It is difficult to tell the story of the development of American music without
addressing the contribution of the banjo. John demonstrates how the fretless banjo of the slaves evolved
into an ever more sophisticated instrument for urban white audiences.
Following the civil war, the banjo came to be rejected by the black culture
as a reminder of dark and cruel times, but though it was born in the
depredations of slavery, it remains as triumphant testimony to the humanity
and
amazing creative expression of a people. Taking the open banjo tunings of the 19th century, John illustrates how they were adapted to the guitar in the 20th century. He demonstrates on a Dobro guitar, the transition of this music to the folk and blues music of the 1920’s and 30’s, finishing with a brief sample of how this music influenced the development of the pop styles of today. John’s instruments are acoustic, but for larger venues he has an amplifier and microphones.
Applicable to K-12: National Social Sciences Standards – US History
Era 4 - EXPANSION AND REFORM (1801-1861)
National Standards for Music Education 1, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9
*This is an Inquiring Mind presentation. Inquiring Mind is a program of Humanities Washington.
Out of State Single performance fee is $300.00
( Out-of-area travel and lodging expenses are extra. )
SPECIAL SUBSIDIZED FEE for Schools and Organizations in the State of Washington
State of Washington organizations booking a speaker for the first time, only pay a $50.00 fee ( directly to Humanities Washington). Each additional booking in a program year (July 1 – June 30) will drop to $25.00. An organization may book up to three Community Conversation presentations per year; additional presentations may be available upon request.
Booking organizations will be expected to pay for program publicity and negotiate speaker travel and per diem costs with the speaker. Upon submission of a final report packet to Humanities Washington, the qualifying organization will receive $150 from Humanities Washington to offset the costs of program publicity and speaker travel to help underwrite these costs.
For details on qualifying for the subsidized performance and booking this presentation through Humanities Washington, please go directly to the Inquiring Mind Website: http://www.humanities.org/inquiringmind/bookingaspeaker.php
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