"On this U.S. Thanksgiving Day, let’s pay our respects to the Wampanoag people, who helped the refugees at Plymouth Colony through their first winter, taught them to fish and grow corn, and attended their celebration of thanksgiving after their first successful harvest." ("Wampanoag music and dance", 2016)
"Wampanoag music is wrapped up in dance. The beat of a hardwood stick, water drum, and corn rattles is the music of their lively social dances, while appreciation and gratitude are expressed in their ceremonial dances." ("Wampanoag music and dance", 2016) “It is part of our nature is to be in thanksgiving” said Ramona Peters, a Wampanoag woman. ("Wampanoag music and dance", 2016) Today's listening example is a native Wampanoag dance and song of thanks to the animal they just “took the life of”. This is their way of giving back to and thanking the Earth for what it has provided to them. This is called a KEY-you-met. START AT 4:50! |
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The Pilgrims came to America so they could practice their religion freely. Their religious beliefs about music were very strict. They believed that music was only to be used to worship God.
It had to be simple, and straight from the Bible. These songs were called Psalters because they came from the book of Psalms. Any music, other than the Psalters, was considered frivolous or unnecessary. The Psalters that the Pilgrims most likely sang, were written by Claude Goudimel. Goudimel was a French composer, music editor and publisher, and music theorist of the Renaissance. ("The Roots of American Music", 2016) Today’s listening example is Goudimel’s Psalter number 25. This would have been a song the Pilgrims sang during church time. It is very simple. There is no harmonizing when the song is sung. It may even sound a little familiar in the beginning. |