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The History Makers
Thehistorymakers.com features the stories of African Americans who have succeeded and made achievements in the areas of art, business, education, law, politics, science, religion, and sports. There is a great timeline of African American...
PBS
Pbs: American Roots Music
If teaching a unit about the history of popular music in America, this PBS web site supporting their four-part TV broadcast of a few years ago would make a great resource. Includes lesson plans and oral histories too.
Library of Congress
Loc: American Memory: Native American History
These six extensive collections provide first-person historical accounts, audio clips of music and thousands of photographs from Native American cultures. Audio requires Windows Media Player for PCs, and QuickTime for Mac.
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: America on Stone
Features an extensive collection of lithographs that portrays everyday life in the 19th century and attitudes about race and ethnicity. These prints play a major role in helping us understand America's past. Subjects covered include...
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: A Vision of Puerto Rico
A virtual look at a wide-ranging mix of art and artifacts that visually represent Puerto Rico's culture and history. With thematic overviews of everyday life on the island, music, families, and religion along with many useful educational...
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: Documents Gallery: Ellington and Strayhorn
Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn, two of the greatest jazz composers, collaborated on hundreds of works. As you explore this exhibition, you will have an opportunity to view original music scores, listen to audio clips, and view videos...
Smithsonian Institution
National Museum of American History: Smithsonian Jazz
Smithsonian Jazz is home to several online exhibits, an interactive "Duke Ellington class," recordings, publications, oral histories, and similar resources.
Library of Congress
Loc: Music and u.s. Reform History: Stand Up and Sing
Throughout American history, popular music has reflected the mood and opinions of the times. By exploring sheet music, students analyze issues related to industrialization and reform to answer the essential question, "How does society...
Library of Congress
Loc: Omaha Indian Music
A fascinating site of traditional American Indian music. Listen online to the 44 wax cylinder recordings from 1895-97! Listen also to interviews of the tribe giving background information.
University of Groningen
American History: Outlines: Women's Rights
Such social reforms brought many women to a realization of their own unequal position in society. From colonial times, unmarried women had enjoyed many of the same legal rights as men, although custom required that they marry early. With...
Other
Carnegie Hall: A Celebration of the African American Cultural Legacy
Trace the history of African American music from 1600-2000 and examine the styles, influences, artists and listen to samples presented by Carnegie Hall.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mit: Open Course Ware: Introduction to Anglo American Folk Music
A complete, undergraduate-level online course on folk music.
Other
Kingwood Library: American Cultural History: 1940 1949
Take a walk through this part of American history surrounding World War II. Each section includes cultural history of the time, with links pertaining to art and architecture, books and literature, education, fads and fashion, historic...
Library of Congress
Loc: American Variety Stage: Bijou Theater
Musical theater and vaudeville were popular in the Gilded Age. Here is a theater program from the Bijou Theater in Boston. Leaafing through the pages gives a great slice of life at the time, not only because of the playbills, but also...
Other
Lone Star College Kingwood: American Cultural History: The Twentieth Century
A comprehensive look at life in the twentieth century complete with timelines and photos. Decades are broken down by art and architecture, books and literature, educational movements, fads and fashion, historic events and technology,...
Yale University
Yale New Haven Teachers Inst.: Am. Musical Theater: Making It Work in Classroom
A great lesson plan for introducing the musical to learners. Great bibliography.
Library of Congress
Loc: Lyrical Legacy: 400 Years of American Song and Poetry
Explore eighteen American songs and poems each represented by an original primary source document, along with historical background information and, in many cases, sound recordings and alternate versions.
Indiana University
Archives of African American Music and Culture
Contains resources on black culture and music from the early 1900s to the present.
Other
Jews in America: Portal to Jewish American History
Complete with music from Aaron Copland, the Center for Jewish History provides an interactive website that traces the history of Jews in the United States from 1654 until today. Authors provide a searchable gallery of photographs,...
Contemplator
Popular Songs in American History: Ben Bolt: 19th Century Folk Song
This site contains the lyrics to a popular nineteenth century folk song. A MIDI file of the song is also available to download.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: Freedom Riders and Popular Music of the Civil Rights Movement
In this lesson plan, students will consider "The Freedom Riders and the Popular Music of the Civil Rights Movement." The plan includes worksheets and other student materials that can be found under the resource tab.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Us History: 1945 1980: Popular Culture and Mass Media in the 1950s
In the 1950s, financial prosperity allowed young Americans to participate in a shared culture of rock and roll music, movies, and television.
American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History: Anthropology: Sounds of the Silk Road
Travel the tales and sounds of the Silk Road through this resource and understand how music shaped Asian, and eventually, western cultures. You can create your own music to share with your friends, and gain knowledge about common...
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: American Passages: Poetry of Liberation
This unit examines poetry of the postmodernism period, focusing on the Beat Movement, Black Arts Movement, feminism, and other related movements and periods in recent literary history. An extensive list of authors, time line, video, and...
Other popular searches
- American Music History
- Early American Music History
- African American Music History
- History of American Music