Where did our music of today come from? In this program, Ainslie helps students explore the music that came before today’s Rock ‘n’ Roll. With interactive call & response singing and syncopated hand-clapping, Scott presents a fast-moving tour of many of the songs students encounter in their music classes: early spirituals, work songs, Ragtime and Delta Blues. Playing his fretless gourd banjo, one-string diddley bow, acoustic and slide guitars, Scott encourages lots of appropriate movement and makes the learning fun. Peppered with humor and stories, Scott’s teaching concerts are tailored to grade level to help students listen for the musical building blocks that continue to influence the music they hear today all around them – contemporary Rock, Country, Gospel, R & B, and Hip-Hop. Ainslie’s Teacher’s Study Guides are filled with related classroom activities, background and history of the music and its African roots, as well as a list of resources for the classroom.
Use this link to view a video excerpt from this program: https://youtu.be/WkYfn1SZRkI
Artist Background
Scott Ainslie comes to the classroom as educator, storyteller, scholar/historian and musician. He performs & lectures on the African roots & American diversity of the blues. A Phi Beta Kappa, Magna Cum Laude grad of Washington & Lee and author of the best-selling Robert Johnson/At the Crossroads & an instructional video on Starlicks Master Sessions Series, he was awarded the 2000 Sam Ragan Fine Arts Award from St. Andrew’s Presbyterian College, a 2000 Indie Award from The Independent in Durham, NC and a 2000 Living Heritage Award from the National Slide Guitar Festival. He’s received support for his educational work from the National Endowment for the Arts & NC Arts and is a 2001-2002 Public Fellow in arts education at UNC Chapel Hill.
Search Criteria
- Program Type: Performance
- Discipline: Music
- Grade Level: Elementary, High, Middle
- Cultural Context: African, African-American, European
- Accepts bookings in Johnston County
