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Home , Bernice Johnson Reagon, Sunup to Sundown, Sweet Honey in the Rock

2011-2012 SEASON

SchoolTimeSchoolTime StudyStudy GuideGuide

Sweet Honey In The Rock Monday, May 7, 2012 at 11 a.m. Zellerbach Hall, University of California, Berkeley Welcome to SchoolTime!

On Monday, May 7, at 11 am, your class will a end a SchoolTime performance by .

This powerful a cappella ensemble performs tradi onal songs and original composi ons that address many cri cal issues in today’s society, including freedom, jus ce, peace and equality. Their work refl ects the strong legacy of African American music in America, especially the infl uence of .

The informa on included in this guide explores the work and ar stry of this remarkable ensemble, providing a context for the performance. Your students will learn about the history of African American song tradi ons, the art form of a cappella singing, and some songs wri en by the members of Sweet Honey in the Rock.

Using This Study Guide You can prepare your students for their Cal Performances fi eld trip with the materials in this study guide. Prior to the performance, we encourage you to: • Copy the student resource sheet on pages 2 & 3 and hand it out to your students several days before the performance. • Discuss the informa on About the Performance & Ar sts on pages 4-7 with your students. • Read to your students from About the Art Form on page 8 and Historical Context on page 14. • Engage your students in two or more of the ac vi es on pages 19-22. • Refl ect with your students by asking them guiding ques ons, found on pages 2,4 & 8. • Immerse students further into the art form by using the glossary and resource sec ons on pages 17 & 22. At the performance: Students can ac vely par cipate during the performance by: • LISTENING CAREFULLY to the lyrics, melodies, harmonies and rhythms • OBSERVING how the singers unite their voices to create beau ful harmonies • THINKING ABOUT the history, ideas and emo ons expressed through the music • MARVELING at the power of the singers’ voices • REFLECTING on the sounds and sights experienced at the theater

We look forward to seeing you at SchoolTime!

SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | I Table of Contents

1. Theater E que e 1

2. Student Resource Sheet 2

3. About the Performance & Ar sts 4

4. About the Art Form 8

5. Selected Song Lyrics 12

6. Historical Context 14

7. Glossary 17

8. Learning Ac vi es & Resources 19

9. California State Standards 23

About SchoolTime 24

II | 1 Theater E que e

Be prepared and arrive early. Ideally you should arrive at the theater 30 to 45 minutes before the show. Allow for travel me and parking, and plan to be in your seats at least 15 minutes before the performance begins.

Be aware and remain quiet. The theater is a “live” space—you can hear the performers easily, but they can also hear you, and you can hear other audience members, too! Even the smallest sounds, like rustling papers and whispering, can be heard throughout the theater, so it’s best to stay quiet so that everyone can enjoy the performance without distrac ons. The interna onal sign for “Quiet Please” is to silently raise your index fi nger to your lips.

Show apprecia on by applauding. Applause is the best way to show your enthusiasm and apprecia on. Performers return their apprecia on for your a en on by bowing to the audience at the end of the show. It is always appropriate to applaud at the end of a performance, and it is customary to con nue clapping un l the curtain comes down or the house lights come up.

Par cipate by responding to the ac on onstage. Some mes during a performance, you may respond by laughing, crying or sighing. By all means, feel free to do so! Apprecia on can be shown in many diff erent ways, depending upon the art form. For instance, an audience a ending a string quartet performance will sit very quietly, while the audience at a gospel concert may be inspired to par cipate by clapping and shou ng.

Concentrate to help the performers. These ar sts use concentra on to focus their energy while on stage. If the audience is focused while watching the performance, they feel supported and are able to do their best work. They can feel that you are with them!

Please note: Backpacks and lunches are not permi ed in the theater. Bags are provided for lobby storage in the event that you bring these with you. There is absolutely no food or drink permi ed in the sea ng areas. Recording devices of any kind, including cameras, cannot be used during performances. Please remember to turn off your cell phone before the performance begins.

SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | 1 2 Student Resource Sheet Sweet Honey In The Rock QuesƟ ons to Think About:

♦ What will you experience at a Sweet Honey In The Rock performance?

♦ What role have spirituals played in history?

♦ What are some musical traits shared by sprituals, , gospel and rap?

Sweet Honey in the Rock Sweet Honey in the Rock is a group of fi ve African-American women singers who create their music with only the melodies and harmonies of their voices (a style called a capella) and a few simple rhythm instruments like shekeres (gourds with beads a ached on the outside to produce a ra le sound), drums, cowbells and hand-held ra les. Joining the singers is an interpreter who translates all the words of their songs into American Sign Language. The group celebrates African and African American culture through song. Most of the music they perform has origins in spirituals, , gospel, and blues music. Sweet Honey in the Rock uses their music to inspire us to learn from history, fi ght unfairness, stand up for what we believe, and celebrate freedom, love and respect for all life in the universe.

The Music of Spirituals with text adapted from Slave Songs by Sandra Graham Sweet Honey in the Rock’s music is deeply rooted in African American spirituals, folk songs that describe personal religious experiences. The music, with its chants, rhythms and harmonies traces its origins to Africa. Music has always been important in helping people get through hard mes, as well as in celebra ng good mes. Music was especially important in the lives of because when Africans were brought to America as slaves, their tradi onal music, as well as their freedom, was taken from them. Spirituals kept the slaves’ hopes alive, and the hidden messages in the code songs helped them escape.

