;

About the current arguments relating to “Hip Hop,” and how the arguments have a historical link to arguments/criticism wrote about Jazz/Blues and R&B that have roots in race history.

A Format of Lessons In Can You Hear The Ancestors Crying:

Title: Title of lesson

Estimated Length of Lesson: Number of class periods necessary to cover lesson

Abstract: Summary of lesson, including overview of subject and basic organization of lesson

Concept Organizer: Reproduction of the Conceptual Chart with select examples under each category.

National Social Studies Standards: Alignment of lesson with National Social Studies Standards

Learning Community Objectives: General statement of what students should know and be able to do after completing the lesson

Framing Question(s): Questions that shape or frame the overall discussion of the topic

Focus Questions: Questions drawn from material explicitly covered in each lesson

Further (Extended Learning) Questions: Questions encouraging further students research based on subject covered in each lesson

Key Terms: Vocabulary drawn from lesson narrative

Background Knowledge (Lesson Narrative): Scholarly essay and integrated lesson materials (charts, tables)

Learning Documents: Inventory of support materials included in packet for each specific lesson (audio/visuals, website addresses, etc.)

Best Practices: Suggested classroom strategies for answering focus and further questions

Bibliography: Selected list of materials from which lessons were developed and for further research.

About the Author, John King:

John King is an educator and scholar committed to deepening our understanding of African and African American studies at the K-12 and college level. He is a Temple University Alumnus with a BA in African American Studies and a Masters in Education. In 2003, he published "The Breeding Concept" which details the interplay of the Nation of Islam and the Black Mafia, and was featured on Black Entertainment Televisions "American Gangster" . Mr. King co-authored segments of the African American history curriculum for the School District of Philadelphia this later became a mandatory course for all public high school students. He founded the Black Cinema Art Gallery, which featured Original Film Posters of Classical Black Cinema and served to educate patrons on Black film. In 2006, he created and hosted a Black film series in conjunction with the "Look Again" exhibit of Africans in America for the Rosenbach Museum. He currently teaches a course tittles "Classical Black Cinema" for Villanova University Honors department and "Blacks in Cinema" at Temple University. Mr. King can be contacted at johnking@temple.edu. 

Note:

The lessons in this activity guide may be reproduced for educational purposes only. All web-related information and academic resources were retrieved from September 2011 to October 2011. to receive free PDF copies of this guide contact Program Manager Biany Pérez at bperez@artsanctuary.com.