Themes
- Human Rights
- Democracy
- Social Peace
Objectives
Musicians of all genres have voiced their support for causes such as civil rights and an end to war. There’s a big tradition of protest songs in music and it can be an important tool to reflect about Human Rights, democracy and tolerance.
This activity pretends to use music, in a perspective of Education Through Arts, to go back in time and analyze some specific period in time and raise awareness to some topics: democracy, peace, freedom, human rights, etc.
Participants will discover more about History through Art and how Art can change the world, at the same time they will develop some basic knowledge about music, melody, lyrics and song writing.
- To stimulate creativity
- To be able to identify important musicians in the history of pop culture
- To be able to identify and understand important periods in the History of mankind
- To promote education through Art (namely music)
Materials
- Speakers
- Radio/Laptop with the chosen songs
- Paper
- Markers
- Flipchart
- You will also need an internet connection
Recommended Method
1.Explain that the aim of the workshop: to raise awareness to the topics of Freedom, Peace, Racism and Human Rights through Music, to learn more about some specific periods in time and to promote Education Through Arts. In a more specific way, the aim of the workshop is: to identify 4 musicians and to understand what they represented in History, analyzing his songs.
2.Start with a round of introductions where participants share one music artist they admire and, if possible, one song with a strong political message they would like others to hear. Let them reflect about it.
3.Show them 4 pictures printed in A4 paper: Billie Holliday, Woody Guthrie, Bob Marley, John Lennon. Ask them if they know who are they and listen to the answers.
4.Divide participants into four groups of 5. If more groups are needed you will need more pictures of artists (check the “Tips for facilitators” in the end for more musicians suggestions). Each group will choose one picture and search about him: who was him/her?, how was he/she connected with political topics?, what did he/she represent to the world of music and not only?
5.Have the groups briefly present the artists to the others. Stimulate creativity. They can use flipchart and markers, but also other methods like role playing.
6.Now it’s time to present the songs for each artist:
Billie Holliday – Strange Fruit
Woody Guthrie – This Land is Your Land
Bob Marley – Get Up Stand Up
John Lennon – Give Peace a Chance
9.At the end of the workshop participants will display the presentations they made about the artists on the venue f the workshop.
Debriefing and evaluation
Ask participants to explain the idea they were developing with and what they think about it. Some questions to help reflection:
Did this change your perspective of music and what a song can be?
Did you find you knew more or less about this subjects?
Tips for facilitators
Other artists/songs that you might use:
Aretha Franklin / Respect (Women Emancipation and Women Rights)
Patti Smith / People Have The Power (Human Rights, Democracy)
Janelle Monáe / Say Her Name (Black Lives Matter)
Neil Young / Rocking in a Free World (Social Peace and Freedom)
Suggestions for follow up:
The workshop can end in musical moment, where the participants can dance at the sound of the chosen songs. This would be a moment to hear the music, listen the lyrics and interiorize its meanings, but also as a system of self-development using music, movement and positive feelings to deepen sef-awareness.
