EDUCATION :: Blog
Women Who Rock With Style
Women who rock know how to rock a look. From Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey to Janelle Monáe and Lady Gaga, the ladies who have made the music that moves us have used fashion – clothes, makeup, hairdos, hats, jewels, boots, shoes – to help express themselves. Their art goes beyond song and sound. They create entire worlds of style that connect us to their musical messages, draw us into fantasies that run the gamut from elegant to edgy, push us to understand how the spectacle of self-presentation can communicate ideas and emotions in ways that transcend words or melody. Today, the idea of rock style is a given: We’ve grown accustomed to seeing singers on the cover of Vogue, we buy the clothes and makeup promoted by stars from Madonna (featured in Versace ads) to Rihanna (a spokesmodel for Revlon); we can even dress ourselves head to toe in clothes created by rockers, such as Gwen Stefani’s L.A.M.B. label or Beyoncé’s House of Deréon.
It’s easy to boil rock style, in all its guises, down to two ideas: glamour and rebellion. But, as the Women Who Rock exhibit illustrates, the story is ...
A Bright Rhythm Nation
The handwritten lyrics to Janet Jackson’s 1989 song “Rhythm Nation” are currently on display in the Museum’s Women Who Rock exhibit: With music by our side/to break the color lines/let’s work together/to improve our way of life/Join voices in protest/to social injustice. The song exhorts social change in the face of injustice, using music – and by extension, rhythm – as a unifying tool. It’s the perfect platform to talk about song structure (verse, chorus, bridge, etc.) More important, “Rhythm Nation” provides a unique point of view from which to draw conclusions about its author and her era.
We use the chart-topping hit as an example of songwriting in our Rockin’ the Schools class based on women songwriters, “Women Who Rock: Songwriting and Point of View.” We developed the class curriculum (one of three Women Who Rock–based courses) with a strong English–language arts focus in conjunction with the Women Who Rock exhibit. This gives students the opportunity to really explore ELA concepts while learning about the importance of women songwriters from Tin Pan Alley to Top 40 radio. Male and female middle school and high school students appreciate the dedicated listening ...
Remembering the Creole Beethoven: Wardell Quezergue
We were saddened to learn about the passing of the “Creole Beethoven,” Wardell Quezergue, yesterday in New Orleans. Quezergue, 81, was one of the giants of New Orleans music – one of those folks who is responsible for so many great, funky records that define the city’s distinctive rhythm and blues. He arranged countless classics: Professor Longhair’s “Big Chief,” The Dixie Cups’ “Iko Iko,” King Floyd’s “Groove Me,” Jean Knight’s “Mr. Big Stuff,” and Dorothy Moore’s “Misty Blue,” to name just a few. In 1992, he did the arrangements for Dr. John’s “little history of New Orleans music,” Goin’ Back to New Orleans. He also co-wrote “It Ain’t My Fault,” a staple of New Orleans’ brass bands. In 2000, he released the extraordinary A Creole Mass, a “prayer of Thanksgiving” that he began writing while stationed in Korea. He had been pulled from the front line to work as an arranger for the army band. His replacement was killed in action. He finally completed the work, a masterpiece for orchestra, chorus, brass band and vocals.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum Education Director Jason Hanley and I had the honor of meeting ...
Dreams Can Come True in Cleveland
Guest blog courtesy of 2011 Summer Teacher Institute participant Bernie Howitt of Australia.
Rock and roll has a proud and rich history which celebrates a major American cultural achievement. To the rest of the world, rock and roll was often their first and most meaningful point of contact with “America.” When Chuck Berry sang, “I’m so glad I’m livin’ in the USA” in 1959, he was echoing the aspirations of everyone who wasn’t.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is deservedly the centre point of the celebration and commemoration of rock history. Equally impressive is the commitment to education embodied in the Summer Teacher Institute. To gather teachers together and share the resources and expertise of the Museum and its staff is an incredible opportunity. As an Australian history teacher passionate about the role rock music can play in enthusing and inspiring students, the chance to attend STI represented a dream.
