There Has to Be A Song!
Week of April 27, 2020
Ms. Dixon - Block 2 Elementary School
Assignment Overview
Hi everyone, I hope you all have been staying well and making
music through these interesting times! This week’s two-part assignment is designed to
allow you to explore one of your songs for All-County Chorus, T
here Has to Be a Song by
Andrea Ramsey and corresponds with this
week’s Google Classroom worksheet . Before
we dive in, let’s learn a little bit about our
composer, or, the person who writes a piece of
music.
Andrea Ramsey
There Has to Be A Song was written by Andrea
Ramsey, a composer and conductor originally
from Arkansas. Andrea frequently conducts
All-County and All-State choirs (just like you’re
singing in!) and has held choral positions at The
Ohio State University and University of
Colorado.
Part I - Listening and Response
1. Explore and listen to at least two different performances of Andrea Ramsey’s
arrangement of There Has to Be A Song on Youtube, Spotify, Soundcloud, or any
music streaming application you have access to. For each of the performances
share one thing you enjoyed and one aspect you would change given the
opportunity to conduct the piece.
2
2. Sing through the song alongside your favorite performance, Schoology track,
or without music. While you’re performing, think of ways you can edit and
critique your performance by adding expression, movement, or other features
(technology, instruments, etc).
3. On the Google worksheet share your favorite performance of the song. Then,
share what made the performance so unique and what the lyrics of the song
mean to you.
Part II - Short Reading
There Has to Be A Song was published in 2011 in honor of the founders of the Lawrence
Children’s Choir and includes text by Robert Benson. The song features the Gospel
style, a style of music originating from African-American spirituals and Christian hymns
based in Southern America. Though Gospel music can be linked much further in history,
African-American spirituals gained much popularity in response to the Underground
Railroad. The Underground Railroad was a secret route that slaves journeyed through in
order to escape to free states up North from the late 1700s to the mid 1800s during the
Civil WarS. Spirituals would be sung to encourage or share information with escaping
slaves as they continued moving North. Some songs you may know that are associated
with the Underground Railroad include G
o Down Moses, Swing Low, Sweet Chariot, and
Wade in the Water. Spirituals and Gospel music in general often relay themes of hope
and promise, offering reminders that everything will be ok in the end as long as we do
not give up hope. There i s indeed a song of hope to keep our lights burning through the
dark, and that song already lies within us, within our music! Now, more than ever, it’s
important that we keep this message of light inside of us.
