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K-12 EDUCATOR RESOURCES

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Second Line Tradition

Images of brass bands marching through the streets, particularly in conjunction with jazz funerals and second line parades, have come to represent the distinctiveness of New Orleans. Typically the brass band is made up of a tuba, trombones, trumpets, clarinet and/or saxophone, snare drum, and bass drum. The portability of the ensemble has allowed the bands to travel beyond the streets and onto the stages of neighborhood barrooms, concert halls, and international festivals. In each context, the role of the brass band is to bring people together in an expression of collective celebration.

Read more about the Second Line tradition in the Music Rising courses on this site:

MUSC 1900: New Orleans Music
DANC 3240-01: African/Caribbean Based Social and Vernacular Dance Forms

Andrew Bailey Interview Sample

Investigate one of these Lines of Inquiry

  • Photos

    • Funeral of John Casimir. Photo Credit: Chris Alderman
      Funeral of John Casimir. Photo Credit: Chris Alderman
      Funeral of John Casimir. Photo Credit: Chris Alderman
      Photo: Chris Alderman
    • Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers Funeral 1956. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
      Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers Funeral 1956. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
      Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers Funeral 1956. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
      Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
    • People dancing in the street 1953. Photo Ralston Crawford
      People dancing in the street 1953. Photo Ralston Crawford
      People dancing in the street 1953. Photo Ralston Crawford
      Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
    1
    Second Line Tradition Line of Inquiry

    How do musicians interact with the community in the New Orleans Second Line tradition?

    Videos

    Audio

    • Andrew Bailey talks about Second line parades

      “I followed parades. I used to love parades. Going to funerals. I used to love parades. Anybody I wouldn’t know and I just know where it’d be at and what ward I’d go to it and get in second line behind the parade. When they go to the parade they’d be playing some nice song… hymns… Nearer my God to Thee, Sing On, all that kinda kinda music. But when they come from burying the people, the band starts playing ragtime. You’re glad you’re dead, You’re gone. They play all kinds of music…ragtime coming back.”

      Full Interview

      Peter Bocage

      “But now, during my time, there is the Tuxedo Band, the Onward Band, and the Excelsior that came from the Old Excelsior. Well, it was Old Man Moret… he had the leadership. Well after he died then I took the leadership, you see, of the Excelsior band. Well then, we played a lot of marches too, and we used to mix it up and put a little jazz in there, you see?”

      Full Interview

    Profiles

    • Olympia Brass Band
    • Paul Barbarin 1
      Paul Barbarin
    • Peter Bocage
    • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste

    Links & Documents

    Teaching Strategies

    • Olympia Brass Band, 1965. Photo Credit: Jack Hurley1
      Teaching Strategy

      Historical Photographs

      2nd Grade
      Describing Details, Making Predictions, and Citing Evidence
      • Explore

        Which of these audio and visual resources will activate imagination and draw students into this investigation?

        Photos
        • Second Line Tradition 1967
          Parades:Second Line Dancing
        • Olympia Brass Band
          Photo: Michael P. Smith; Courtesy of Hogan Jazz Archive, Tulane University
        • Funeral of John Casimir. Photo Credit: Chris Alderman
          Photo: Chris Alderman
        • Men and Women dancing happily to the music of the Young Tuxedo Brass Band, YMOBA Jr. Division Parade, 1958.
          Photo: Ralston Crawford
        • Jolly Bunch boys dancing 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Jolly Bunch members dancing to Young Tuxedo Brass Band music 1956.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Young boy dancing atop a table amongst a crowd of Women and children 1959.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Jolly Bunch second line dancing to Young Tuxedo Brass Band, 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers funeral, 1956.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        Audio

        • Andrew Bailey talks about Second line parades

          “I followed parades. I used to love parades. Going to funerals. I used to love parades. Anybody I wouldn’t know and I just know where it’d be at and what ward I’d go to it and get in second line behind the parade. When they go to the parade they’d be playing some nice song… hymns… Nearer my God to Thee, Sing On, all that kinda kinda music. But when they come from burying the people, the band starts playing ragtime. You’re glad you’re dead, You’re gone. They play all kinds of music…ragtime coming back.”

          Full Interview

          Peter Bocage

          “But now, during my time, there is the Tuxedo Band, the Onward Band, and the Excelsior that came from the Old Excelsior. Well, it was Old Man Moret… he had the leadership. Well after he died then I took the leadership, you see, of the Excelsior band. Well then, we played a lot of marches too, and we used to mix it up and put a little jazz in there, you see?”

          Full Interview

        Videos
        Profiles
        • Olympia Brass Band
        • Paul Barbarin 1
          Paul Barbarin
        • Peter Bocage
        • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste
        Links & Documents
      • Engage

        What activities will lead students into finding answers through this line of inquiry?

        Activity One
        Activity Two
        Activity Three

        • Before listening to the brass band sounds of the Second Line, show students several selected photographs and ask them to answer these questions in pairs or groups:

          • What is happening in this picture?
          • What do you see in the photograph that makes you say that? (What evidence do the photographs provide for your conclusions?)
          • Does anyone see something else?

          Secondary Questions:

          • Describe how you think the music sounds.
          • How fast or slow are the people moving?
          • Who is leading – the musicians or the crowd? What makes you say that?
          • What happened right after this image was taken?
          • What is just in front of this crowd?
          1. Listen to examples of Second Line Music, through the online videos above, recorded music, or this NPR story, 5 New Orleans Brass Band Jams.
          2. Ask students to listen for one part of the music that grabs their attention, and to move one small part of their body to that beat. (At first, they will only be moving a finger, toe, elbow or shoulder)
          3. As students continue to listen and make small movements, create a class list to catalog how many different parts of the music they are hearing. Some will follow the main beat of the bass drum; others will follow the lead trumpet or snare drum.
          4. List all the instruments that you can as a class. [you may hear the tuba, trombones, trumpets, clarinet or saxophone, snare drum, or bass drum]
          5. Revisit the photographs from Activity One and ask if any of the students’ answers have changed. What do they wonder about these photographs, now that they have heard brass bands playing Second Line music?