Amazingly dreams can occasionally come true. I was supposed to visit the Hall of Fame and Museum in September 2001, when fate tragically intervened. For years I thought I’d missed my chance, but I kept checking the website, envious of the resources ...
Video Treasures
Working in the Education Department at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum has its perks. For example, I have access to some of the best experts in the field, whether they are academics, journalists or musicians themselves. Fortunately, the Rock Hall has worked hard over the years to chronicle exhibits, interviews and other opportunities that function not only as archival evidence, but also as fascinating windows into the thrilling culture of American popular music.
Recently, we went through tens of videos that Director of Education Jason Hanley worked with our curatorial staff to create a few years ago and found that they would complement our education courses, providing supplemental material for teachers and fans alike. We found an exciting sneak peek into the marketing strategy of Elvis, which we posted to our Rockin’ the Schools class site for 'Takin’ Care of Business: A Rock Band Finance Simulation.' We unearthed a great video showcasing rhythm and blues pioneer Big Joe Turner that we now feature on our distance learning On the Road class page for 'The Big Bang: The Birth of Rock and Roll.' We’re lucky to have our Vice President of Curatorial Affairs Jim Henke talking ...
Rockin' the Schools on the Radio
A few weeks ago, local NPR station Ideastream®’s reporter Michelle Kanu visited the Rock Hall to sit-in on a couple of our popular Rockin’ the Schools classes. Now celebrating its tenth anniversary, Rockin’ the Schools brings approximately twenty thousand students and teachers from Northeast Ohio and beyond into the Museum’s state-of-the-art Foster Theater to learn about the history and significance of rock and roll music. All of the classes are designed so that while students are enjoying the music they are also learning about key concepts in Fine Arts, Science, Language Arts, Social Studies, and Technology. As a teacher in the program for the last seven years I always love watching students as they begin to understand the important part rock and roll played in the Civil Rights movements of the 1950s and 60s, or when they start to understand how hip-hop artists like Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five related “The Message” of what life was like in the Bronx, NYC in the late 1970s to an audience around the world. Each of the programs is supported with materials for teachers to use in their classroom so that the lessons can begin in the classroom before the ...
Dr. John, Fats Domino, and the piano
Over the past few weeks I have traveled to New Orleans several times and had the chance to see Dr. John perform live at Lafayette Square, play with the band Widespread Panic, and even sit next to him as he played in a small rehearsal studio just west of the French Quarter. Each time my eyes were fixed on his hands as he moved them effortlessly across the keys. What an amazing player; Dr. John holds the history of New Orleans piano music in his head and the soul of the sound in his hands.
The reason I’ve seen him so many times is that Dr. John and his band, the Lower 911, will be the house band for the upcoming American Music Masters Tribute to Fats Domino and Dave Bartholomew. It is a perfect combination: Dr. John leading the band that will honor one of the giants of rock and roll piano, Fats Domino. As you can imagine I have been thinking a lot about the music of New Orleans, the piano style of Fats Domino, and the rhythms of Mardi Gras. What makes Fats’ music so exciting is the way it blends together several major musical ideas ...
An amazing coincidence during a Rock Hall distance learning class
One of my favorite New Orleans words is "lagniappe." Pronounced "lan-yap," it means something extra, a bonus. It can also be defined as an unexpected gift.
For me, this year’s American Music Masters series honoring Fats Domino and Dave Bartholomew has been nothing but lagniappe. Having moved to Cleveland from New Orleans about a year and a half ago, I’m beyond excited to celebrate the music and spirit of my former hometown, and to pay homage to one of the greatest partnerships in rock and roll history. The line-up for the tribute concert on November 13th alone is phenomenal, not to mention the week’s worth of events that precede it. This is not to be missed – believe me.
The real gift to me, however, came last week when I was able to connect with a seventh-grade class at the Intercultural Charter School of New Orleans East, with an On the Road distance-learning program on Fats Domino, Dave Bartholomew, and New Orleans rock and roll. Working with teachers at the school and with KID smART, a local arts integration education initiative, we were able to present a special interactive video-conferencing class just to them, and just for them ...
