Black Music & History

Black Music & History

Resources to explore under-represented music and voices

Amplifying Change is an MMF project bringing together musical resources to help teachers explore inclusive and often under-represented stories and composers in a variety of contexts.

The programme was originally launched as part of MMF’s celebration of Black History Month and brings together three projects celebrating Black History, previously commissioned by MMF. Moving forward it will expand regularly, collecting external resources as well as new MMF commissions celebrating Black and other historically marginalised voices, throughout the month of October and beyond.

Music

Listening Calendar

Created for Black History Month, this listening Calendar brings together 31 video performances celebrating artists and composers from the African Diaspora. It can be used as a launchpad for classroom or personal exploration throughout the year. The PDF has video links and captions to provide context behind each performance.

A black and white illustration features historical Black musicians and composers, shown with musical instruments, sheet music, and microphones, celebrating their contributions to music and culture for Women’s History Month.

Spotify playlist

Songpack: A New Place Called Home

A New Place Called Home is an original composition commissioned by the London Borough of Merton and published by MMF in 2019 as part of the Council’s Windrush Day celebrations.

The piece was inspired by the story of the passenger ship HMT Empire Windrush, which brought one of the first large groups of people from the West Indies to the United Kingdom in 1948 during its c. 8,000-mile journey across the Atlantic from Jamaica to Tilbury Docks near London. The piece celebrates the incredible contribution of post-war migrants to UK society.

A New Place Called Home – guide track
A New Place Called Home – backing track

Demonstration by Merton Abbey Primary School

Songpack: Farewell Calypso

Farewell Calypso comes from The Journey, a choral cantata by jazz composer and educator Pete Churchill. Specially commissioned in 2009 by MMF, it takes immigration as its theme and explores the challenges as well as the joys of beginning life in a place that is not ‘home’.

Farewell Calypso references the Windrush generation and was used as an uplifting, celebratory finale to the piece.

Farewell Calypso – guide track
Farewell Calypso – piano only