          Alternate: Revisit the recording, using the class list as a guide. Ask students to make movements to other instruments on the list.

        • Lead a shared or guided reading, introducing information about the New Orleans Second Line tradition through either informational text or narrative. Informational text can be found on this website. A wonderful read-aloud book for about New Orleans Second Lines (for young children) is The Jazz of Our Street, written by Fatima Shaik and illustrated by E.B. Lewis (1998).

      • Connect

        How do these investigations support other academic goals and objectives?

        Curricular Connections

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.2.1 Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners aboutgrade 2 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.2.2 Recount or describe key ideas or details from a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.6 Identify the main purpose of a text, including what the author wants to answer, explain, or describe.

      • Reflect & Assess

        How will you know what your students have learned?

        Sample Reflection or Assessment

        While listening to a recording of a New Orleans brass band, ask students to imagine (or draw) the path of a Second Line parade through their own neighborhood. Who would come out to watch? Who would follow the “First Line” of the musicians, and dance the Second Line? How would this parade be different from a New Orleans Second Line?

        Alternately, ask students to write descriptive text about the New Orleans Second Line Tradition, incorporating multiple details about what one might see, hear and feel at a Second Line Parade.

    • Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers funeral, 1956. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford2
      Teaching Strategy

      The Jazz Funeral

      4th Grade
      Sequencing, Integrating Multiple Texts
      • Explore

        Which of these audio and visual resources will activate imagination and draw students into this investigation?

        Photos
        • Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers Funeral 1956. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band outside church at funeral 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band marching and playing for funeral 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band at graveside for funeral 1959.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Olympia Brass Band 1965.
          Photo Credit: Jack Hurley
        • Olympia Brass Band
          Photo Credit: Michael P. Smith
        • Olympia Brass Band 1965.
          Photo Credit: Jack Hurley
        Audio

        • Andrew Bailey talks about Second line parades

          “I followed parades. I used to love parades. Going to funerals. I used to love parades. Anybody I wouldn’t know and I just know where it’d be at and what ward I’d go to it and get in second line behind the parade. When they go to the parade they’d be playing some nice song… hymns… Nearer my God to Thee, Sing On, all that kinda kinda music. But when they come from burying the people, the band starts playing ragtime. You’re glad you’re dead, You’re gone. They play all kinds of music…ragtime coming back.”

        Videos
        Profiles
        • Olympia Brass Band
        • Paul Barbarin 1
          Paul Barbarin
        • Peter Bocage
        • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste
        Links & Documents
      • Engage

        What activities will lead students into finding answers through this line of inquiry?

        Activity One
        Activity Two
        Activity Three
          1. Create a KWL Chart (What I Know, What I Want to Know, What I Learned) for the Class, titled “New Orleans Jazz Funeral.” Begin to fill it out as a class, with students offering what they KNOWand what they WANT to know.
          2. Show students the photographs that accompany this Teaching Strategy, and tell them these are images of New Orleans Jazz Funeral. For each photograph, allow students to turn and talk with a partner (or volunteer to share with the whole class), to answer the following questions:
            • What does this photograph tell us about the New Orleans Jazz Funeral?
            • What do you notice in the photograph?
            • What do you see, that you think perhaps no one else sees?
            • What does this make you wonder about New Orleans Jazz Funeral?
            • How do you think the music sounds?
          1. Ask students to answer the following questions, individually or in pairs:
            • What are some of the community traditions that surround funerals?
            • Have you heard about or been to a funeral? What did you notice?
            • How do people gather together for a funeral? What is the tone or mood?
          2. Share 2-3 examples of New Orleans Jazz Funeral videos online, such as those listed in the Resources/“Video” section of this Teaching Strategy:
          3. Ask students to answer the following questions, individually or in pairs:
            • What seems familiar about this funeral?
            • What is unlike other funeral traditions you have heard about or experienced?
            • What do you wonder about the Jazz Funeral tradition?
          1. Provide students with 1-2 examples of informational text about New Orleans Jazz Funerals. Suggestions:
          2. Ask students to use a plain sheet of white paper to chart the path of a New Orleans Jazz Funeral, with images to reflect three points:
            • Church or Funeral Home
            • Cemetery
            • Family home or other gathering place after the funeral
          3. Along the lines between each point, ask students to find a way to depict what the music sounds like in that part of the Jazz Funeral. They can use words, symbols or drawings to depict the feeling of the music between points.
          4. Ask students to compare a paragraph from the first example (Music Rising Course) to a paragraph from the second example (Jazz Times Article – from the segment titled Familyhood), and discuss as a class:
            • What did you learn about the roles of Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs in the community? Historically? Today?
            • How are these paragraphs different?
            • What do they each tell us about the Jazz Funeral?
            • When might you write in the style of the first example? The second? What would you call each type of writing?
      • Connect

        How do these investigations support other academic goals and objectives?

        Curricular Connections

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.9 Integrate information from two texts on the same topic in order to write or speak about the subject knowledgeably.

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.2 Paraphrase portions of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.

      • Reflect & Assess

        How will you know what your students have learned?

        Sample Reflection or Assessment
        • Ask students to return to their map of the Jazz funeral route, and to add to their visual representation of the music after viewing the videos
        • Return the KWL Chart as a class, and complete the LEARN (“What I Learned”) portion with new facts and understandings
    • Second Line Tradition. Photo Credit: Zack Smith3
      Teaching Strategy

      The Second Line in Multiple Contexts

      8th Grade
      Evaluating the Effectiveness of Different Media in Presenting a Topic
      • Explore

        Which of these audio and visual resources will activate imagination and draw students into this investigation?

