This week we dig into two of the most foundational traditions in U.S. music history: the spiritual and the blues. Both emerge from the experience of enslaved Black Americans and their descendants — and both will resurface throughout the semester in jazz, gospel, country, rock, and hip-hop.
By the end of the week you should be able to identify the key musical features of both traditions by ear, explain cultural hybridity as it applies to early African American music, and situate both genres within their social and historical contexts.
As you listen, pay attention to performance style and timbre — how do vocal qualities differ across spirituals and blues examples? Listen for call-and-response structure, blue notes, bent pitches, and AAB verse form. We'll analyze these together in class.