History Explorer Results (11)
Related Books (15)
Resource Type(s):
Interactives & Media, Worksheets
Though not as well-known as figures such as Duke Ellington or Ella Fitzgerald, John Levy made significant contributions to jazz music, both as a bassist and as the first black personal manager in jazz. In this episode of History Explorer, Sarah Coffee interviews Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orche
Resource Type(s):
Interactives & Media, Lessons & Activities
This kit of guided listening activities and streaming music offers an engaging way of introducing students to jazz. It traces Louis Armstrong's career as a musician, from influences in African rhythms and New Orleans marches through performances in the 1960's and 70's. It could also be used as an
Resource Type(s):
Reference Materials, Lessons & Activities
Children and adults can enjoy exploring the story behind one of America’s pioneers of jazz music, Duke Ellington, through children's literature, museum collections, and hands-on activities. Focused around Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra, a picture book biography of t
Resource Type(s):
Lessons & Activities
Use two online music tools to try your hand at picking instruments to change the mood of a song. Part of an OurStory module entitled Duke Ellington and Jazz, this activity includes instructions, discussion prompts, links, and background information. OurStory is designed to help children
Resource Type(s):
Lessons & Activities
Follow simple directions to make a musical instrument, then try out some "call and response" jazz rhythms. Part of an OurStory module entitled Duke Ellington and Jazz, this activity includes links to instructions to make a drum or “sound-sandwich,” discussion prompts, and bac
Resource Type(s):
Lessons & Activities
A field trip to a jazz concern can give you a look at how Duke Ellington and jazz music are still alive today. In this activity, students will use discussion prompts to make the most of their visit. This activity is part of an OurStory module entitled Duke Ellington and Jazz. OurStory is
Resource Type(s):
Lessons & Activities
Use this guide to actively read Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra, a picture book biography of the Washington, DC native and jazz pioneer. Part of an OurStory module entitled Duke Ellington and Jazz, this activity includes discussion prompts, a glossary, and bac
Resource Type(s):
Interactives & Media, Lessons & Activities
In this activity, children will watch a short silent film recorded in 1930 and get a sense of a Harlem club during the Jazz Age. Part of an OurStory module entitled Duke Ellington and Jazz, this activity includes a link to a newsreel video from the Smithsonian Archives Center, discussion
Resource Type(s):
Artifacts, Primary Sources
Born in New Orleans in 1901, jazz musician Louis Armstrong (d. 1971)was known for his distinctive trumpet-playing and vocal style. He often improvised jazz riffs using his voice rather than his instrument, “scatting” notes and melodies rather than singing actual words. Armstrong transformed t
Resource Type(s):
Reference Materials, Primary Sources, Interactives & Media
Through brief biographies of the composers, primary source documents, and media clips, students will learn about the collaboration of these two great jazz composers and the process involved in writing and recording two of the most celebrated jazz pieces. This website examines two jazz standa
Author:
Andrea Davis Pinkney
Reading Level:
Late Elementary School,Early Elementary School
A brief picture book on the career of this jazz musician and composer who, along with his orchestra, created music that was beyond category.
Reading Level:
Late Elementary School,Middle School,High School
An overview of jazz from its African origins through to hip-hop. Each two-page section includes a prose poem, a historical timeline, and a painting.
Reading Level:
Early Elementary School
The story of Louis Armstrong as a boy and how he was sent to The Colored Waif's Home, where a music teacher discovers Louis' musical talent and gives him a cornet.
Reading Level:
High School
A compilation of stories, interviews, biographies, and other sources and organized them by general topics (importance of a good nickname, stage fright, etc).
Reading Level:
High School
A look at how jazz is history and its history key to the development of American culture since the early 1900s, and the role of the arts in history.
Reading Level:
Early Elementary School
A story of Miles Davis as a teenager searching for Charlie Parker in New York City.
Reading Level:
Late Elementary School
Written in the art form Hughes cherished most, this biography in verse captures glimpses of the poet's world through his voice as author-poet Tony Medina imagines it.
Reading Level:
Late Elementary School,Middle School,High School
This biography follows the career and life of Miles Davis:from his childhood to adulthood and his musical growth along the way.
Reading Level:
Early Elementary School
Tells the story of Benny Goodman growing up in Chicago, and how his family helped him fufill his dream to play the clarinet.
Reading Level:
Late Elementary School,Middle School,High School
All grades benefit from this book about visual artist Romare Bearden who created a “visual definition of jazz.” with his blues and jazz themes.