        Photos
        • People dancing in the street 1953. Photo Ralston Crawford
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band at a funeral, 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka in the neighborhood 1958: The Creation of Jazz in New Orleans 3. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band marching and playing for a funeral, 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Olympia Brass Band, 1986.
          Photo Credit: Robert W. Hart
        • Olympia Brass Band, 1965.
          Photo Credit: Jack Hurley
        • Paul Barbarin, 1969.
          Photo Credit: Mike Smith
        • Paul Barbarin, 1969.
          Photo Credit: Ben C. Toledano
        Audio

        • Andrew Bailey talks about Second line parades

          “I followed parades. I used to love parades. Going to funerals. I used to love parades. Anybody I wouldn’t know and I just know where it’d be at and what ward I’d go to it and get in second line behind the parade. When they go to the parade they’d be playing some nice song… hymns… Nearer my God to Thee, Sing On, all that kinda kinda music. But when they come from burying the people, the band starts playing ragtime. You’re glad you’re dead, You’re gone. They play all kinds of music…ragtime coming back.”

        Videos
        Profiles
        • Olympia Brass Band
        • Paul Barbarin 1
          Paul Barbarin
        • Peter Bocage
        • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste
        Links & Documents
      • Engage

        What activities will lead students into finding answers through this line of inquiry?

        Activity One
        Activity Two
        Activity Three
          1. Tell students that they are going to explore and categorize the different types of social contexts in which the Second Line Tradition appears.
          2. Individually or in small groups, students should review all photos, links to audio recordings, video, and the oral history excerpt provided in the resources section of this Teaching Strategy.
          3. Ask students to create a map that groups examples of similar social situations in which Second Lines appear. Use questions at appropriate points in their work, to prompt the investigation:
            • What are emerging as the primary social contexts for the Second Line Tradition?
            • How is the Second Line Tradition similar across these contexts? How is it different in each situation?
            • Who would you say are the “key players” in the Second Line Tradition? What evidence helps you draw these conclusions?
          1. Divide the article from Jazz Times into 5 segments, and assign each segment to a small group of students.
          2. Each small group will prepare and present that portion of the article to the class, in two ways:
            • non-verbal (this could be a tableau, a drawing, a gesture sequence, etc.)
            • verbal (explaining the key points from that segment of the article)
          3. Pair students with someone from another small group, and ask them to test each other on the portion of the article they were NOT originally assigned. Each will share what they recall from their partner’s small group presentation, with the partner filling in gaps with accurate information.
          1. Ask students to return to their small groups, and to consider all of the media and resources (video, audio, text, photographs, oral history) they have used in this investigation.
          2. Each group should determine:
            • Which medium best captured the Second Line Tradition, and why it was most effective?
            • Which medium was least effective in conveying this cultural form, and why?
          3. Ask groups to report back to the larger class and compare their conclusions.
      • Connect

        How do these investigations support other academic goals and objectives?

        Curricular Connections

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.8.7 Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using different mediums (e.g., print or digital text, video, multimedia) to present a particular topic or idea.

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.8.4 Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points in a focused, coherent manner with relevant evidence, sound valid reasoning, and well-chosen details; use appropriate eye contact, adequate volume, and clear pronunciation.

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.2 Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of the source distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.

      • Reflect & Assess

        How will you know what your students have learned?

        Sample Reflection or Assessment
        • Create a class chart to catalogue student responses, outlining advantages and disadvantages of each medium in conveying the Second Line Tradition
        • Ask students to revisit their individual maps of social contexts of the Second Line Tradition, adding key details learned from the Jazz Times Article, their fellow classmates and available resources

  • Photos

    • Jolly Bunch boys dancing 1958. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
      Jolly Bunch boys dancing 1958. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
      Jolly Bunch boys dancing 1958.
      Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
    2
    Second Line Tradition Line of Inquiry

    How have relationships between older and younger generations impacted the development of the Second Line tradition?

    Audio

    • Andrew Bailey talks about Second line parades

      “I followed parades. I used to love parades. Going to funerals. I used to love parades. Anybody I wouldn’t know and I just know where it’d be at and what ward I’d go to it and get in second line behind the parade. When they go to the parade they’d be playing some nice song… hymns… Nearer my God to Thee, Sing On, all that kinda kinda music. But when they come from burying the people, the band starts playing ragtime. You’re glad you’re dead, You’re gone. They play all kinds of music…ragtime coming back.”

      Full Interview

      Peter Bocage

      “But now, during my time, there is the Tuxedo Band, the Onward Band, and the Excelsior that came from the Old Excelsior. Well, it was Old Man Moret… he had the leadership. Well after he died then I took the leadership, you see, of the Excelsior band. Well then, we played a lot of marches too, and we used to mix it up and put a little jazz in there, you see?”

      Full Interview

      Songs:

      Transcripts:

      Nathan “Jim” Robinson

      “If they’re good musicians, and the first number they play – they can get together on that first number. They can get together on that first number – you see? Cause, it’s got no question; other words, you take the bands here – the fellows don’t have rehearsal, but get ‘em on the street, they can play.

      You play the first number and you can get together, understand? That first number – there’s no question – you can go on and play like you’ve been playing every day and every night.

      Peter Bocage

      “But now the brass bands of today, practically most, it seems, like the public wants it – and that’s what they’re giving them – it’s mostly all jazz, you see? Outside of the funeral marches, you know. And it seems – it appears to me that’s what the people want. You know what I mean. But years ago it was different, the people wanted, marches – and nice – and the band sounds so much nicer when you’re playing the good standard music, you know. When you got a good set of men, you know, and you take, a good, say 10-12 piece brass band and everybody’s playing their parts – it’s wonderful, you know?”

      “But you take a jazz band, now, you know what it sounds like. It’s just actually a bunch of racket – that’s all there is to it, you know. Cause everybody’s making something different and nobody’s making something alike. And it’s no blending, it’s just like a dogfight, I call it, you understand? But I go out there and do it too, you know?”

    Profiles

    • Paul Barbarin 1
      Paul Barbarin
    • Peter Bocage
    • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste

    Links & Documents

    Teaching Strategies

    • Jolly Bunch boys dancing 1958. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford1
      Teaching Strategy

      Carrying the Tradition

      3rd Grade
      Musical Mentors
      • Explore

        Which of these audio and visual resources will activate imagination and draw students into this investigation?