2 | Civil Rights Songs African American Music Several hundred years later, in the 1960s, Spirituals, as well as blues, gospel, rap, and African Americans sang the same spirituals to other types of African American music share keep their hope and courage alive during the Civil many of these musical traits: Rights era. Civil Rights protesters took part in • Repe on with varia on. demonstra ons to get the same rights as white Americans, from being able to sit in any seat in a • Movement (dance, gesture) is always bus or restaurant, to ge ng equal educa on and present. In fact, most African defi ni ons of music job opportuni es. Spirituals remain important to include dance. this day, as people sing spirituals to li up their • Voices and instruments overlap, so there spirits when they are going through hard mes. are very few silent moments. The Role of Spirituals • Call and response is common. Spiritual songs spread from camp mee ngs to planta ons, and they became part of the • Music is communal: everyone par cipates, everyday lives of slaves un l the Civil War. These whether by singing, clapping, dancing, shou ng, were func onal songs, for example: or playing an instrument. • Work -- Singing spirituals made work less • Intense and strong voices. boring. It also helped set a rhythm for work that Be sure to listen for these things when you had repe ve ac ons, like picking or digging. see Sweet Honey in the Rock perform! Slave owners liked this because it made the slaves more produc ve. • Worship -- Slaves found ways to worship despite being prohibited to do so on the planta ons. One way was something called the invisible church. At night, a er the owners were asleep, the slaves would go out into the woods (their invisible church) and worship where no one could see or hear them. Spirituals were an important part of this prac ce. • Entertainment -- At the end of a long day, or during me off on a Sunday, slaves would o en sing spirituals for relaxa on. • Code Songs -- One important func on of spirituals was their use in helping slaves escape. Code songs are songs that have hidden messages. Spirituals in Performance There are two kinds of spirituals: • Sorrow songs are sung slowly and sadly, telling of the heavy burden of slavery and the belief that be er days were coming. • Jubilees are up-tempo songs that celebrate victory and joy by telling stories from the Bible of fi gures like Samson or David overcoming hardships.

SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | 3 3 About the Performance & Ar sts Sweet Honey In The Rock Guiding Ques ons:

♦ What does Sweet Honey In The Rock do in their performances?

♦ How do the ar sts use their songs to eff ect social or poli cal change?

♦ What kinds of messages can be communicated through music?

The Ensemble Founded in 1973 by Dr. Bernice Johnson simultaneously interpreted in uniquely Reagon, Sweet Honey in the Rock is a expressive American Sign Language. dynamic, Grammy Award-winning, all female Sweet Honey has a deep commitment a cappella ensemble that makes soul-s rring to create music out of the rich textures of music using the might and majesty of their African American legacy and tradi ons. The voices. ensemble’s stunning vocal prowess captures The Sweet Honey experience is like no the complex sounds of blues, spirituals, other. Six African American women join tradi onal gospel hymns, rap, reggae, African their powerful voices to create a blend of chants, hip hop, ancient lullabies, and jazz lyrics, movement and narra ve that variously improvisa on. Sweet Honey’s collec ve relate history, point the fi nger at injus ce, voice, occasionally accompanied by hand encourage ac vism, and sing the praises of percussion instruments, produces a sound love. The music speaks out against oppression fi lled with soulful harmonies and intricate and exploita on of every kind, and are rhythms.

4 | During both good and bad mes, Sweet Growing up in Southwest , Honey In The Rock has brought their inspiring heard this song sung music to communi es across the United by quartets. When she called together a States and around the world, raising the voice group of the strongest singers from her vocal of hope, love, jus ce, peace and resistance. workshop with the Washington, D.C. Black Sweet Honey invites audiences to open their Repertory Company, the fi rst song she taught minds and hearts and think about who we are them was “Sweet Honey in the Rock.” and what we do to one another and to our “A er they got the chorus harmony just fellow creatures on this planet. right, I said, that’s the name of the group, then I had to call my father, a Bap st minister, Singing Style and asked him the song’s meaning. He told Sweet Honey in the Rock sings in the me that it was a sacred parable (a simple a cappella style, which means the human story illustra ng a moral or religious lesson), voice is the sole instrument used for all and that the parable itself was not found in the melodies and harmonies. The only the Bible, but it told of a land so rich that instruments used are for rhythm, including when you cracked the rocks, honey fl owed shekeres (gourds with beads ne ed on the from them.” outside to produce a ra le sound), rains cks As a name, Sweet Honey in the Rock (a s ck with seeds inside that make a rain-like speaks clearly to the journey of the group sound when the s ck is inverted or shaken), as singers, cultural ac vists, and African drums, cowbells and hand-held ra les. American women. A cappella singers must have excellent pitch, and be able to sing contras ng harmony with other singers. A cappella groups come in all sizes, though the quartet is the most tradi onal version. Sweet Honey in the Rock currently u lizes fi ve voices in its harmonies. A sixth performer simultaneously signs the lyrics in American Sign Language.

Meaning in the Name On February 28, 1927, in Memphis, Tennessee, the blind sanc fi ed singer Mamie Forehand recorded a refrain based on Psalm 81:16. In this passage of scripture, the poet and musician David advised his people that if they would serve the Lord, they would be rewarded by being fed “honey out of the rock…” Forehand tled her song “Honey in the Rock” and sang those words, but random congrega ons soon added the adjec ve “sweet” to the tle, and the song has come down through history as “Sweet Honey in the Rock.”

SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | 5 Meet Sweet Honey in the Rock What are your names?

AishaA Kahlil Carol Maillard My name Aisha Kahlil, was Maillard is French, and my given to me when I was a great grandparents came from sophomore in college. I met the French side of a Caribbean a Muslim brother who gave me island named St. Mar n. I do the name, which I adopted when like being called by my last name I took shahada as a Muslim. Aisha means because there are not very many Maillards in “alive” in Arabic. Kahlil means “friend.” In the and it really seems to fi t my Somalia, Aisha means, “What do you desire?” energy.

Ysaye Maria Barnwell Nitanju Bolade Casel My fi rst name comes from My full name is Clarice Belgium and was the last name Adele Johnson Nitanju of a violinist and composer Bolade Casel. My parents whose name was Eugene Ysaye. named me Clarice; it means My father gave me this name “clear and bright.” Johnson is because he played the violin and gave violin my father’s family name. Nitanju was given lessons to me for 15 years. He really wanted to me by a Yoruba Priest who told me this me to be a violinist. My last name is Barnwell name came to him in a dream. He told me it and it is Irish. There is a city in South Carolina meant “to possess and project trust.” Bolade called Barnwell, and my father’s family and is a Yoruba name from Nigeria which means everyone I have ever met with that name had “honor arrives.” Casel is the family name of some connec on to South Carolina. my husband, Tayari.

