Unit Nine
Music!... To Share Our Humanity

Chapter 25 Folk, Popular, and Classical

Pete Seeger
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/JimCapaldi/
"Music has been used throughout human times in many ways, sometimes to support the status quo, sometimes to disturb the status quo." So says Pete Seeger, who has sung both kinds of folksongs in his long, illustrious career. Read articles about, interviews with, and quotes from Seeger here. Do you think music is still used as a way to make changes in society? If so, how?

Chapter 26 Styles Influencing Styles

Igor Stravinsky
http://www.ipl.org/exhibit/mushist/twen/stravinsky.html
Listen to clips from some of Stravinsky's greatest works, including The Rite of Spring, which caused a riot at its premiere. Also check out a short biography of this most famous twentieth-century composer. What did he study before going into music? What do you think influenced him to become an American citizen?

Claude Debussy
http://www.ipl.org/exhibit/mushist/twen/debussy.html
Check out the composer who made his teachers crazy with his wild harmonic ideas, and ended up starting a whole new style of music. Listen to Debussy's most famous works, and compare them with those of Stravinsky.

George Gershwin
http://www.ionet.net/~jcj/gershwin.html
As a young boy, George Gershwin recalled that "music never really interested me, and I really liked to spend my time with the boys, making somewhat of a nuisance of myself in the streets." Then his parents brought a piano into the house and the rest, as they say, is history. Was Gershwin successful in his first attempts at composing music? Find out here.

Africa—Music
http://www-sul.stanford.edu/depts/ssrg/africa/music.html
One Web site cannot cover a whole continent worth of music. So, this site gives you links to all kinds of African music sites. Try choosing two countries and comparing the music of each.

Chapter 27 A Unique Record of Humankind

Imagine the Universe
http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/homepage.html
An awesome site that lets you in on the wonders of the universe. See where the music that was launched into space is going! While you are there, try solving scientific problems in "You Be the Astrophysicist!"

Hearts Of Space
http://www.hos.com/radio.html
"Architects create environments with physical materials. I create environments with sound," says Stephen Hill, creator of the radio show Hearts of Space. Listen to actual Hearts of Space programs, and be sure to click on "Deeper" to read a great essay called "New Music Made Simple."

Unit Nine Encore! Memphis: Birthplace of an American Music Style

Memphis Music
http://www.memphisguide.com/music2/memtour/
Wow! Memphis is a happening place in American music history. See and hear everything from jug bands to soul right here. While you're exploring, don't forget to pay homage to the King of rock and roll, Elvis Presley, who still attracts a million tourists per year to Memphis.