        Photos
        • Young boy dancing atop a table amongst a crowd of Women and children 1959.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers funeral, 1956.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Olympia Brass Band, 1965.
          Photo Credit: Jack Hurley
        • Jolly Bunch second line dancing to Young Tuxedo Brass Band, 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Olympia Brass Band 1965.
          Photo Credit: Jack Hurley
        • Olympia Brass Band 1965.
          Photo Credit: Jack Hurley
        • Paul Barbarin, 1969.
          Photo Credit: Mike Smith
        Audio

        • Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Reading Music

          “My parents had a musical background and I guess my brother and I were talented in that respect. We began playing early in our teens and I guess just after our father and mother death we were quite young and fooled around with different types of musical instruments and gradually decided to stay on one instrument.”

          Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Upright Bass – jazz orchestras

          “I may say that up until the time I reach Chicago I never known a note in music. I’ve never taken a lesson. I was offered a job in larger bands and it was necessary for me to learn to read.”

          Transcript:

          Arnold Loyacano, 9/29/56
          Souchon: They didn’t teach music in the schools though, did they?
          Loyacano: Well, oh, yes, not like today, no. They didn’t give much time, about fifteen minutes, but all that training, that music training was by a music teacher with the blackboard and notes on the blackboard.
          …
          Souchon: Did you all take lessons or just a family thing?
          Loycano: Well, it was more or less a family thing. I took lessons on the piano and then when I went to Chicago I took lessons on the bass again.

          Peter Bocage
          “But now, during my time, there is the Tuxedo Band, the Onward Band, and the Excelsior that came from the Old Excelsior. Well, it was Old Man Moret – he had the leadership. Well after he died then I took the leadership, you see, of the Excelsior band. Well then, we played a lot of marches too, and we used to mix it up and put a little jazz in there, you see?

          Audio Link:

          NPR Story: 5 New Orleans Brass Band Jams (npr.org)

        Videos
        Profiles
        • Paul Barbarin 1
          Paul Barbarin
        • Peter Bocage
        • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste
        Links & Documents
      • Engage

        What activities will lead students into finding answers through this line of inquiry?

        Activity One
          1. Ask students:
            • What is a mentor?
            • What does a mentor do?
            • Who are your mentors?
          2. Watch this video of the Prince of Wales Second Line, and look for a young trumpeter in the middle. Tell the class that they are going to act out this scene in complete silence, so that you can really see all the details of what is happening. Ask the class to prepare to play the parts of the crowd and band, then ask for a volunteer to play the part of the young trumpeter. After acting out the scene as a class, conduct a short discussion:
            • How is the young trumpeter feeling?
            • Who is helping him?
            • How does he know what to do?
          3. Watch this video of Uncle Lionel’s Funeral, paying close attention to the video from 2:20-3:30.
            • *Ask students to pair up and act out the part of the older and younger musician, adding as many details to their performance as they can. Alternately, organize the class in two straight lines, facing each other, and assign one line the role of “older musician,” and one line the role of “younger musician.”
            • After they have rehearsed for a few minutes, watch the tape again, asking students to add even more details to their presentation
            • Ask for several pairs to volunteer to show their work, and create a class catalog of all of the ways in which the older musician is serving as a mentor.
          4. Ask students to interview mentors in their own lives, and to ask those mentors what they have learned from their own mentors. As a class, consider this question: Does the role of mentor seem to be changing with your (students’) generation?
      • Connect

        How do these investigations support other academic goals and objectives?

        Curricular Connections

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.9 Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic.

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.3.1d Explain their own ideas and understanding in light of the discussion.

      • Reflect & Assess

        How will you know what your students have learned?

        Sample Reflection or Assessment
        • Share this video with students, outlining the mentoring project at the Jazz National Historic Park in New Orleans
        • Ask students to consider this question: What might happen to the Second Line Tradition if there were no musical mentors in New Orleans? Collect responses through discussion and/or journal entries.
    • Jolly Bunch second line dancing to Young Tuxedo Brass Band, 1958. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford2
      Teaching Strategy

      "It's Just Actually a Bunch of Racket."

      5th Grade
      Bridging the Generation Gap through the Second Line
      • Explore

        Which of these audio and visual resources will activate imagination and draw students into this investigation?

        Photos
        • Jolly Bunch boys dancing 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band outside church at funeral 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band marching and playing for funeral 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band marching and playing for a funeral, 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • People dancing in the street 1953. Photo Ralston Crawford
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Paul Barbarin with his Onward Brass Band, 1962.
          Photo Credit: Mike Casimir
        Audio

        • Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Reading Music

          “My parents had a musical background and I guess my brother and I were talented in that respect. We began playing early in our teens and I guess just after our father and mother death we were quite young and fooled around with different types of musical instruments and gradually decided to stay on one instrument.”

          Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Upright Bass – jazz orchestras

          “I may say that up until the time I reach Chicago I never known a note in music. I’ve never taken a lesson. I was offered a job in larger bands and it was necessary for me to learn to read.”

          Peter Bocage

          But now the brass bands of today, practically most, it seems, like the public wants it – and that’s what they’re giving them – it’s mostly all jazz, you see? Outside of the funeral marches, you know. And it seems – it appears to me that’s what the people want. You know what I mean. But years ago it was different, the people wanted marches – and nice – and the band sounds so much nicer when you’re playing the good standard music, you know? When you got a good set of men, you know, and you take, a good, say 10-12 piece brass band and everybody’s playing their parts – it’s wonderful, you know?

          But you take a jazz band, now, you know what it sounds like. It’s just actually a bunch of racket – that’s all there is to it, you know. Cause everybody’s making something different and nobody’s making something alike. And it’s no blending, it’s just like a dogfight, I call it, you understand? But I go out there and do it too, you know?”

          Transcript:

          Arnold Loycano, 9/29/56

          Souchon: They didn’t teach music in the schools though, did they?
          Loyacano: Well, oh, yes, not like today, no. They didn’t give much time, about fifteen minutes, but all that training, that music training was by a music teacher with the blackboard and notes on the blackboard.
          …

          Souchon: Did you all take lessons or just a family thing?
          Loycano: Well, it was more or less a family thing. I took lessons on the piano and then when I went to Chicago I took lessons on the bass again.

