The Marian Anderson Story DARE TO TAKE THE OPEN-HEARTED AND COURAGEOUS WAY

Transcription

1 HARTFORD SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA The Marian Anderson Story DARE TO TAKE THE OPEN-HEARTED AND COURAGEOUS WAY DISCOVERY CONCERT SERIES Classroom Guide for Teachers

2 2 Copyright 2017 Hartford Symphony Orchestra s THE MARIAN ANDERSON STORY DARE TO TAKE THE OPEN-HEARTED AND COURAGEOUS WAY From humble church choir to world stage, Marian Anderson's perseverance in the face of great adversity made her one of the greatest opera singers and most memorable civil rights activists of her time. (Grades 1-5) Original production by Miriam Engel and Adam Kerry Boyles World premiere October 31, 2017 Hartford Symphony Orchestra Conducted by Adam Kerry Boyles The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts

3 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS Concert Program Meet the Conductor Meet the Orchestra 11 Classroom Activities 17 Field Trip Day!

4 First Africans are brought to British colonies in North America as slaves The COMPOSER is the person who writes the music! Have you ever written a song before? First separate black church in America is founded in South Carolina Negro Act of 1740 (South Carolina) makes it illegal for slaves to move abroad, assemble in groups, raise food, earn money, and learn to write English. Once upon a time The life and times of our composers! United States Constitution is ratified American Revolutionary War begins Mary Wollstonecraft publishes A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, one of the earliest works of feminist philosophy All aboard the first carrying train, in England Birth of Marian Anderson American Civil War begins World War I begins Hartford Symphony Orchestra is founded Marian Anderson gives her famed performance in front of the Lincoln Memorial, and World War II begins.. 5 CONCERT PROGRAM ADAM KERRY BOYLES conductor and host HARTFORD SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA AIDA: ACT II TRIUMPHAL MARCH Giuseppe Verdi , Italy HE S GOT THE WHOLE WORLD IN HIS HANDS Traditional spiritual Arr. Margaret Bonds , United States DER TOD UND DAS MÄDCHEN DEEP RIVER DUKE ELLINGTON FANTASY: TAKE THE A TRAIN Franz Schubert , Austria Traditional spiritual Arr. Daniel Powers , United States Edward Kennedy Duke Ellington , United States 4 LIEDER, OP. 27: Richard Strauss MORGEN! , Germany HUNGARIAN DANCES: NO. 5 IN G MINOR DIDN T MY LORD DELIVER DANIEL MY COUNTRY, TIS OF THEE (AMERICA) UN BALLO IN MASCHERA: RE DELL ABISSO LIFT EVERY VOICE AND SING Johannes Brahms Arr. Albert Parlow , Germany Traditional spiritual Arr. Mark Hayes b. 1953, United States Samuel Francis Smith Arr. Elliot Del Borgo , United States Verdi James Weldon Johnson Arr. Roland Carter , United States Smith b Schubert b passenger Ellington b Brahms b Verdi b Johnson b Strauss b

5 7 8 MEET THE CONDUCTOR ADAM KERRY BOYLES Conductor and Host MEET THE ORCHESTRA HARTFORD SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Adam Kerry Boyles is a dynamic and versatile conductor, and a notable figure in the musical life of New England. Boyles is currently Director of Orchestras at MIT, Assistant Conductor of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, and Music Director Emeritus of the Brookline Symphony Orchestra. Boyles has held Music Director positions with the Southern Arizona Symphony Orchestra, MetroWest Opera, and Opera in the Ozarks, and has served on the faculty at The University of Texas at Austin and The University of Arizona. Also an accomplished vocalist, Boyles has performed in numerous operas and with many professional choral ensembles across the country, including as a guest soloist with the Tanglewood Festival Chorus. First public performance at West Middle School in Hartford D.M.A. University of Texas at Austin M.M. University of Arizona B.M. Indiana University The CONDUCTOR stands front and center onstage and leads the orchestra. He or she uses a BATON to show the instruments when to play, as well as how loud or soft, fast or slow, choppy or smooth, aggressive or gentle. Percussion THE FAMILIES OF THE ORCHESTRA Keyboards These instruments don t belong to any of the four traditional orchestral families, so they are often grouped together as Keyboards. Some people say that they belong to The String Family, however. Can you guess why? Brass Woodwinds Violin 2 Violin 1 Viola Conductor Cello Harp Piano Celesta

