Unit 2 Congo Square and the Foundation of New Orleans Music
Unit Overview
Congo Square is an open public space located in Louis Armstrong Park on North Rampart Street in New Orleans, Louisiana. From the earliest days of New Orleans (founded in 1718) until the mid-1800s, Congo Square was a space where enslaved Africans were allowed to gather. Hundreds and sometimes thousands of enslaved Africans would congregate on Sunday afternoons to socialize and set up a marketplace to vend food, arts, and crafts. By 1819, these weekly gatherings included thousands of participants and onlookers.
Historians credit the gatherings in Congo Square with keeping African music and dance practices alive in North America. These early gatherings in Congo Square influenced New Orleans musical traditions, including Traditional New Orleans Jazz, Mardi Gras Indians, Second Lines, R&B, and more. To this day, the musical forms observed in Congo Square continue to be a part of people’s lives in New Orleans. Congo Square remains as a gathering space, which includes drum circles hosted every Sunday, festivals, political demonstrations, and more.
In this unit, students will explore the history of Congo Square and how the African Diaspora gave birth to the distinct rhythms of New Orleans music and culture. Utilizing the Bamboula, Tresillo, Habanera, Son Clave, and Cinquillo rhythms, students will listen to and learn the foundational rhythms of New Orleans music, which are still utilized in New Orleans music today, including Jazz, Brass Band, Funk, and Bounce.
This unit is designed to be taught over several classes and should be introduced prior to teaching the units on Mardi Gras Indians/Black Masking Indians, Traditional New Orleans Jazz, and Brass Bands.
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Unit 2 - Congo Square and the Foundation of New Orleans Music
Grade Level
8-12
Content Area
- General Music
- Instrumental Ensembles
National Core Arts Standards
Creating:
Anchor Standard 1: Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work.
Anchor Standard 2: Organize and develop artistic ideas and work.
Responding:
Anchor Standard 7: Perceive and analyze artistic work.
Anchor Standard 8: Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work.
Connection:
Anchor Standards 11: Relate artistic ideas and work with societal, cultural, and historical context to deepen understanding.
How did Congo Square influence the rhythms heard in New Orleans and other popular music today? What rhythms are the foundation of New Orleans music?
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