Shirley Childress Saxton Louise Robinson In the Deaf Community, we Louise means warrior, iden fy one another using our “renowned warrior.” I was name sign. My name sign is named a er my mother’s the le er “S” (handshape of a best friend, Louise. so fi st) with the thumb and index fi nger side facing and touching the cheek.

6 | her academic service as Professor Emeritus of History at The in Washington, DC and as Cosby Professor of Fine Arts at , Atlanta, GA. Founder of the Smithsonian Ins tu on’s Program in African American Culture, she served as principal scholar, conceptual producer, and host of the path-breaking and Peabody Award-winning radio series Wade In The Water: African American Sacred Music Tradi ons. Currently, Reagon holds the posi on of Curator Emeritus at the Smithsonian Ins tu on’s Na onal Museum of American History. In 1973, Reagon founded Sweet Honey In The Rock and led the group un l her re rement in 2004 a er 30 years of performing and recording. In addi on to her highly acclaimed publica ons and recordings, Reagon has received numerous honors in recogni on of her work, including the MacArthur Fellowship (1989), the Heinz Award for the Arts and Humani es (2003), and the 1995 Presiden al Medal for her contribu on to public understanding of the humani es.

Bernice Johnson Reagon Founder of Sweet Honey In The Rock, composer, singer, scholar, music producer, author, public speaker and ac vist

For over four decades, Bernice Johnson Reagon’s mul -faceted career has taken her from the front lines of the in her birthplace of Albany, Georgia to her pioneering work as a scholar, teacher and ar st in the history and evolu on of African American culture. Reagon’s contribu ons as a scholar and composer are refl ected in her numerous publica ons and produc ons on African American culture and history, as well as in Bernice Johnson Reagon

SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | 7 4 About the Art Form By Sandra Graham, Ethnomusicology, UC Davis Guiding QuesƟ ons:

♦ What are some of the characteris cs of African American music?

♦ What is oral tradi on?

♦ Describe the various ways spirituals have played a role in people’s lives.

Slave Songs When Africans were brought to America as slaves in the 1700s and 1800s, they entered a frightening and dangerous world. One thing gave slaves comfort in spite of the many hardships they endured: music, especially singing. Everyone had a voice, and so everyone could sing. When slaves sang, they sang together, just as they had back home in Africa. This created a feeling of made wri en music unnecessary was the use community among them. of call and response. A leader would begin the song (the call), and everyone else would Spirituals were an extremely important respond (the response). type of song. You may know a few spirituals, such as “Michael, Row the Boat Ashore,” Camp mee ngs were fi rst held in the1800s “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” or “Go Down, in Kentucky. People would go to the woods Moses.” The characters in spirituals come and fi elds and camp out in tents and a end from the Bible, and the stories usually worship services for several days at a me. tell about someone who overcomes a big There they would take part in the dances and obstacle. song rituals of their homeland, along with new songs of faith, pain and hope to the God Spirituals are easy to sing for a good of their inherited faith, Chris anity. Camp reason. They were created for a type of mee ngs were a way for people who lived on religious worship called a camp mee ng. the fron er— who didn’t live near neighbors Most of the people who a ended camp or a church —to get together and worship. mee ngs could not read or write. The songs that they sang during worship had to be easy Because these songs were passed on to remember. Therefore, spirituals usually through oral tradi on (they weren’t wri en have a lot of repe on and o en have a down, but were learned from other singers), chorus—a part of the song that repeats a er they didn’t have a specifi c number of verses each verse. That way, people could sing them or even specifi c words. The leader decided without needing a book. Another thing that what verse to sing, and in what order to sing

8 | the verses. One of the advantages of this railroad, but a trail of homes owned by other music is that people could make up new aboli onists who were willing to shelter verses very easily, which they did to make the escaped slaves on their way North. Harriet spiritual refl ect their own lives. As a result, Tubman’s code name was Moses, because, every performance of a spiritual was unique. as the Old Testament explains, Moses helped lead his people (the Israelites) out of slavery The Func on of Spirituals in Egypt. Therefore the spiritual “Go Down, Spirituals spread from camp mee ngs Moses” was a way of aler ng slaves that to planta ons, and they became part of the Harriet Tubman was on her way. everyday lives of slaves through the Civil War. If one slave wanted to advise another These were func onal songs, meaning that slave that an escape was planned for that they had a specifi c purpose in society. For night, he might sing “Steal away, steal away, example: steal away to Jesus.” In coded language, 1. WORK -- Singing spirituals made work “steal away” means “escape” and “Jesus” less boring. It also helped set a rhythm for means the North, or safety. Therefore, work that had repe ve ac ons, like picking spirituals func oned as code songs to hide or digging. Slave owners liked this because it important messages from the slave masters. made the slaves more produc ve. 2. WORSHIP -- Even though some owners didn’t allow their slaves to worship on the planta on, slaves found ways around this. One way was something called the invisible church. At night, a er the owners were asleep, the slaves would go out into the woods (their invisible church) and worship, where no one could see or hear them. Spirituals were an important part of this worship. 3. ENTERTAINMENT -- At the end of a long day, or during me off on a Sunday, slaves would o en sing spirituals for relaxa on. 4. CODE SONGS -- One important func on of spirituals was their use in helping slaves escape. Code songs are songs that have hidden messages.

