Andrew Lesser Music

This document surveys the history of American popular music since its transformation from folk music of various cultures to the multiple genres of the 21st century. Examples of musical styles include pop, rock, R&B, soul, country, techno, hip-hop, rap, and many more. Popular artists spanning over a hundred years and their contributions to pop culture are discussed, along with a list of suggested listening representing the most significant songs of American popular music.

This series of handouts contain brief biographies of some of the most significant musicians of American popular music. Various styles and genres are represented across decades of music in pop culture. Each biography contains a section on the artist's representative musical style and a short catalog of their most famous songs. Biographies include: Adele Alicia Keys Beastie Boys Beyonce Bob Dylan Bob Marley Britney Spears Christina Aguilera Elvis Presley Eminem Garth Brooks James Brown Johnny Cas

This text serves to assist the Middle, High, or early collegiate music teacher to instruct a course on Music History, focusing on music and chant in the late Middle Ages, approximately 1000 - 1400 A.D. Subjects covered include world history, philosophy, religion, musical theoretical practices, major figures in Medieval history, and a brief history of Gregorian Chant in the latter part of the Middle Ages. A list of suggested listening is offered, which can be found online on YouTube. Discussion q

This text serves to assist the Middle, High, or early collegiate music teacher to instruct a course on Music History, focusing on music in video games and multimedia, from the 1980's to the present day. Subjects covered include history, technology,and major composers. A list of suggested listening is offered, which can be found online on YouTube. Discussion questions for assessment and evaluation are also included and can be used for in-class discussions or homework assignments.

Folk Music in World Culture is a comprehensive text that covers world music around the globe. Ancient and modern practices of musical instruments, performance, and cultural significant in society is covered with illustrations of foreign cultures and their own unique musical customs. A suggested listened list is also provided for those who would like to listen to this music on YouTube.

This text serves to assist the Middle, High, or early collegiate music teacher to instruct a course on Music History, focusing on music and chant in the Romantic Era, approximately 1825 - 1900. Subjects covered include world history, philosophy, religion, musical theoretical practices, and major composers, including Fraznk Liszt, Richard Wagner, Robert Schumann, and Peter Illyich Tchaikovsky, among others. A list of suggested listening is offered, which can be found online on YouTube. Discussion

This set of worksheets focuses on the history of three American popular styles of music: Hip-Hop, Rock, and R&B. Each worksheet contains a short close reading section with specific vocabulary words and a brief list of discussion questions. This is an excellent resource for elementary and middle school students learning about American music while practicing valuable language arts skills.

This text serves to assist the Middle, High, or early collegiate music teacher to instruct a course on Music History, focusing on music and chant in the Classical Era, approximately 1750 - 1825. Subjects covered include world history, philosophy, religion, musical theoretical practices, and major composers, including Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Ludwig van Beethoven. A list of suggested listening is offered, which can be found online on YouTube. Discussion questions for assessment

This text serves to assist in the instruction of Music of in the Ancient Greek society. Subjects covered include mythology, musical instruments, culture, Greek philosophy, famous figures, and musical theory. A discussion question worksheet is also included, and can be used as an in-class guided discussion activity or an individual homework assignment.

This text serves to describe the history of American jazz, including its major styles and genres, contributors, and its connection with American history. Artists such as Louie Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, and John Coltrane are discussed, in addition to the rise of styles including the blues, swing, bebop, and fusion. This text is designed for middle, high school, and collegiate students studying an introductory course on Music History. A supplemental document, Artists of Jazz Music

This text serves to assist the Middle, High, or early collegiate music teacher to instruct a course on Music History, focusing on music and chant in the Baroque Era, approximately 1600 - 1750 A.D. Subjects covered include world history, philosophy, religion, musical theoretical practices, and major composers, including Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel. A list of suggested listening is offered, which can be found online on YouTube. Discussion questions for assessment and evaluatio

This supplemental text to Music in the Romantic Era: 1825-1900 can be used in addition to the main text or as an independent biographical resource. Contained is a series of brief accessible biographies of prominent composers in the Romantic Era. Composers include Antonin Dvorak, Camille Saint-Saens, Edvard Grieg, Felix Mendelssohn, Franz Liszt, Franz Schubert, Frederic Chopin, Gioachino Rossini, Giuseppe Verdi, Gustav Mahler, Hector Berlioz, Johannes Brahms, Modest Mussorsky, Nikolai Rimsky-Kors

This text serves to assist the Middle, High, or early collegiate music teacher to instruct a course on Music History, focusing on music in the Twentieth Century, from 1900 until 2000. Subjects covered include world history, philosophy, religion, musical theoretical practices, and major composers to the present day. A list of suggested listening is offered, which can be found online on YouTube.

This text outlines a brief history of music at the movies, beginning from the first "talkies" to the advent of new technologies enjoyed by the top film composers of the present day. The essay covers nearly one hundred years of film music development, including examples from such prominent film composers such as Bernard Herrmann, Jerry Goldsmith, John Williams, and James Horner, among many others. Perfect for a General Music or Music History class discussing music in multimedia and popular cultur

This text serves to assist the Middle, High, or early collegiate music teacher to instruct a course on Music History, focusing on music and chant in the Renaissance Period, approximately 1400 - 1600 A.D. Subjects covered include world history, philosophy, religion, musical theoretical practices, and major composers in Renaissance history. A list of suggested listening is offered, which can be found online on YouTube. Discussion questions for assessment and evaluation are also included and can be

This text serves to assist the Middle, High, or early collegiate music teacher to instruct a course on Music History, focusing on music and chant in the early Middle Ages, approximately 500 - 1000 A.D. Subjects covered include world history, philosophy, religion, musical theoretical practices, major figures in Medieval history, and a brief history of early Gregorian Chant. A list of suggested listening is offered, which can be found online on YouTube. Discussion questions for assessment and eval

This complete version of the original text A Brief History of Music for Young Adults by Dr. Andrew Lesser contains all of the chapters posted on Teachers Pay Teachers in one volume. The text has been updated and revised for greater continuity, along with the addition of discussion questions and classroom activities for each chapter. It also includes all Composer and Artist profiles, along with a comprehensive list of influential theorists, composers, and musicians covered in the text.

This supplemental text to Music in the Baroque Era: 1600-1750 can be used in addition to the main text or as an independent biographical resource. Contained is a series of single page accessible biographies of prominent composers in the Baroque Era. Composers include Antonio Vivaldi, Archangelo Corelli, Claudio Monteverdi, George Frideric Handel, Girolamo Frescobaldi, Heinrich Schutz, Jean-Baptiste Lully, and Johann Sebastian Bach. A list of suggested listening of musical examples from each comp

This set of close reading worksheets is appropriate for students in elementary and middle school focusing on a unit of world music. Each worksheet contains a close reading text with specific vocabulary words followed by a set of discussion questions. This is an excellent resource for learning about music in world culture and as a language arts instructional tool. Worksheets include the following regions: Hawaii, Appalachia, Scandinavia, China, India, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Peru, Indonesia, New Orl

This collection of short biographies details the lives and works of some of the most famous film composers in history. Biographies include Max Steiner, Erich Korngold, Bernard Herrmann, Elmer Bernstein, Henry Mancini, Jerry Goldsmith, John Williams, James Horner, Danny Elfman, James Newton Howard, Howard Shore, and Michael Giacchino. Can also be used with Teaching Music History: Music in Film or separately as handouts.