          Audio Link:

          NPR Story: 5 New Orleans Brass Band Jams (npr.org)

        Videos
        Profiles
        • Paul Barbarin 1
          Paul Barbarin
        • Peter Bocage
        • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste
        Links & Documents
      • Engage

        What activities will lead students into finding answers through this line of inquiry?

        Activity One
        Activity Two
          1. Share with students the Oral History clip provided in the resources section of this Teaching Strategy, from Peter Bocage; and the photographs from the Hogan Jazz Archive that were taken in his lifetime.
          2. Ask students to volunteer to summarize what Mr. Bocage is saying in this interview that he gave in 1959.
            • Have students ever heard something similar from their elders?
            • What do their grandparents or other older community members think about how the younger generation does things?
          3. Watch the video excerpt embedded in this article from the, of young musicians in the Young PinStripe Brass band. Ask students to imagine that they are listening with the ears of Mr. Bocage. What do they think he would say about this music?
          1. Watch the video excerpt embedded in this article from the Gambit Weekly, of young musicians in the Young PinStripe Brass band. Ask students to imagine that they are listening with the ears of Mr. Bocage. What do they think he would say about this music?
          2. Ask students to imagine that Peter Bocage and the Leader of the Young PinStripe Brass Band, Herbert McCarver IV, could meet today. With a partner, they will write a 5-minute dialogue between the two men, including their thoughts about each other’s music. Ask students to be thoughtful about including areas of both disagreement and agreement; how the music sounds; and how the bands present themselves. Call on volunteers to read their dialogues aloud, then consider as a class:
            • Does any of this sound familiar?
            • How do musical traditions change and grow, when musicians of different generations have different ideas about what makes good music?
      • Connect

        How do these investigations support other academic goals and objectives?

        Curricular Connections

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3a Orient the reader by establishing a situation and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally.

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.5.3d Use concrete words and phrases and sensory details to convey experiences and events precisely.

      • Reflect & Assess

        How will you know what your students have learned?

        Sample Reflection or Assessment

        Ask students to read the entire Gambit Weekly article, and identify four reactions to the Young PinStripe Brass Band, from the older generation.

    • Eureka Brass Band at a funeral, 1958. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford3
      Teaching Strategy

      Furthering the Tradition

      9th Grade
      Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs
      • Explore

        Which of these audio and visual resources will activate imagination and draw students into this investigation?

        Photos
        • Funeral of John Casimir. Photo Credit: Chris Alderman
          Photo: Chris Alderman
        • Second Line Tradition 1967
          Parades:Second Line Dancing
        • Men and Women dancing happily to the music of the Young Tuxedo Brass Band, YMOBA Jr. Division Parade, 1958.
          Photo: Ralston Crawford
        • Jolly Bunch members dancing to Young Tuxedo Brass Band music 1956.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers Funeral 1956. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band at a funeral, 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band at graveside for funeral 1959.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Olympia Brass Band, 1986.
          Photo Credit: Robert W. Hart
        Audio

        • Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Reading Music

          “My parents had a musical background and I guess my brother and I were talented in that respect. We began playing early in our teens and I guess just after our father and mother death we were quite young and fooled around with different types of musical instruments and gradually decided to stay on one instrument.”

          Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Upright Bass – jazz orchestras

          “I may say that up until the time I reach Chicago I never known a note in music. I’ve never taken a lesson. I was offered a job in larger bands and it was necessary for me to learn to read.”

          Transcript:

          Arnold Loycano, 9/29/56

          Souchon: They didn’t teach music in the schools though, did they?
          Loyacano: Well, oh, yes, not like today, no. They didn’t give much time, about fifteen minutes, but all that training, that music training was by a music teacher with the blackboard and notes on the blackboard.
          …

          Souchon: Did you all take lessons or just a family thing?
          Loycano: Well, it was more or less a family thing. I took lessons on the piano and then when I went to Chicago I took lessons on the bass again.

          Audio Link:

          NPR Story: 5 New Orleans Brass Band Jams (npr.org)

        Videos
        Profiles
        • Paul Barbarin 1
          Paul Barbarin
        • Peter Bocage
        • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste
        Links & Documents
      • Engage

        What activities will lead students into finding answers through this line of inquiry?

        Activity One
        Activity Two
        Activity Three
          1. Create a research assignment around New Orleans Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs. Use the following questions to guide student investigation:
            • What is the history of Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs in New Orleans? Why were they formed?
            • What are their primary roles in the community, today?
            • What is the relationship between Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs and the Second Line Tradition?
            • How do different generations interact through Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs?
          2. Share with your students the three videos from this Teaching Strategy’s Videos Section, and the Oral Histories in the Audio section.
          3. Ask students to use these resources as they consider the relationship between older and younger participants in the Second Line tradition, and write a personal narrative from the perspective of each.
          1. Ask students to conduct a thorough investigation of resources and media associated with the Second Line Tradition, and to generate a class list of leading New Orleans musicians in this tradition.
          2. Each student will write a short bio of a New Orleans musician of his or her choice, who is part of the Second Line tradition. In addition to standard biographical information, students should include some “musical genealogy” for their chosen musician:
            • a musical mentor that had a significant influence on the musician under study
            • another musician, who served as mentor to the mentor of the musician under study
          3. In small groups, students will share these “musical genealogies,” indicating two generations of musicians who influenced their primary musician under study. Each group will compare these relationships, and map the larger musical relationships that occur across generations of musicians from New Orleans.

        • Combining the musical genealogical maps of each small group, the class will create a larger web of musical relationships. They will then draft a graphic organizer to chart the influence of New Orleans musicians on subsequent generations.

      • Connect

        How do these investigations support other academic goals and objectives?

        Curricular Connections

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.1 Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.9-10.7 Analyze various accounts of a subject told in different mediums (e.g., a person’s life story in both print and multimedia), determining which details are emphasized in each account.

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences.

      • Reflect & Assess

        How will you know what your students have learned?

