This site provides audio clips, photos, and biographical information of this legendary composer and performer. A match game teaches and tests your knowledge of Ellington.

The First World War had a crippling effect on any notions of positivity in the artists, writers, and intellectuals of that time and they became known as the Lost Generation. This page discusses this group of people, the emergence of jazz...

This introduction to the life and writing of Langston Hughes profiles the poet who emerged with the Harlem Renaissance to earn "a place amongst the greatest poets America has ever produced."

This site provides a biography of Langston Hughes, followed by several of his poems (some complete with audio clips) and a bibliography of his more influential works.

CommonLit.org is a wonderful resource to use in a Language Arts classroom. Each story or article is accompanied by guided reading questions, assessment questions, and discussion questions. In addition, students can click on words to see...

Billie Holiday is one of the most well-known blues singers of all time. Visit this Library of Congress site for more about her early years and some great photographs.

Read this comprehensive look at the Roaring Twenties, or Jazz Age. Read about Prohibition and its ramifications, women's gains, entertainment, and literature. Also find out about the resurgence of racial unrest and violence. A very good...

Examine the life and historical contributions of renown jazz vocalist and Pennsylvania native, Billie Holiday in this concise biography.

A short story and a painting illustrating African American perceptions of Northern cities. Rudolph Fisher's short story "The City of Refuge" and William H. Johnson's painting Moon over Harlem offer insight into life within the black...

Describe the life of Duke Ellington and his contributions to the field of jazz, write an original poem using a variety of popular vocabulary from the 1920's and respond to Ellington's composition "Mood Indigo" by creating a painting.

This resource focuses on the works of famous African-American author, Langston Hughes.

This resource presents a brief biography about jazz pianist and composer Fats Waller. Also featured in this resource are a couple of audio clips of his music.

Brief biography of the famous American Jazz composer, pianist, and band leader, Duke Ellington (1899-1974 CE). The site describes "Duke's" personal and professional life.

A very brief overview of the decade between the end of World War I and the Great Depression.

This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Benny Carter, an American jazz musician, an original and influential alto saxophonist, who was also a masterly composer and arranger and an important bandleader, trumpeter, and clarinetist.

Although brief, this discussion of the clash of cultures in the 1920s covers all the reasons for cultural discordance.

Read about composer William Grant Still in this resource. This brief biography highlights the career of this African American composer.