"African American Music" allows for a superb comprehension of African music without prior musical training, yet stimulates the thoughts of trained musicians as well. The material is divided into three parts: "Heritages of African American General Music"; "General Features and Related Topics"; and "Popular Styles". These divisions allow students to chronicle the music activities of those who greatly contributed to African American music within the context of African American social, political, economic, psychological, and cultural conditions. An added bonus for understanding African American culture through music, entails listening to selected songs representative of African American music. Over 100 songs are analysed for the reader and are conveniently organized in listening guides and on time lines. To ensure a full understanding of these songs, the specific teaching strategy places an emphasis on music listening using ten analytical parameters: melody, harmony, rhythm, texture, timbre, dynamics, instrumentation, form, vocal and instrumental sounds, and performance practices. A CD is enclosed with the music sung and played by professional musicians containing audio examples that demonstrate not only usages within an African American performance context, but of general musical terminology. This way, students will discover the breadth applicability, and significance of terms as useful tools for learning the intricacies of any music.
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