Afro-American Music

African Americans' historical roots are encapsulated in the lyrics, melodies, and rhythms of their music. In the 18th and 19th centuries, African slaves, longing for emancipation, expressed their hopes and dreams through spirituals. Inspired by African civilization and culture, as well as religion, art, literature, and social issues, this influential, joyous, tragic, uplifting, challenging, and enduring music evolved into many diverse genres, including jazz, blues, rock and roll, soul, swing, and hip hop. Providing a lyrical history of our nation, this groundbreaking encyclopedia, the first of its kind, showcases all facets of African American music including folk, religious, concert and popular styles.

Written by the top authorities on different musical styles and cultural issues in African-American music, African-American Music: An Introduction presents an outstanding survey that looks at the progress of this legendary music form, from its earliest folk traditions through to the Rap and Hip Hop of today's modern music. Focusing on musical genres and styles, this edited collection of articles includes individual chronological overviews and chapters that look at interpreting the musical style. Comprehensive in its study, African America Music looks at: blues, ragtime, jazz, musical theater, art and classical music, R&B, Rap, and Hip Hop. Introduced with a section on African antecedents and ending with a section on processes, the book reviews the aesthetics of African-American culture and music both a force of cultural resistance and change of global hegemony. This book will be a must read for all students of African-American music and anyone wishing to find out more about this legendary music.

This text provides comprehensive coverage of black American music, from the arrival of the first Africans in the English colonies to contemporary developments in African-American history. The book draws on authentic documents, from colonial times to the present, to illuminate the history of black music.

Bold and original, The Power of Black Music offers a new way of listening to the music of black America, and appreciating its profound contribution to all American music. Striving to break down the barriers that remain between high art and low art, it brilliantly illuminates the centuries-old linkage between the music, myths and rituals of Africa and the continuing evolution and enduring vitality of African-American music.