        Sample Reflection or Assessment

        Compare the composite graphic organizers from several classes, to determine which musicians have been the most influential on the generations that followed them.

  • Photos

    • Eureka Brass Band at a funeral, 1958. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
      Eureka Brass Band at a funeral, 1958. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
      Eureka Brass Band at a funeral, 1958.
      Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
    • People dancing in the street 1953. Photo Ralston Crawford
      People dancing in the street 1953. Photo Ralston Crawford
      People dancing in the street 1953. Photo Ralston Crawford
      Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
    • Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers funeral, 1956. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
      Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers funeral, 1956. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
      Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers funeral, 1956.
      Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
    • Jolly Bunch second line dancing to Young Tuxedo Brass Band, 1958. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
      Jolly Bunch second line dancing to Young Tuxedo Brass Band, 1958. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
      Jolly Bunch second line dancing to Young Tuxedo Brass Band, 1958.
      Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
    3
    Second Line Tradition Line of Inquiry

    How do performers of the Second Line Tradition both reflect and define a sense of place in New Orleans?

    Videos

    Audio

    • Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Reading Music

      “My parents had a musical background and I guess my brother and I were talented in that respect. We began playing early in our teens and I guess just after our father and mother death we were quite young and fooled around with different types of musical instruments and gradually decided to stay on one instrument.”

      Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Upright Bass – jazz orchestras

      “I may say that up until the time I reach Chicago I never known a note in music. I’ve never taken a lesson. I was offered a job in larger bands and it was necessary for me to learn to read.”

      Andrew Bailey talks about Second line parades

      “I followed parades. I used to love parades. Going to funerals. I used to love parades. Anybody I wouldn’t know and I just know where it’d be at and what ward I’d go to it and get in second line behind the parade. When they go to the parade they’d be playing some nice song… hymns… Nearer my God to Thee, Sing On, all that kinda kinda music. But when they come from burying the people, the band starts playing ragtime. You’re glad you’re dead, You’re gone. They play all kinds of music…ragtime coming back.”

      Full Interview

      Peter Bocage

      “But now, during my time, there is the Tuxedo Band, the Onward Band, and the Excelsior that came from the Old Excelsior. Well, it was Old Man Moret… he had the leadership. Well after he died then I took the leadership, you see, of the Excelsior band. Well then, we played a lot of marches too, and we used to mix it up and put a little jazz in there, you see?”

      Full Interview

      Transcript:

      Arnold Loycano, 9/29/56

      Souchon: They didn’t teach music in the schools though, did they?
      Loyacano: Well, oh, yes, not like today, no. They didn’t give much time, about fifteen minutes, but all that training, that music training was by a music teacher with the blackboard and notes on the blackboard.
      …
      Souchon: Did you all take lessons or just a family thing?
      Loycano: Well, it was more or less a family thing. I took lessons on the piano and then when I went to Chicago I took lessons on the bass again.

      Audio Link:

      NPR Story: 5 New Orleans Brass Band Jams (npr.org)

    Profiles

    • Albert Nicholas
    • Paul Barbarin 1
      Paul Barbarin
    • Peter Bocage
    • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste
    • Olympia Brass Band

    Links & Documents

    Teaching Strategies

    • Jolly Bunch members dancing to Young Tuxedo Brass Band music 1956. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford1
      Teaching Strategy

      My Neighborhood: The Second Line

      1st Grade
      A Great Day for a Parade
      • Explore

        Which of these audio and visual resources will activate imagination and draw students into this investigation?

        Photos
        • Men and Women dancing happily to the music of the Young Tuxedo Brass Band, YMOBA Jr. Division Parade, 1958.
          Photo: Ralston Crawford
        • Second Line Tradition 1967
          Parades:Second Line Dancing
        • Young boy dancing atop a table amongst a crowd of Women and children 1959.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Jolly Bunch members dancing to Young Tuxedo Brass Band music 1956.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • People dancing in the street 1953. Photo Ralston Crawford
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band marching and playing for a funeral, 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        Audio

        • Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Reading Music

          “My parents had a musical background and I guess my brother and I were talented in that respect. We began playing early in our teens and I guess just after our father and mother death we were quite young and fooled around with different types of musical instruments and gradually decided to stay on one instrument.”

          Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Upright Bass – jazz orchestras

          “I may say that up until the time I reach Chicago I never known a note in music. I’ve never taken a lesson. I was offered a job in larger bands and it was necessary for me to learn to read.”

          Andrew Bailey talks about Second line parades

          “I followed parades. I used to love parades. Going to funerals. I used to love parades. Anybody I wouldn’t know and I just know where it’d be at and what ward I’d go to it and get in second line behind the parade. When they go to the parade they’d be playing some nice song… hymns… Nearer my God to Thee, Sing On, all that kinda kinda music. But when they come from burying the people, the band starts playing ragtime. You’re glad you’re dead, You’re gone. They play all kinds of music…ragtime coming back.”

          Full Interview

          Peter Bocage

          “But now, during my time, there is the Tuxedo Band, the Onward Band, and the Excelsior that came from the Old Excelsior. Well, it was Old Man Moret… he had the leadership. Well after he died then I took the leadership, you see, of the Excelsior band. Well then, we played a lot of marches too, and we used to mix it up and put a little jazz in there, you see?”

          Full Interview

          Transcript:

          Arnold Loycano, 9/29/56

          Souchon: They didn’t teach music in the schools though, did they?
          Loyacano: Well, oh, yes, not like today, no. They didn’t give much time, about fifteen minutes, but all that training, that music training was by a music teacher with the blackboard and notes on the blackboard.
          …
          Souchon: Did you all take lessons or just a family thing?
          Loycano: Well, it was more or less a family thing. I took lessons on the piano and then when I went to Chicago I took lessons on the bass again.

          Audio Link:

          NPR Story: 5 New Orleans Brass Band Jams (npr.org)

        Videos
        Profiles
        • Albert Nicholas
        • Paul Barbarin 1
          Paul Barbarin
        • Peter Bocage
        • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste
        Links & Documents
      • Engage

        What activities will lead students into finding answers through this line of inquiry?