6 9 These musicians use a bow with hair from my tail to play these string instruments! 10 Tuba The Brass Family The String Family Trumpet French Horn Violin Viola Cello Trombone Bass The Woodwind Family The Percussion Family Piccolo There are 2 main categories of percussion: PITCHED, meaning that it makes a sound on a specific note, and UNPITCHED, which means it makes noise without sounding a specific note. Can you guess which of these instruments here belong in each category? Xylophone Flute Drumset The oldest instrument in the world is in the woodwind family. Archaeologists once found a flute made of bone that was carved 43,000 years ago! Clarinet Oboe Bassoon Bongos Snare drum Maracas Congas Triangle Timpani Bass drum Cymbals Tambourine Tubular bells

7 11 12 CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES National Core Arts Standard MU:Cn11. Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural, and historical context to deepen understanding. BIOGRAPHY OF MARIAN ANDERSON Marian Anderson was born on February 27, 1897 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She and her mother and her two little sisters used to sing together at home, just for fun. After her sixth birthday, she began singing with the junior choir at Union Baptist Church, a weekly activity she loved dearly. She gradually became well-known in Philadelphia for her singing voice, and soon was accepting invitations to sing solos at other churches and at community centers. By high school, Marian had so much work both in Philadelphia and out of town that she started charging for an appearance, keeping a little for herself and giving the rest to her mother and sisters. Still, she had no formal vocal training, singing naturally and freely. When she was 15 years old, Marian began to study singing with a vocal teacher for the first time. Marian also approached a music school in Philadelphia to ask about enrollment and was coldly informed, we don t take colored. It was the first time she had encountered such overt racism, though she had heard her relatives and friends talk about it; she had grown up in a humble, mixed neighborhood where white and black children grew up side by side. Shortly afterward, she and her mother took their first long train trip together for one of Marian s performances, and they were placed in the segregated car for black passengers. It was dirty, stuffy, and dark, and smoke and soot from the train s engine rained down on them through the night. Marian recalled a performance at Howard University in Washington, D.C. as the turning point in her career. She was in the middle of singing her program when she realized, all of a sudden, that the audience was mixed, and that for the first time, black and white listeners had crowded together to share the music she had brought them. Motivated by this success, Marian committed herself to a concert at New York s Town Hall, but the performance did not go smoothly and only a handful of people showed up to see her. Marian was deeply embarrassed and upset by this experience, and for a little while, she swore she would never sing again. Only a year later, though, at the age of 28, Marian entered the Lewisohn Stadium competition and won, beating 300 rival singers. Her prize was to sing a full concert, accompanied by the prestigious New York Philharmonic. Three years after that, on the heels of a long tour of the eastern and southern states, Marian performed a solo recital at Carnegie Hall in New York City, one of the most famous performing venues in the world. In 1930, Marian went to London on a scholarship through the National Association of Negro Musicians. Her first international concert was a great success, and over the next eight years, she toured Europe, Russia, and Latin America, as well as a full coast-to-coast tour of the United States. These tours had elevated her professionally among music-loving audiences all over the world, but it was her concert at the Lincoln Memorial in 1939 that catapulted her to broad international fame. Marian tried to rent Washington, D.C. s famous Constitution Hall for a concert but learned that the venue, run by the Daughters of the American Revolution, would only permit concerts by white performers. The public was outraged, other prominent musicians protested, and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt even resigned from the DAR. In response, a free outdoor concert was arranged on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial for Easter Sunday On April 9, Marian sang for 75,000 people, stretching from the lawn in front of the Memorial all the way back to the Washington Monument, as well as millions of radio listeners. The Lincoln Memorial was her biggest stage, but she continued to perform in prestigious venues all over the world, starting with a private concert at the White House for President Roosevelt, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. In 1955, following years performing for troops during World War II and the Korean War, Marian finally broke the color barrier at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, becoming the first black soloist to perform on that stage. Although this was the only time she performed at the Met, she changed the company forever by opening the door to other black singers. Marian retired from singing in 1965, and though she continued to make public appearances, she spent most of the remainder of her life with her husband on her farm in Danbury, Connecticut. In 1992, she moved to Portland, Oregon to be with her nephew, conductor James DePriest. She died on April 8, 1993 at age 96.