Harriet Tubman’s Code Song Harriet Tubman was a slave who escaped from a planta on in Maryland in 1849 and who worked as an aboli onist (someone who wants to abolish, or get rid of, slavery). She helped more than 300 slaves escape to freedom in the North. This wasn’t really a Harriet Tubman SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | 9 Performance of Spirituals Characteris cs of African Musical Although some mes musicians performed Tradi ons spirituals accompanied by banjo or fi ddle, When Africans came to America, they when instruments weren’t available, spirituals may have lost their languages, but they were sung unaccompanied, or a cappella. The remembered their music. They re-created singers improvised harmonies, singing pitches African song in America, infl uenced by their that were diff erent from the melody, as well new surroundings and their cultural memory as clapping their hands and dancing. of Africa. Everything in the list below applies There are two kinds of spirituals: to how spirituals were fi rst performed, as well as to blues, gospel, rap, and other types of • Sorrow songs are sung slowly and African American music. mournfully, and told of the heavy burden of slavery and the belief that a be er day was Listen for these things when Sweet Honey coming. in the Rock performs. • Jubilees are up-tempo songs celebra ng • Repe on with varia on. victory and joy through reference to biblical • Movement (dance, gesture) is always fi gures like Samson or David who had present. In fact, most African defi ni ons of overcome tremendous hardships. music include dance. In today’s African American churches, the • Voices and instruments overlap, so there congrega on most o en sings spirituals and are very few silent moments. hymns. Some of the songs are tradi onal, • Call and response is common. the lyrics and melody passed down from hundreds of years ago. Some mes the lyrics • Music is communal: everyone are new but the tune is from a familiar song. par cipates, whether by singing, clapping, Together, church singers “raise” a song. This dancing, shou ng, or playing an instrument. means that when a song leader begins a song, • The voice quality tends to be intense and other voices from the congrega on need to strong. join in so that the song’s depth of emo on and beauty is fully expressed.

Sorrow Song Hear De Lambs A Cryin’ You hear de lambs a crying hear de lambs a crying hear de lambs a crying Oh, shepherd, feed-a my sheep Jubilee Let me Ride I’m a soldier, let me ride (1) I’m a soldier, let me ride I’m a soldier, let me ride low down your chariot let me ride Been converted (2) Got my cket (3) Trouble’s over (4) In the Kingdom (5) 10 | The Importance of Music Music has always been important in helping people get through hard mes, as well as in celebra ng good mes. African American music is especially signifi cant because spirituals kept the slaves’ hopes alive and the code songs helped them escape when they were enslaved in America. Over one hundred years later, in the 1960s, African Americans came back to these same spirituals to help keep hope alive during the Civil Rights era. Civil Rights protesters took part in demonstra ons to get the same rights as white Americans, such as any seat on a bus, and equal access to educa on and jobs. Even today, when people go through hard mes, they sing spirituals to li up their spirits.

1863 Lithograph of a former slave freed by the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Cons tu on

I grew up in a region that had developed a strong sacred-music singing tradi on, “in a Black Bap st community in Doughtery County, Georgia. For our fi rst eleven years, our church, Mt. Early Bap st, had no . Like most of the rural churches in that region, we did all of our singing unaccompanied except for our feet and hands; to this day I am an a cappella singer. I s ll know the songs I sang as a child and have hundreds of songs I have collected as a scholar. Sweet Honey in the Rock’s Founder Bernice

Johnson Reagon, from her book, We Who Believe in Freedom Bernice Johnson Reagon speaking in the 1970s SchoolTime Sweet Honey In” The Rock | 11 5 Selected Song Lyrics*

African Musical Tradi ons: Young and Posi ve By Nitanju Bolade Casel Sweet Honey in the Rock has created I am young and I am posi ve many albums and songs that appeal to I am the future, I’m gonna tell it like it is young people. The songs included here I won’t let anything stand in my way were composed by members of the group. My eyes are on the prize and they will stay that way. I’ve got self respect and a whole lot of pride. By providing the lyrics, we hope to provide I won’t let you pull me down into a nega ve stride. your students with a more complete Down a dead end street where only trouble lies. understanding of the ensemble’s musical That’s not the way to keep my . mission and values. This is the nine es and it’s a diffi cult thing. To maintain focus on my visions and dreams. Would You Harbor Me? Violence and abuse of drugs Lyrics and music by Ysaye M. Barnwell Turns an innocent child into a vicious thug. Would you harbor me? Would I harbor you? Take a close look at this society Would you harbor me? Would I harbor you? At the status of the youth and you will see A sad situa on that is out of hand Would you harbor a Chris an, a Muslim, a Jew? Youth are in trouble all over the land. A here c, convict or spy? Don’t let this state of aff airs bring us down. Would you harbor a runaway woman or child, We have to work together, change things around A poet, a prophet, a king? I start every day by taking the me Would you harbor an exile or a refugee, To remind myself, repeat one more me that A person living with AIDS? Would you harbor a Tubman, a Garre , a Truth I am young and I am posi ve A fugi ve or a slave? I am the future, I’m gonna tell it like it is Would you harbor a Hai an, Korean or Czech, I won’t let anything stand in my way A lesbian or a gay? My eyes are on the prize and they will stay that way.

Would you harbor me? Would I harbor you? I’ll teach you, and you teach me Would you harbor me? Would I harbor you? We’ll exchange informa on on how to be The best we can be, not anything less It has nothing to do with how we look or dress

It’s not material things that make us who we are Not the sneakers, not the jewelry, not the clothes, Or the cars It’s not the job, not the money, nor the status size That’s only momentary pleasure, not a valuable prize Honesty and truth rank high on my list Caring and respect for others help to assist me ‘Cause I choose to move with love in my heart For my sisters and my brothers In every part of the world

* Lyrics used with permission. You know, it doesn’t make sense For educa onal purposes only. To discriminate or believe in hate