        Activity One
        Activity Two
        Activity Three

        • Before beginning work with students, be sure to review the links to Music Rising Courses included in the Links & Documents section of this Teaching Strategy.

          1. Develop a “My Neighborhood” unit, in which students will learn about their own neighborhoods, mapping the streets around their school or home.
          2. Share with students the city and neighborhood maps of New Orleans found in the Links & Documents section of this Teaching Strategy. As a class, take a close look at one New Orleans neighborhood, and collect student observations about the map of that area. Guide the discussion with questions, which might include:
            • Do the streets have the same shape as the streets in your neighborhood?
            • Are they curvy or straight?
            • Do the streets turn corners sharply, or or do they follow a soft curve of the road?
            • What is the relationship between the city of New Orleans and the water that surrounds it? Does your neighborhood have water (a river or a lake) close to it?
          1. Refer to the Sample Social Aid and Pleasure Club Parade Route linked in the Links & Documents section of this Teaching Strategy, or another route outlined in Takin’ it to the Streets (wwoz.org).
          2. Trace part of the path of the parade with the students, following the directions outlined on the route. Project the map or distribute simplified copies of it, reinforcing student understanding of “right” and “left” while following the directions on the parade route. If possible, use colored tape to mark a portion of the parade route where there is a large, smooth surface (i.e., the playground, a hallway, the gym or the classroom). Allow students to take turns leading their classmates through the parade route.
          1. With students, review examples of New Orleans brass bands and second line parades that are linked through the Audio and Video sections of this Teaching Strategy. Ask students:
            • How would the parade change if this music were playing? How would it change the way you walk? Where would your focus be?
          2. Ask students to work as a team to map out a parade route for your class on school grounds, to be accompanied by a recording of New Orleans brass band or second line music. Ask students, “What kinds of things do we need to decide before we start our parade?” Using the Sample Parade Route as a guide, be sure that students determine:
            • Where will the parade start, and where will it end
            • Where it will stop along the way
            • When it will change direction, and how everyone will know where to go
            • Who will lead, and who will follow (these roles may change during the parade)
            • How you might get others to join the parade
          3. Ask students to determine how to spread the word about the parade, and Invite parents, teachers, or other classes to attend.
      • Connect

        How do these investigations support other academic goals and objectives?

        Curricular Connections

        Literacy – Reading Informational Text:

        Distinguish between information provided by pictures or other illustrations and information provided by the words in a text. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.1.6

      • Reflect & Assess

        How will you know what your students have learned?

        Sample Reflection or Assessment

        Ask students to reflect on how it felt to be a part of this parade:

        • What effect did the music have on the way you felt?
        • What was it like when other people joined the parade?
        • What happened to the parade as it got larger?
        • What happened to the parade as it got longer?
        • What would you do if you saw this kind of parade in your own neighborhood?
    • Olympia Brass Band, 1965. Photo Credit: Jack Hurley2
      Teaching Strategy

      Taking Forward over 100 Years of Tradition

      6th Grade
      • Explore

        Which of these audio and visual resources will activate imagination and draw students into this investigation?

        Photos
        • Funeral of John Casimir. Photo Credit: Chris Alderman
          Photo: Chris Alderman
        • Jolly Bunch boys dancing 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers funeral, 1956.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band at an Algiers Funeral 1956. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band at a funeral, 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Olympia Brass Band, 1965.
          Photo Credit: Jack Hurley
        • Eureka Brass Band at graveside for funeral 1959.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Paul Barbarin with his Onward Brass Band, 1962.
          Photo Credit: Mike Casimir
        Audio

        • Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Reading Music

          “My parents had a musical background and I guess my brother and I were talented in that respect. We began playing early in our teens and I guess just after our father and mother death we were quite young and fooled around with different types of musical instruments and gradually decided to stay on one instrument.”

          Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Upright Bass – jazz orchestras

          “I may say that up until the time I reach Chicago I never known a note in music. I’ve never taken a lesson. I was offered a job in larger bands and it was necessary for me to learn to read.”

          Andrew Bailey talks about Second line parades

          “I followed parades. I used to love parades. Going to funerals. I used to love parades. Anybody I wouldn’t know and I just know where it’d be at and what ward I’d go to it and get in second line behind the parade. When they go to the parade they’d be playing some nice song… hymns… Nearer my God to Thee, Sing On, all that kinda kinda music. But when they come from burying the people, the band starts playing ragtime. You’re glad you’re dead, You’re gone. They play all kinds of music…ragtime coming back.”

          Full Interview

          Peter Bocage

          “But now, during my time, there is the Tuxedo Band, the Onward Band, and the Excelsior that came from the Old Excelsior. Well, it was Old Man Moret… he had the leadership. Well after he died then I took the leadership, you see, of the Excelsior band. Well then, we played a lot of marches too, and we used to mix it up and put a little jazz in there, you see?”

          Full Interview

          Transcript:

          Arnold Loycano, 9/29/56

          Souchon: They didn’t teach music in the schools though, did they?
          Loyacano: Well, oh, yes, not like today, no. They didn’t give much time, about fifteen minutes, but all that training, that music training was by a music teacher with the blackboard and notes on the blackboard.
          …

          Souchon: Did you all take lessons or just a family thing?
          Loycano: Well, it was more or less a family thing. I took lessons on the piano and then when I went to Chicago I took lessons on the bass again.

          Audio Link:

          NPR Story: 5 New Orleans Brass Band Jams (npr.org)

        Videos
        Profiles
        • Albert Nicholas
        • Paul Barbarin 1
          Paul Barbarin
        • Peter Bocage
        • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste
        Links & Documents
      • Engage

        What activities will lead students into finding answers through this line of inquiry?