8 SOCIAL STUDIES SCIENCE SOCIAL STUDIES ELA-LITERACY ELA-LITERACY ACTIVITY 1 ACTIVITY 2 Timeline of Black History Objectives: Students will be able to place Marian Anderson in the context of black history in the United States. Students will be able to define segregation and racism and understand them as injustices. Identify and learn about important periods in black history in the United States, which may include: The Middle Passage Slavery in America Civil War and Reconstruction Abolition Great Migration Harlem Renaissance Jim Crow Segregation Era Civil Rights Movement Post-Civil Rights Era Modern Times Working alone, with a partner, or in small groups, have students each study one of the time periods. After conducting research, students can undertake one or more of the following projects to demonstrate their learning: Create a mini timeline. Provide biographical information about important people of the time. Draw or paint portraits of important people and events and write a placard that goes along with the portrait. Create a mini documentary. Write and perform a skit. As a class, create a timeline of black history in the United States. Then, discuss the life of Marian Anderson and place her on the timeline. Connecticut Common Core State Standards (Grades K-5) Reading Integration of Knowledge and Ideas: Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media and formats, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words. Writing Research to Build and Present Knowledge: Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects based on focused questions, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation. Speaking & Listening Comprehension and Collaboration: Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively. Speaking & Listening Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas: Present information, findings, and supporting evidence such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. History Change, Continuity and Context: Generate questions about individuals and groups who have shaped a significant historical change. History Change, Continuity and Context: Create and use a chronological sequence of related events to compare developments that happened at the same time. History Perspectives: Compare different accounts of the same historical event. History Historical Sources and Evidence: Explain how historical sources can be used to study the past. Civics Participation and Deliberation: Identify the beliefs, experiences, perspectives, and values that underlie their own and others points of view about civic issues. Objectives: Students will identify the aspects of their own cultures that are visible and invisible to others. Students will consider the interaction of visible and invisible aspects of other cultures. Describe an iceberg: SHAPE? SIZE? Only a small part of an iceberg is visible above the water. The majority is below. Consider these cultural aspects: Music Foods Clothing Beliefs about role of family Holiday customs Religious beliefs and rituals Etiquette Etiquette Greetings Languages Beliefs about child raising Attitudes about privacy Beliefs about fairness Beliefs about friendship Work ethic Cultural Iceberg Connecticut Common Core State Standards (Grades K-5) HOW MUCH ICEBERG IS ABOVE THE WATER? HOW MUCH ICEBERG IS UNDERWATER? Culture has some aspects that are visible, but many others can only be learned as cultural understanding grows. Which of these aspects are visible and invisible? Have your students draw an iceberg, then determine which aspects belong above the water and which aspects belong underwater. Reading Integration of Knowledge and Ideas: Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse media and formats, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words. Speaking & Listening Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas: Present information, findings, and supporting evidence such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. Civics Participation and Deliberation: Identify the beliefs, experiences, perspectives, and values that underlie their own and others points of view about civic issues. Geography Human-Environment Interaction: Places, Regions, and Culture: Identify the beliefs, experiences, perspectives, and values that underlie their own and others points of view about civic issues. Physical Science Structure and Properties of Matter: Plan and conduct an investigation to describe and classify different kinds of materials by their observable properties. Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science Engineering Design: Develop a simple sketch, drawing, or physical model to illustrate how the shape of an object helps it function as needed to solve a given problem.

9 SOCIAL STUDIES ELA-LITERACY ACTIVITY 3 REFLECTIONS The open-hearted and courageous way Objectives: Students will be introduced to activism and good citizenship through letter-writing. Students will be able to name and describe the efforts of student civil rights leaders from history, as well as how they themselves can be leaders in social change. After the Daughters of the American Revolution told Marian Anderson that she couldn t perform at Constitution Hall because of her skin color, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, among thousands of other DAR members, protested publicly, and many resigned from the organization: I am in complete disagreement with the attitude taken in refusing Constitution Hall to a great artist [ ]. You had an opportunity to lead in an enlightened way and it seems to me that your organization has failed. Eleanor Roosevelt Resistance to injustice can have powerful consequences, and with this defiant letter, Eleanor Roosevelt, Walter White of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes, Marian Anderson s commitment to taking the open-hearted and courageous way won her the opportunity to perform on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial for 75,000 people. The audience stretched from the lawn in front of the Memorial all the way back to the Washington Monument, and also included millions of radio listeners. Marian Anderson raised her voice, and it rang out all across the country. Have your students write letters involving causes that are important to them. Emphasize that they have the power to make a difference; after all, students have been catalysts for social change throughout history! To illustrate this point, teach a lesson about key student leaders in the civil rights movement, such as Ruby Bridges, the Little Rock Nine, or the peaceful protestors in Greensboro, North Carolina. Connecticut Common Core State Standards (Grades K-5) Writing Text Types and Purposes: Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence. Writing Production and Distribution of Writing: Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose and audience. Writing Research to Build and Present Knowledge: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research. Civics Civic and Political Institutions: Explain how all people, not just official leaders, play an important role in a community. Civics Processes, Rules, and Laws: Illustrate historical and contemporary means of changing society. History Participation and Deliberation: Compare their own point of view with others perspectives. History Causation and Argumentation: Explain probable causes and effects of events and developments. Economics Economic Decision-Making: Compare the benefits and costs of individual choices. Economics Economic Decision-Making: Identify positive and negative incentives that influence the decisions people make. In our own lives Objectives: Students will understand prejudice as an ongoing modern issue. Students will be able to see how injustice is operating in the context of their own lives. 1. What are some rights and freedoms that you have in your family, classroom, school, and community? Do you know if those rights always existed? 2. As a society, have we achieved full equal rights yet? What would it look like to have achieved full equal rights? 3. Do you see any injustices around you in your school, in your community, or in this country? Please take note INCLUSIVE TEACHING Consider the racial composition of your classroom. You might think differently about your curriculum if you have no black students, a few or if they are the majority of your class. Do not assume all black students know about and are interested in talking about black history and be careful not to put black students in the position of being the authority or main possessor of knowledge about black history. Do not ask or expect them to speak for all black students. Balance the positive exploration of culture and history with the important but sometimes difficult learning about the struggles of black people in history. It is important not to send the message that black history is all about oppression and the fight for rights and freedom, which can feel like a deficit-centered approach. On the other hand, the struggle is an important part of black history. Make connections to other members of minority groups, people of color and oppressed people and find ways to incorporate their history, culture and struggle with the history and culture of the black experience. Source: ADL.org

