Studying at York
History of African American Music - MUS00202I
- Department: Music
- Credit value: 20 credits
- Credit level: I
- Academic year of delivery: 2023-24
Module summary
This project will explore African American music history. Covering the period from the post-reconstruction era to the present, we will focus on issues of stylisation, aesthetic value, socio-political context and appropriation.
Module will run
| Occurrence | Teaching period |
|---|---|
| A | Semester 2 2023-24 |
Module aims
The influence of African American music and stylisation on western popular music and art music has been a topic of discussion for many years. Historian Peter Hall writes, ‘when the Beatles first came to America, they told everyone they wanted to see Muddy Waters and Bo Diddley; one reporter asked: “Muddy Waters … Where’s that?” Paul McCartney laughed and said, “Don’t you know who your own famous people are here?”.’ From Dvorák to the Rolling Stones, African American music has been a rich inspiration for many composers and musicians around the world. But how might we identify stylistic components of African American music? What are the social and political contexts for the origins of some of its most well-known and loved styles?
This course surveys a history of African-American music in the long twentieth century. Styles will include minstrelsy, blues, jazz, spirituals, swing, bebop, free jazz, funk, gospel, soul, neo-soul, jazz-fusion, and hip-hop. In addition to a historical investigation of the social and political contexts of these styles, the course explores several theoretical applications to the study of ‘black music’ (Gates, Floyd, Ramsey, Maultsby) and critiques of such an approach (Tagg, Marsalis, Radano). In particular, we will examine concepts such as, Double-Consciousness, Diaspora, African nationalism, Afrofuturism, Signifyin(g), crossover, race, gender and sexuality.
Module learning outcomes
By the end of the taught part of the project you should be able to:
-
Understand key concepts and terminology surrounding the aesthetics and stylisation of African American music;
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Demonstrate familiarity with the social and political history of the United States as it relates to African American music
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Be able to reflect on issues of terminology ‘black music’, ‘race music’ ‘African American music’, and so on;
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Demonstrate familiarity with the various forms of African-American musics in the long twentieth century
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Describe with confidence the primary aesthetic features attributed to African-based musics
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On completion of the module, in their independent work, you should demonstrate Learning Outcomes B1–6 and B9–12.
Indicative assessment
| Task | % of module mark | Group |
|---|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 | A |
| Essay/coursework | 50 | B |
| Essay/coursework | 50 | B |
Special assessment rules
None
Additional assessment information
There are two assessment options for this module
Route 1:
Essay of 4000 words (100%), title chosen in consultation with project tutor.
Route 2:
Essay of 2000-2500 words (50%), title chosen in consultation with project tutor;
AND
Composition of 3–5 mins (50%) focussed upon the aesthetics and creative practices of any genre covered in the module broadly understood as African American Music. This may be either a notated composition (with accompanying mp3 recording) for solo instrument or small ensemble, or an electronic composition making use of a DAW and appropriate recording techniques. A short written commentary should accompany the composition, explaining the techniques used and relating them to concepts introduced in the module.
Indicative reassessment
| Task | % of module mark | Group |
|---|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 | A |
| Essay/coursework | 50 | B |
| Essay/coursework | 50 | B |
Module feedback
You will receive written feedback in line with standard University turnaround times.
Indicative reading
Mellonee Burnim and Portia Maultsby. (2015) African American Music, An Introduction, 2nd ed. New York: Routledge.
Samuel A Floyd. (1996) The Power of Black Music: Interpreting Its History from Africa to the United States. Oxford: Oxford University Press
Portia K. Maultsby and Mellonee V. Burnim, eds.(2017) Issues in African American Music: Power, Gender, Race, Representation. New York; Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.