Teacher Resources include multi-media for classroom use and a discussion guide with learning outcomes.
Jazz Appreciation Month was established to encourage musicians, schools, colleges, libraries, concert halls, museums, radio and television stations, and other organizations to develop programs to explore, perpetuate, and honor jazz as a national and world treasure.
April is Jazz Appreciation Month.
Does your school have a Jazz Band or students interested in jazz? Have them host a jazz performance for the school, community, or class. Film your event and share it with MY HERO during the month of April, Jazz Appreciation month.
Examples of Jazz from the MY HERO Library: Audio
Films | Watch short videos featuring the power of jazz music
How is Jazz different from traditional music? How do jazz musicians create the unique collaborations that become their compositions?
What is it about the improvisational nature of jazz composition that allows the listener to have a truly individual experience?
Why do you think jazz has endured for nearly a century? What is its power...and its beauty?
Do you compose music? Do you make art? Have you ever choreographed a dance? Can you relate to the different jazz musicians and their individual creativity and the mastery of their chosen instruments?
Students can listen to the unique nature of jazz music in order to understand the role improvisation and creativity plays in composing a piece of jazz music.
Watching jazz performances in short films allows the viewer to see the unparalleled mastery of their art form that a musician has to have in order to undertake a jazz composition
Reading stories about the lives of these talented unique musicians reveals the personalities behind this significant category of modern music. In addition, the stories reveal the power of music and the heroic qualities necessary to compose these unique compositions
Looking at visual artists' interpretations of jazz music and the performers gives us an additional window into the soul of jazz.
Stories | Discover the personalities behind the music that has shaped our times
From My Hero: Extraordinary People on the Heroes Who Inspire Them: Pulitzer Prize-winning musician Wynton Marsalis writes about his hero, Duke Ellington
"No two people on earth are alike, and it's got to be that way in music or it isn't music." Billie Holiday
Bessie Smith, 'Empress of the Blues,' left a rich legacy in jazz, blues and rock and roll with her unparalleled artistry and emotion.
Louis (Satchmo) Armstrong was one of the most successful and influential jazz musicians in history. According to Wynton Marsalis, "You can't play a note on the horn that Louis hasn't already played…"
Benjamin (Benny) David Goodman, the King of Swing, played the clarinet and helped launch the careers of many major names in jazz while breaking racial barriers.
Javajazz Festival was born from a dream. A dream to bring jazz musicians from all around the world into one single spot - the Jakarta Convention Center
Ella Fitzgerald was the First Lady of Song and used her success to help people of all races, cultures and beliefs.
Art | Jazz as Expressed by Visual Artists
Learning Outcomes: Choose multi-media from this lesson plan to use in your classroom. Students will develop a deeper appreciation of jazz's cultural importance after viewing the media and considering the questions in the discussion guide.
The Jazz Appreciation lesson plan was created by MY HERO Education Outreach Director Laura Nietzer. |
Lesson Plans and Resources from TEACHROCK
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Organizer created on 3/21/2019 2:16:15 PM by MY HERO Staff
Last edited 3/27/2023 11:48:54 AM by Laura Nietzer