John F. Kennedy Center
The Kennedy Center: Lift Every Voice and Sing
Explore and analyze "Lift Every Voice and Sing" , a poem by James Weldon Johnson, which was set to music and is considered the "Black National Anthem."
Library of Congress
Loc: Family Customs Past and Present: Exploring Cultural Rituals
Photos, documents, music, and stories help students deepen their understanding of the rituals and customs of various cultures throughout American history.
Yale University
Yale New Haven Teachers Institute: Influence of Folk
This site, which explores the influence of musical folk traditions in the poetry of Langston Hughes and Nicolas Guillen, provides lesson plans, a biography, examples of Hughes' poetry, and details about his meeting with Nicolas Guillen.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Stevie Wonder
A brief biographical sketch of Stevie Wonder, an African-American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, a child prodigy who developed into one of the most creative musical figures of the late 20th century.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Etta Baker
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Etta Baker, an American folk musician who influenced the folk music revival of the 1950s and '60s with her mastery of East Coast Piedmont blues, a unique fingerpicking style of...
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Carl Van Vechten
Learn about Carl Van Vechten, a U.S. novelist, music and drama critic, and an influential figure in New York literary circles in the 1920s.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: American Culture in the 1920s
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...
PBS
Pbs: The Blues Classroom
Access the educational resources developed by a Seattle-based museum to supplement the PBS documentary series "The Blues." Includes background essays on the blues; biographies, video clips, and sound clips from the series; a blues...
PBS
Pbs: Biography of Dizzy Gillespie
This PBS biography about trumpeter and jazz musician Dizzy Gillespie includes photos, multiple audio features, and links within the text to other famous musicians.
Lin and Don Donn
Lin and Don Donn: Africa Lesson Plans
A large collection of lesson plan links, including links to video clips, stories and folk tales, games, PowerPoints, and clip art.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: Earth, Wind, and Fire
Read background information and the history of the music of the popular Grammy award winning band of the 1970s, Earth, Wind, & Fire.
Smithsonian Institution
Anacostia Museum: The Renaissance: Black Art of the Twenties
Provides an informative description of the "Black Arts of the Twenties," which was better known as the Harlem Renaissance. Learn about the culture, art, music, and writings of this period.
PBS
Pbs American Masters: Sarah Vaughan
An informative biography of jazz singer Sarah Vaughan (1924-1990 CE) is presented highlighting her long musical career.
OpenStax
Open Stax: The Jazz Age: Redefining the Nation 1919 1929: A New Generation
Looks at the new morality that emerged in the 1920s. It changed the role of women and the perception of African Americans, the latter facilitated by the Harlem Renaissance and its impact on the music and dance of the Jazz Age. Also...
Other
Mad River Theater Works: The Ballad of John Henry [Pdf]
Scroll down this study guide to find the lyrics to the Ballad of John Henry, which was collected from individuals in the West Virginia mountains in the 1920's. Discusses the different versions of the song and the history behind it.
Other
Gotta Dance: American Rumba
This site from Gotta Dance offers an easy-to-read history of rumba.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Louis Jordan
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Louis Jordan, an American saxophonist-singer prominent in the 1940s and '50s who was a seminal figure in the development of both rhythm and blues and rock and roll. The bouncing, rhythmic...
PBS
Pbs Teachers: February One (Lessons on the Greensboro Sit in of 1960)
Find two lesson plans developed for a PBS documentary about the Greensboro Four, whose sit-in at a whites-only Woolworth's lunch counter was a key event in the unfolding history of the civil rights movement. The lessons ask students to...
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: The Soul Stirrers
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica's Guide to Black History features the Soul Stirrers, an American gospel group who were one of the first male quintets and one of the most enduring male groups. Several singers emerged from the...
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: De La Soul
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features De La Soul, an American rap group whose debut album, 3 Feet High and Rising (1989), was one of the most influential albums in hip-hop history.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Wayne Shorter
This entry from Encyclopedia Britannica features Wayne Shorter, an African-American musician and composer, a major jazz saxophonist, among the most influential hard-bop and modal musicians and a pioneer of jazz-rock fusion music.
Smithsonian Institution
National Postal Museum: Art of the Stamp: Duke Ellington
View the artwork for a U.S. postage stamp issued in 1986 to commemorate famous jazz musician Duke Ellington. Includes a short biographical passage.
Yale University
Yale New Haven Teachers Institute: A Guide Through the Culture of the Blues
An extraordinary curriculum unit to teach blues and all its cultural implications.