12 | Put down another because of their color or race So just don’t forget when you turn around I must appreciate all the diff erences of each na onality I’ll be standing right behind you with a serious frown I don’t want everybody to be like me ‘Cause every me I hear an older person say: Can you imagine everyone exactly the same? “What’s wrong with the young folks of today?” Life would be so boring I would go insane I want to scream I love the fact that each person is unique You know what I mean? The way we think, feel, look and express our needs Give us support to fulfi ll our dreams So let’s move up to a posi ve p Ex racism. It’s a nega ve trip! When I pick up a paper or turn on the news I’m rather overwhelmed by the nega ve views Another dead end street I would rather hear about the successes of life Don’t even go down there Not just the tragedy, not just the strife, Let’s accept one another and begin to care So if nothing else, I must encourage myself Upli ourselves, enrich our minds Find a li le bit of me to enrich my mind, ‘cause And every day try to fi nd a li le bit of me to say: I am young and I am posi ve I am young and I am posi ve I am the future, I’m gonna tell it like it is I am the future, I’m gonna tell it like it is I won’t let anything stand in my way I won’t let anything stand in my way My eyes are on the prize and they will stay that way. My eyes are on the prize and they will stay that way. I’ve got self respect and a whole lot of pride I don’t dis’ my elders, they deserve respect I won’t let you pull me down into a nega ve stride As a ma er of fact I do my best to protect Down a dead end street where only trouble lies Those who came before me, who struggled and fought That’s not the way to keep my eyes on the prize, ‘cause So that I would have a chance to listen up and be I am young and I am posi ve. taught

I turn off the TV, I open up a book I use my imagina on and try to be aware as I look And wonder what the future will be With pollu on destroying the land and the seas, Nuclear war, green house eff ect More toxic waste than ever before

I need all of you adults to live as if you care Your greedy style of living is my nightmare I need a world of clean air I can breathe Where I can drink the water and enjoy the trees Recycle all your plas c, bo les and glass I am young and I am posi ve I am the future, I’m gonna tell it like it is I won’t let anything stand in my way My eyes are on the prize and they will stay that way

Don’t leave it up to me to clean up your act All your oil spills, all the needless deaths Now you want to leave the planet and Go somewhere else? To the moon? Or Mars? You had be er beware You’ll do the same thing when you get up there

SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | 13 6 Historical Context Developed by Rhonda Benin and Elouise Burrell

Slavery in the United States Between the years of 1518 and 1806, African men, women and children were captured and sold into slavery. The African people were members of many diff erent tribal groups such as the Ashan , Mandinka, Ewe, Fons, Fulani, Ibo Hausa Ibibio, Yoruba, Seke, Efi k, Awikam, Kromen, Susu, Jolof, Gabon, Kru, etc. These people were stolen from their homelands, brought on slave ships from the west coast of Africa to the New World con nents of North and South America and the Caribbean. Once captured, these African men, women and children were chained together and packed into the bo om of large ships in the most miserable condi ons. The Middle Passage was the cruelest part of this 5-to-12 week journey from Africa to the New World. African people suff ered through terrible living condi ons, lack of space and food, diseases and physical violence aboard these slave ships. Over eighteen million African people were captured. One-third did not survive the voyage. In the United States, slavery was legal in the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. In 1861, these Confederate states seceded from the Union over economic diff erences, with slavery being a major issue, and the American Civil War began. In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipa on Proclama on, which freed the slaves in the Confederate states. Slaves lived on large planta ons where they provided free labor while working in the co on, tobacco and rice fi elds. Men, women and children worked from sunup to sundown with no pay. The slave masters were o en cruel and treated the slaves as if they were not human beings. Family members were sold and separated. Slaves were not allowed to read or write, to speak their na ve languages or prac ce any of their African customs. Those caught disobeying, were either mu lated, beaten, sold or killed. The slave master outlawed the playing of the drum, which was a primary instrument for West African people in communica on, celebra on, praise and rites of passage ac vi es or events. In Africa, the drum could send messages from one village to another. The slaves, in turn, shi ed the outlawed drum pa erns and rhythms to their voices, hands and feet, allowing them to maintain many musical tradi ons of their homeland and tribes. These early song forms would later become the source of American popular music.

14 | The Civil Rights Movement The African-American Civil Rights Movement refers to a period of noted events and reform movements in the United States aimed at abolishing racial discrimina on against African Americans between 1954 to 1968, par cularly in the South. For years, the church was the center of African American communi es, so it was natural that protestors adapted familiar church spirituals into “.” Protestors sang spirituals “as is” or wrote new lyrics to further emphasize the poli cal message of their protest. For instance, “” is derived from a spiritual known as both“I’ll Overcome Some Day” or “I’ll Be All Right.”

While spirituals originated as a means Dr. Mar n Luther King, Jr. and Core a Sco King on the fi ve-day of communica on among slaves, the civil to Montgomery Alabama, March 25, 1965. rights movement adopted many spirituals as anthems for the purpose of communica ng a message of social jus ce. These songs Making a Diff erence: Civil Rights inspired courage in the face of danger and Leaders bound separate groups of protesters into a : A college-educated seamstress unifi ed movement with a common purpose who eff ec vely launched the fi rst peaceful and language. protest of the Civil Rights Movement. The protest began when Parks boarded a Montgomery, Alabama city bus on December Spirituals As a Tool Of 1, 1955, and refused to give up her seat Non-Violence to a white man who was looking for a seat Non-violence is a moral philosophy that because the “white” sec on of the bus was rejects the use of violence in eff orts to full. Police arrested her for defying the city’s a ain social or poli cal change, and instead law, promp ng outraged black residents to embraces other means such as disobedience start the Montgomery bus boyco later that or the power of persuasion. The term year which lasted for over 381 days. has come to cover a range of techniques used for trying to achieve social : A prominent civil rights leader change without the use of violence, as well who quickly became the na onal voice for as the underlying poli cal and philosophical the black na onalist Na on of Islam in the reasoning for the use of these techniques. early 1950s. The son of a civil rights leader,

SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | 15 Rosa Parks Malcolm X Dr. Mar n Luther King Jr.

