Fletcher Henderson: Coming out Swinging in the Great Depression
In the 1920s, Fletcher Henderson’s innovations helped music toward the danceable style known as “Swing”.
But even as Swing gained popularity in the 1930s, Henderson and his band were hit by the arrival of the Great Depression.
Explore how Fletcher Henderson responded to these challenges, how he influenced fellow musicians, and how that might have helped him change the music of his time.
Episode will open and play in a separate browser tab.
About this Episode
Fletcher Henderson, the composer of “Far Away Blues,” went on to change the popular music of the 1920s by charting a course from the “ragtime” style that dominated early jazz toward a more sophisticated sound, which would become known as “swing.”
While the Great Depression hit everyone hard, Fletcher Henderson demonstrated resilience while ushering in the compositional style that made swing the most popular music of the 1930s, through his
In each branch students interact with music and associated primary sources, and record their own thoughts. As they explore, sources are collected to a Journal, and the student draws on these sources to answer a final reflective question. Students can play one or both branches.
Students will:
Explore the impact the Great Depression had on music and musicians,
Explore Henderson’s impact as an Arranger during the Great Depression, including analyzing a radio broadcast where he demonstrated his Swing arranging.
Look at Henderson’s relationship with Benny Goodman, and how, through this and other relationships, Henderson influenced the direction of popular music.
Episode Implementation
Open the Teacher Guide (below) for ideas on using this Episode with students.
The Episode will open in the browser, and runs on PCs, Macs, and Chromebooks. It is not designed for small (phone screens)
The Episode can be integrated with your LMS through a simple link, or students can play from this website. No student sign-in is needed.
Teacher Guides
The Music of US teacher guide provides information, standards alignment and tips for all Music of US resources.
The Fletcher Henderson: Architect of Swing teacher guide provides tips, background information and sources for the Architect of Swing episode.
Screenshots from the episode:
