347 African and African American Music
Ben Franklin's World
Liz Covart
4.6 • 1.5K Ratings
🗓️ 20 December 2022
⏱️ 57 minutes
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Summary
It’s impossible to overstate the importance of African and African American music to the United States’ musical traditions. Steven Lewis, a Curator of Music and Performing Arts at the Smithsonian, notes that “African American influences are so fundamental to American music there would be no American music without them.”
Jon Beebe, a Jazz pianist, professional musician, and an interpretive ranger at the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park, leads us on an exploration of how and why African rhythms and beats came to play important roles in the musical history and musical evolution of the Untied States.
Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/347
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- Episode 342: Elizabeth Ellis, The Great Power of Small Native Nations
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- Episode 346: Music & Politics in the Early United States
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | You're listening to an airwave media podcast. |
| 0:04.0 | Ben Franklin's world is a production of the |
| 0:06.2 | Omaha Institute and is sponsored by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. |
| 0:19.0 | Hello and welcome to episode 347 of Ben Franklin's world. |
| 0:19.0 | Hello and welcome to episode 347 of Ben Franklin's world. |
| 0:24.7 | The podcast dedicated to helping you, |
| 0:27.0 | learn more about how the people and events |
| 0:29.0 | of our early American past have shaped |
| 0:31.2 | the present day world we live in. |
| 0:33.0 | And I'm your host, Liz Kovart. |
| 0:35.0 | It's impossible to overstate the importance of African and African American music |
| 0:40.0 | to the United States' musical traditions. |
| 0:42.0 | In fact, Stephen Lewis, a curator of music |
| 0:45.1 | and performing arts at the Smithsonian, |
| 0:47.2 | notes that, quote, describing the African American influence |
| 0:50.3 | on American |
| 0:54.0 | influences are so fundamental to American influences are so fundamental to American |
| 1:00.0 | that there would be no American music without them." |
| 1:04.0 | End quote. |
| 1:05.0 | African and African American music has indelibly shaped the musical landscape of the United States. |
| 1:10.0 | So given the importance of African and African American rhythms, beats, instruments, and songs in both |
| 1:15.8 | early America and in our modern time, I decided to make this last episode in our five episode |
... |
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