10 17 18 FIELD TRIP DAY! HOUSE RULES TRANSPORTATION Please plan to arrive no later than a half hour before the start of the performance. Students are seated by school, and it will take a long time to get everyone into their sections of the auditorium. If you are late, you may not be able to be seated. Students are to disembark where their bus parks. Parking meters will be bagged along neighboring streets: Trinity, Capitol, and Buckingham. The meters will be bagged or designated with a no parking stake. Please make a mental note of where you are parked. Please enter the Bushnell complex through Mortensen Hall via Trinity Street or via the brick courtyard on Capitol Avenue. Buses with handicapped students should stop at the Trinity Street entrance, where the ramp is, and drop off only the special-needs individual(s), along with at least one chaperone. The bus should then proceed to one of the bagged meters and park, at which time the other students will walk to the theater. TICKETS Ushers will be posted everywhere to guide you to your seats; let one of them know from which school you have come. You will not receive actual tickets. When you arrive, we will direct you to your seats based on your school, which we will have already allotted a certain location in the hall. Seating is determined based on special needs and group volume. All students, regardless of age, need an escort to leave the auditorium to use the restroom or for any other purpose. Ushers will not allow unattended students to exit without an adult chaperone. Anyone leaving the auditorium during the concert will have to wait for an appropriate break in the program to re-enter. People re-entering may not always be able to go back to their original seats depending on the program and may be asked to take available seats in the back. Groups arriving after the start of the concert will be seated at the discretion of House Management. It is absolutely prohibited to use cameras, audio-video or other recording devices, cell phones, digital games, and music players in the hall. A chaperone will be required to sit in the front row with any group seated on an upper level. Please arrange children in a desired seating order prior to entering the building. Once seating load-in begins, students must quickly move straight across, down the rows. The high number of audience members does not leave time to accommodate traffic jams caused by boy/girl seating or for certain classes to sit with each other, etc. Once a group is seated, teachers may move individual students within the section. No one is allowed to sit on the floor or in the aisles at any time. No hats may be worn inside the building. No food or beverages are allowed in the building. Please remain seated at the end of the performance. An usher will dismiss students by school from the stage.

11 19 20 MORTENSEN HALL You ll be seeing your concert in Mortensen Hall, the 2,800- seat theater and original building of The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts, the premier performing arts center in the region. The building was designed by the same architects as that of New York's famous Radio City Music Hall, and opened in 1930, right at the beginning of the Great Depression. Named in honor of William H. Mortensen, The Bushnell's first managing director, Mortensen Hall is renowned as one of the world's greatest examples of the Art Deco style, an artistic style of the 1920s and 1930s that is recognizable by its bold geometric shapes and bright colors. When you go into the theater, look up! You ll find the largest hand-painted ceiling mural in the United States, measuring 187 feet by 40 feet. That s 4 school buses long and 1 school bus wide! The artist Barry Faulkner and his team called the piece Drama, named for its artistic centerpiece, the Muse of Drama. Surrounding the goddess are vivid representations of performance, progress, and hope from ancient mythological times to the 20th century. You ll find older symbols such as ancient images of the sun, moon, and stars symbolizing light, knowledge, constancy, and eternity as well as more modern icons like airplanes. Try to spot as many of these symbols as you can!

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