Malcolm Li le converted to Islam while hoped to desegregate the South and protect serving a prison term in the 1940s. He then black peoples’ poli cal rights through love changed his surname to “X” to represent and nonviolence and peaceful protest. the heritage and iden ty of the black people He received the Nobel Peace Prize in lost during centuries of slavery. A dynamic 1964, which boosted global awareness of speaker, Malcolm X espoused self-reliance, the civil rights movement and put pressure militancy, and independence for blacks, in on the federal government to address racial contrast to Mar n Luther King Jr.’s doctrine of inequality in the United States. However, love, non-violence, and integra on. Malcolm King’s eff orts were cut short when he was X’s view of the civil rights movement changed, assassinated in 1968. however, while he was on a holy pilgrimage to Mecca in 1964. When he returned, he broke Student Nonviolent Coordina ng Commi ee away from with the Na on of Islam and, with (SNCC) nonviolent organiza ons such as the Student A civil rights organiza on founded in 1960, Non-violent Coordina ng Commi ee (SNCC), a er the highly successful Greensboro sit-in, began working toward racial integra on. In a staged with the goal to organize students on tragic turn of events, rivals within the Na on campuses across the country. The SNCC was of Islam assassinated him in 1965. Although one of the most ac ve groups of the Civil his career was cut short, Malcolm X’s early Rights Movement and par cipated in nearly views and opinions greatly infl uenced the every major peaceful campaign. “” movement that began in the late 1960s. Aware of the inspira onal power of protest songs, the SNCC published books Mar n Luther King, Jr.: A civil rights leader of protest songs and formed singing groups during the 1950s and 1960s who fought such as the SNCC and CORE Freedom Singers. to protect the rights of black people in the These groups performed around the country South. King rose to na onal fame a er he and made recordings of their music. took charge of the Montgomery Alabama bus boyco in 1955. An amazing speaker, he came to lead the civil rights movement. He

16 | 7 Glossary

A cappella – (Italian) In the church style; only voices, Civil Rights – Rights to personal liberty established no instruments. by the 13th and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Cons tu on and certain Congressional acts, especially Aboli onist – A person who wanted to abolish, or get as applied to an individual or a minority group. The rid of, slavery. Aboli onists wanted to make the slaves rights to full legal, social, and economic equality free. extended to African Americans. American Civil War – War (1861-65) between northern Discrimina on – Treatment or considera on of, or and southern states of United States. making a dis nc on in favor of or against, a person or American Sign Language (ASL) – A language developed thing based on the race, class, or category to which for those who are hearing impaired or deaf, it uses that person or thing belongs rather than on individual hand signals and mo ons to communicate words. merit. Black Power – A movement that grew out of the civil Func onal songs – Songs have diff erent func ons, or rights movement in the 1960s. Black Power calls for purposes, in society. For example, “Happy Birthday” is racial equality and independent development of a func onal song, because it is sung to wish someone poli cal and social ins tu ons for African Americans a joyous birthday. and emphasizes pride in African American culture. Genre – a category of ar s c endeavor having a Blues – A style of expressive music from southern par cular form, style, content or technique. African American nonreligious songs. Gospel – a genre of religious a cappella music Call and response – A way of performing a song with origina ng with black slaves in the US that features call a group of people. A leader will sing a line of the song and response. (the call), and the group will sing the next line (the Harmony – The simultaneous sounding of two or more response). Most spirituals are performed using call tones, especially when it is pleasing to the ear. and response. – A song of praise or thanksgiving to a god or Camp mee ng – A style of worship that began in 1800 na on. on the fron er. People would gather for several days and worship together in tents. Improvisa on – Spontaneous composi on, or composi on in performance. Instead of making up Chorus – The tune and words to the chorus stay the a song ahead of me, the musician makes it up on same throughout an en re song. The chorus is usually the spot, as he or she performs it. Spirituals have sung in between diff erent verses. Also called a refrain. a lot of improvisa on and this adds interest to the Communal music – Music in which everyone in the songs as they are slightly diff erent each me they are group or community par cipates. African and African performed. American music is usually communal. Jazz – A type of music developed in America that Congrega on – A group of people gathered together combined African drum rhythms, African American for religious worship. spirituals, and blues with European classical and marching music. Con nents – Seven great masses of land on earth; Africa, North America, South America, Asia, Australia, Lyrics – Words that are sung or spoken in a song or Europe and Antarc ca. poem. Contras ng – A diff erence, especially a strong Melodies – of musical notes to create a dissimilarity, between things being compared. dis nct sound.

SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | 17 Metaphor – One thing conceived as represen ng Shahada – The Islamic profession of faith another, like a symbol. Slave – A person who is owned by another person. Middle Passage – The most diffi cult leg of the 5-to-12 Slavery – The owning and keeping of slaves as a week journey from Africa to the New World. prac ce. Na on of Islam – A religious and cultural organiza on Slave master – A person who owned slaves. founded in 1931 in the United States, upholding Islamic principles and favoring poli cal, social, and Spirituals – Songs that were created for worship in the economic independence for African Americans. camp mee ng. They are easy to remember because the words and tunes are repe ve. Many stories are Oral tradi on – A way of passing along knowledge by about overcoming an obstacle, and the characters word of mouth, instead of through wri ng. Spirituals come from the Bible. were passed on through oral tradi on, which meant that people memorized them and then taught them to Rap – A type of music developed especially in African- others. American urban communi es and characterized by spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics; rhythm and poetry. Percussion – Striking or tapping a musical instrument or object to produce rhythmic sounds. Reggae – Popular music of Jamaican origin having elements of calypso and rhythm and blues. Pitch – A note or musical tone. Rites of Passage – A ritual or ceremony which signifi es Planta on – An estate with farmland, cul vated by a transi on from one stage to another, as from workers living on it. adolescence to adulthood. Quartet – A group of four singers. Underground Railroad – A route (not a real railroad) Secede – Formally withdraw from being a member in that slaves used to escape to the North and to an organiza on, associa on, or alliance. freedom. The stops along this route were the homes of aboli onists who protected the escapees. The Segrega on – To require, o en with force, the fl eeing slaves traveled by night so they wouldn’t separa on of a specifi c racial, religious, or other group be no ced. Harriet Tubman was an important from the general body of society. “conductor” on this railroad. Sextet – A company of seven singers or musicians.

