What Is Categorizing American Folk Music?
The movement then continued into the 1940s, 50s, and 60s with works of Bertrand Harris Bronson and collector-performers such as Burl Ives, John Jacob Niles, Pete Seeger, and Peggy Seeger. The songs that these musicians sang are ballads, southern mountain songs, Negro spirituals, blues, cowboy songs, hobo songs, prospector songs, songs of railroad men, and sailors. The songs were based on the things that were happenings in those times. “There are almost as many ways of categorizing American folk music as there have been people collecting it; there are books on folk songs organized by geographical area: Appalachian, Ozarks, New England, and Texas; by song subject: work songs, spirituals, songs of courtship and marriage, children’s songs,…;
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American music has a great history and tradition of folk music that is still growing today and is a great resource for teachers who aim to educate their students according to the Kodaly principals. This great heritage aids in creating an environment for musical learning and creativity. Folk music does not consist solely of folk singing. The movement and dance that make up folk music are equally important to the environment and culture set by a Kodaly inspired classroom. “No folk tradition in the United States has been as uninterrupted as that of movement and dance. No other folk art is as widely practiced and enjoyed today.” “American folk dancing is descended primarily from two great traditions of dance- the English and the French.” Teaching dance and movement in the music classroom is not only teaching children to express themselves and their feelings toward the music they are being exposed to, but it is also teaching children about the heritage of their country and the sub-cultures and that make up the culture to which they belong. Dance, like folk songs, is a simple avenue to cross curriculum in which students are learning movement, expression, history, culture, math, art, and even science sometimes. Dance and movement are equally important parts of creating an environment for musical learning. The more avenues children are presented with to learn through activity, the more music literacy they will comprehend and
American music has a great history and tradition of folk music that is still growing today and is a great resource for teachers who aim to educate their students according to the Kodaly principals. This great heritage aids in creating an environment for musical learning and creativity. Folk music does not consist solely of folk singing. The movement and dance that make up folk music are equally important to the environment and culture set by a Kodaly inspired classroom. “No folk tradition in the United States has been as uninterrupted as that of movement and dance. No other folk art is as widely practiced and enjoyed today.” “American folk dancing is descended primarily from two great traditions of dance- the English and the French.” Teaching dance and movement in the music classroom is not only teaching children to express themselves and their feelings toward the music they are being exposed to, but it is also teaching children about the heritage of their country and the sub-cultures and that make up the culture to which they belong. Dance, like folk songs, is a simple avenue to cross curriculum in which students are learning movement, expression, history, culture, math, art, and even science sometimes. Dance and movement are equally important parts of creating an environment for musical learning. The more avenues children are presented with to learn through activity, the more music literacy they will comprehend and