        Activity One
        Activity Two
          1. Create a KWL Chart (What I Know, What I Want to Know, What I Learned) for the Class, titled “New Orleans Second Line.” Begin to fill it out as a class, with students offering what they KNOW and what they WANT to know.
          2. Show students the photographs that accompany this Teaching Strategy, and tell them these are images of New Orleans Second Line Tradition. For each photograph, allow students to turn and talk with a partner (or volunteer to share with the whole class), to answer the following questions:
            • What does this photograph tell us about the New Orleans Second Line?
            • What do you notice in the photograph?
            • What do you see, that you think perhaps no one else sees?
            • What does this make you wonder about New Orleans Second Lines?
            • How do you think the music sounds?
          1. Create a research assignment around New Orleans Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs. Use the following questions to guide student investigation:
            • What is the history of Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs in New Orleans? Why were they formed?
            • What are their primary roles in the community, today?
            • What is the relationship between Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs and the Second Line Tradition?
            • How do different generations interact through Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs?
          2. Share with your students the three videos from this Teaching Strategy’s Videos Section, and the Oral Histories in the Audio section.
      • Connect

        How do these investigations support other academic goals and objectives?

        Curricular Connections

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.7 Integrate visual information (e.g., in charts, graphs, photographs, videos, or maps) with other information in print and digital texts.

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.6-8.9 Analyze the relationship between a primary and secondary source on the same topic.

      • Reflect & Assess

        How will you know what your students have learned?

        Sample Reflection or Assessment

        Ask students to use these resources as they consider the relationship between older and younger participants in the Second Line tradition, and write a personal narrative from the perspective of each.

    • Jolly Bunch boys dancing 1958. Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford3
      Teaching Strategy

      What happens when you commodify a community tradition?

      10th - 12th Grade
      • Explore

        Which of these audio and visual resources will activate imagination and draw students into this investigation?

        Photos
        • Jolly Bunch second line dancing to Young Tuxedo Brass Band, 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band outside church at funeral 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Eureka Brass Band marching and playing for funeral 1958.
          Photo Credit: Ralston Crawford
        • Olympia Brass Band 1965.
          Photo Credit: Jack Hurley
        • Olympia Brass Band 1965.
          Photo Credit: Jack Hurley
        • Paul Barbarin, 1969.
          Photo Credit: Mike Smith
        • Olympia Brass Band, 1986.
          Photo Credit: Robert W. Hart
        Audio

        • Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Reading Music

          “My parents had a musical background and I guess my brother and I were talented in that respect. We began playing early in our teens and I guess just after our father and mother death we were quite young and fooled around with different types of musical instruments and gradually decided to stay on one instrument.”

          Steve Brown (1890 – 1965) Clip – 4/22/58: Upright Bass – jazz orchestras

          “I may say that up until the time I reach Chicago I never known a note in music. I’ve never taken a lesson. I was offered a job in larger bands and it was necessary for me to learn to read.”

          Andrew Bailey talks about Second line parades

          “I followed parades. I used to love parades. Going to funerals. I used to love parades. Anybody I wouldn’t know and I just know where it’d be at and what ward I’d go to it and get in second line behind the parade. When they go to the parade they’d be playing some nice song… hymns… Nearer my God to Thee, Sing On, all that kinda kinda music. But when they come from burying the people, the band starts playing ragtime. You’re glad you’re dead, You’re gone. They play all kinds of music…ragtime coming back.”

          Full Interview

          Peter Bocage

          “But now, during my time, there is the Tuxedo Band, the Onward Band, and the Excelsior that came from the Old Excelsior. Well, it was Old Man Moret… he had the leadership. Well after he died then I took the leadership, you see, of the Excelsior band. Well then, we played a lot of marches too, and we used to mix it up and put a little jazz in there, you see?”

          Full Interview

          Transcript:

          Arnold Loycano, 9/29/56

          Souchon: They didn’t teach music in the schools though, did they?
          Loyacano: Well, oh, yes, not like today, no. They didn’t give much time, about fifteen minutes, but all that training, that music training was by a music teacher with the blackboard and notes on the blackboard.
          …
          Souchon: Did you all take lessons or just a family thing?
          Loycano: Well, it was more or less a family thing. I took lessons on the piano and then when I went to Chicago I took lessons on the bass again.

          Audio Link:

          NPR Story: 5 New Orleans Brass Band Jams (npr.org)

        Videos
        Profiles
        • Olympia Brass Band
        • Albert Nicholas
        • Paul Barbarin 1
          Paul Barbarin
        • Peter Bocage
        • "Uncle" Lionel Batiste
        Links & Documents
      • Engage

        What activities will lead students into finding answers through this line of inquiry?

        Activity One
        Activity Two
          1. Ask students to do an internet search to find video and audio, using the following search terms:
            • Second Line Social Aid and Pleasure Club
            • Second Line Wedding
            • Second Line Convention and Visitor’s Bureau
            • Second Line Jazz Funeral
          2. As a class, consider the following:
            • How would you describe the community’s interaction with the musicians in the video results for each of these searches?
            • In which videos does the second line seem most authentic, or closest to its traditions?
            • Are the musicians engaging in the second line in different ways for different audiences?
            • What might the economic ramifications of each setting be?
          1. Ask students to conduct research into the pay scales and economic opportunities of New Orleans musicians who are culture bearers in the Second Line Tradition. Resources available online may include:
            • Sweet Home New Orleans State of the Music Report
            • Musician’s Clinic of New Orleans
            • Union of New Orleans Musicians, AFM Local 174-496
          2. Have the class divide into teams to hold a debate around the commodification of cultural forms such as the Second Line Tradition. Considerations may include:
            • Economic opportunity for artists and musicians
            • Being true to the Second Line Tradition
            • Role of Social Aid and Pleasure Clubs
            • Visibility for the tradition among visitors to New Orleans
      • Connect

        How do these investigations support other academic goals and objectives?

        Curricular Connections

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.7 Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, as well as in words) in order to address a question or solve a problem.

        CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RH.11-12.9 Integrate information from diverse sources, both primary and secondary, into a coherent understanding of an idea or event, noting discrepancies among sources.

      • Reflect & Assess

        How will you know what your students have learned?

        Sample Reflection or Assessment

        Ask students to compose an essay examining the complicated issue of the commodification of cultural traditions. Each student should take a position on the benefit or negative influence of commodification on the culture of New Orleans.