18 | 8 Learning Ac vi es

Music (Grades 3-12) before you call him a man? (Blowin’ in The Songs of Protest: Sound Awareness Wind) • I’d hammer out danger, I’d hammer out a Lesson warning...(If I Had a Hammer) • Imagine there’s no heaven....(Imagine) Developed By Melanie DeMore • Paved paradise and put up a parking lot... (Big Yellow Taxi) Opening Song • Marchin’ up to Freedom Land...( Ain’t Begin this unit by teaching a song that Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around) serves as a bridge between cultures or one that expresses community. Sample Discussion Ques ons Examples: What is the writer trying to say? Shahidu/Hine Ma Tov (How good it is What is the literal meaning? when brethren come together in peace) What is the fi gura ve meaning? Perhaps the most important ques on is this: This piece is in Arabic and Hebrew. Of all the songs they’ve chosen, are there any Dog Dog that need never be sung again? This song asks a simple ques on: If dogs can get along with each other, what’s our problem? History & Social Science (Grades DOG DOG 2-12) Dog Dog, Dig ogg, A-digga dog dog,(repeat 4x) Ac vity

If my dog loves your dog Have students watch the video of Mar n And your dog loves my dog, Luther King’s famous “I have a Dream” And my dog loves your dog, speech from August, 1963. (Available online And your dog loves my dog at: h p://video.google.com/videoplay?doc Then why can’t we id=1732754907698549493) Sit under the apple tree Ask students to think of how they would Assignment: like to see the world change for the be er. Have each student fi nd a song that speaks Encourage students to write these ideas about social change or an incident that down, beginning each sentence with, “I have sparked a change in social awareness and a dream…” bring the lyrics to class. Students may read their “dreams” out Song Selec on Examples: loud, with the class responding “I have a Select 4 or 5 lyric examples from the class dream” a er each sentence read. selec ons. Here are a few sugges ons: • How many roads must a man walk down,

SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | 19 Language Arts (Grades 2-12) Demonstrate the American Sign Language for “Coming for to carry me home,” so that students can sign along with their choral Make Up Your Own Verse response. An online ASL dic onary is at: SWING LOW, SWEET CHARIOT h p://www.aslpro.com/cgi-bin/aslpro/aslpr Leader (call): Swing low, sweet chariot, Everyone (response): Coming for to carry me home. Ques ons for Students Leader (call): Swing low, sweet chariot, Everyone (response): Coming for to carry me home. • How do you think a song like “Swing Low, First verse: Sweet Chariot” gave slaves hope? Leader (call): I looked over Jordan, and what did I see? • If you look at the words, they talk about Everyone (response): Coming for to carry me home. a chariot and a band of angels coming to Leader (call): A band of angels coming a er me. get the singer and take him or her “home.” Everyone (response): Coming for to carry me home. Where do you think home is? • Are there any coded words in your verse? If Using the song Swing Low, Sweet Chariot, so, what is their signifi cance? students can make up their own verses. A good star ng point is to have students write a verse that relates to their own life. Theater & History (Grades 3-12) If you need a place to start, have students Research and Performance Ac vity fi ll in the blanks with a rhyming line for the Look up and write out 2-3 sentences lyrics below. defi ning terms from the Civil Rights Vocabulary below using an encyclopedia. Leader (call): On my last quiz I got a D, Using important people and events from the Everyone (response): Coming for to carry me home. Leader (call): [make up your own line] civil rights movement as inspira on, write Everyone (response): Coming for to carry me home. and perform a short skit based on one of the (sing chorus) terms.

Teacher Note: Sugges ons for lyrics, “Next me I’m aiming for a C/B”; “My teacher wasn’t very happy with me”; “But my best friend is helping me.”) Making up your Civil Rights Vocabulary own addi ons to a song like this is called improvisa on. Another way of thinking about this is “composi on during performance.” You can improvise both text and melody. Greensboro sit-in In doing this, you make the song your own. Jim Crow This is what African Americans did with their songs: Every singer made the songs their Defacto Segrega on own, so that spirituals and other types of Million Man March songs became records of African American Twenty-Fourth Amendment lives.

20 | Music (Grades K-6) Making an Instrument: Shakers adapted from: h p://www.projects-for-kids.com/music-projects/musical-shaker.php Create a musical shaker similar to a maraca or an African shaker. A shaker makes a pleasant sound and is excellent for se ng a rhythm with less emphasis than a drum. 1. Take a cardboard tube of any length and seal one end with paper and tape. 2. Fill the tube about one quarter full with dry rice or beans. 3. Seal the other end with paper and tape. 4. Now decorate the shaker with bright colors and designs. 5. Shake.

Experiment: Try making a shaker out of diff erent materials and see how the sound changes. For example, try a container made out of plas c, glass, or metal. Beads of diff erent materials and sizes make good fi llers with diff erent sounds. See if you no ce a connec on between materials and the dis nct sounds they make. References:

Sweet Honey in the Rock: www.sweethoney. Video Clips com/home.php h p://www.sweethoney.com/video.php Lesson plan on Spirituals: h p://edsitement. neh.gov/lesson-plan/spirituals Local OrganizaƟ ons Cultural Heritage Choir: Books www.culturalheritagechoir.com/ Black Popular Music in America, Arnold Shaw (1986) InsƟ tutes of Black Culture Black Songs: The Forge and the Flame, John The Underground Na onal Railroad Freedom Lovell, Jr. (1972) Center Spirituals Triumphant Old and New, Edited www.freedomcenter.org and arranged by Edward Boatner (1927) 50 East Freedom Way Slaves Songs of The Georgia Sea Islands, Lydia Cincina , Ohio Parrish (1992) The African Slave Trade, Basil Davidson (1980) The African American Museum and Library at Oakland Children’s Books www.oaklandlibrary.org/AAMLO Many Thousand Gone: African Americans 659 14th Street from Slavery to Freedom, Dillon, Leo and Oakland, CA 94612 Hamilton, Virginia (2002) . . . If You Lived When There Was Slavery in Center for Black Music Research America. Kamma, Anne and Johnson, Pamela www.cbmr.org (2004) 623 South Wabash Suite 600 Henry’s Freedom Box: A True Story from the Chicago, Ill Underground Railroad, Levine, Ellen and Nelson, Kadir (2007)

SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | 21 Sweet Honey In The Rock IN THIS LAND Discography EarthBeat! 1992

SWEET HONEY IN THE ROCK STILL ON THE JOURNEY Flying Fish 1976 EarthBeat! 1993

B’LIEVE I’LL RUN ON... I GOT SHOES Redwood 1978 Music For Li le People 1994

GOOD NEWS SACRED GROUND Flying Fish 1981 EarthBeat! 1996

WE ALL...EVERYONE OF US SELECTIONS Flying Fish 1983 Rounder 1997

THE OTHER SIDE ...TWENTY-FIVE... Flying Fish 1985 Rykodisc 1998

FEEL SOMETHING DRAWING ME ON STILL THE SAME ME Flying Fish 1985 Rounder Kids 2000

BREATHS THE WOMEN GATHER Flying Fish 1988 EarthBeat! 2003

LIVE AT CARNEGIE HALL EXPERIENCE 101 Flying Fish 1988 Grammy Award Nominated, 2007

ALL FOR FREEDOM GO IN GRACE Music For Li le People 1989 She-Rocks 5, Inc., 2008

Sweet Honey In The Rock www.sweethoney.com

Sweet Honey DVDs and Songbook:

Raise Your Voice DVD A snapshot of the life of Sweet Honey in the Rock during their 30th anniversary year.

Singing for Freedom DVD A concert for the child in each of us

Con nuum Song Book The Performances of Sweet Honey in the Rock

22 | 9 California State Standards

English Language Arts Standards 3.0 HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL CONTEXT 3.4 Defi ne how tone or meaning is conveyed in poetry Understanding the historical contribu ons and cultural through word choice, fi gura ve language, sentence dimensions of music structure, line length, punctua on, rhythm, repe on, Students analyze the role of music in past and present and rhyme. cultures throughout the world, no ng cultural diversity History - Social Science Content as it relates to music, musicians, and composers. 4.0 AESTHETIC VALUING 5.4 Students understand the poli cal, religious, social, and economic ins tu ons that evolved in the colonial Responding to, analyzing, and making judgments about era. Describe the introduc on of slavery into America, works of music the responses of slave families to their condi on, the Students cri cally assess and derive meaning from ongoing struggle between proponents and opponents works of music and the performance of musicians of slavery, and the grdual ins tu onaliza on of slavery according to the elements of music, aesthe c quali es, in the South. and human responses. 3.4 Students understand the role of rules and laws 5.0 CONNECTIONS, RELATIONSHIPS, APPLICATIONS in our daily lives and the basic structure of the U.S. government. Connec ng and applying what is learned in music to learning in other art forms and subject areas and to 6. Describe the lives of American heroes who took careers risks to secure our freedoms (e.g., Anne Hutchinson, Students apply what they learn in music across subject Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jeff erson, Abraham areas. They develop competencies and crea ve skills in Lincoln, , Harriet Tubman, Mar n problem solving, communica on, and management of Luther King, Jr.). me and resources that contribute to lifelong learning Music Grades K-12 and career skills. They also learn about careers in and related to music. 1.0 ARTISTIC PERCEPTION Processing, analyzing, and responding to sensory informa on through the language and skills unique to music Students read, notate, listen to, analyze, and describe music and other aural informa on, using the terminology of music. 2.0 CREATIVE EXPRESSION Crea ng, performing, and par cipa ng in music Students apply vocal and instrumental musical skills in performing a varied repertoire of music. They compose and arrange music and improvise melodies, varia ons, and accompaniments, using digital/electronic technology when appropriate.

SchoolTime Sweet Honey In The Rock | 23 Cal Performances thanks the following donors for their gi s in support of our About Cal Performances and SchoolTime Educa on and Community Programs: The mission of Cal Performances is to inspire,

Anonymous nurture and sustain a lifelong apprecia on for the Bank of America performing arts. Cal Performances, the performing arts Jesse and Laren Brill presenter of the University of California, Berkeley, fulfi lls Richard Buxbaum and Catherine Hartshorn Earl and June Cheit this mission by presen ng, producing and commissioning Nancy and Gordon Douglass outstanding ar sts, both renowned and emerging, to Deborah Duncan and Mr. Barne Lipton Karin Evans and Charles Mark Humbert serve the University and the broader public through The Fremont Group Founda on performances and educa on and community programs. The Robert J. and Helen H. Glaser Family Founda on Alex and Eva Glazer Cal Performances celebrates over 100 years on the UC Jane Go esman and Geoff rey Biddle Berkeley Campus. Evelyn and Walter Haas, Jr. Fund Beth Hurwich Our SchoolTime program cul vates an early Kaiser Permanente Kennedy Center Partners in Educa on apprecia on for and understanding of the performing Carol Nusinow Kurland and Duff Kurland arts amongst our youngest audiences, with hour-long, Ms. Germaine LaBerge Sally Landis and Michael White day me performances by the same world-class ar sts Susan Marinoff and Thomas Schrag who perform as part of the main season. SchoolTime The Hare Family Maris Meyerson has become an integral part of the academic year for Rachel Morello-Frosch teachers and students throughout the Bay Area. Carol and Joe Neil Eddie and Amy Orton Kenneth and Frances Reid Gail and Daniel Rubinfeld Linda and Will Schieber William A. Se les Fund for AileyCamp Warren Sharp and Louise Laufersweiler Barclay and Sharon Simpson Markus and Barbara Trice Carol Jackson Upshaw Wells Fargo Zellerbach Family Founda on

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24 | This Cal Performances SchoolTime Study Guide was wri en, edited and designed by Laura Abrams, Rica Anderson and Nicole Anthony. Addi onal material by Rhonda Benin, Elouise Burrell, Melanie DeMore and Sandra Graham.

© 2012 Cal Performances