Songs for Children

[Danny]

Re: Songs for Children

I have Meg DeAngelis' handout entitled "Songs to Sing with Children," which lists the following:

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star ...etc. etc...

hope this helps, Pam Kingsley-Bryda

Again, a few of these were not considered children's tunes at the time, as they were still popular adult entertainment, keeping in mind they were performed in blackface dialect. In particular O Susanna and Buffalo Gals, and perhaps Arkansas Traveller. Some here earlier suggested Minstrel songs were not appropriate for families and children of repectable upbringing at the time, though, as I mentioned before, I think by the 1860s the Minstrel performances had been cleaned up.

I thought of another song for children - "Listen to The Mockingbird" - a Lincoln favorite.

The thing left to decide in this matter -- Is it correct to actually reenact Minstrel songs in period children's choir or school venue? And, how can we authentically do that unless we have the kids attempt to sing in dialect (which is too awkward today), as they would have heard it? This is the AC so I ask.

I feel it's ok to sing Minstrel songs of the time to children, because they probably did hear them, but to suppose and reenact that the children sang them in a choir or school setting, no -- not until much later in the century when they became children's classics.

Dan Wykes

[Hank Trent]

Re: Songs for Children

Here's something that might be useful. It's The Book of Nursery Rhymes Complete by James Orchard Halliwell-Phillipps, Philadelphia: Theodore Bliss & Co., 1846, the full text available online at: http://books.google.com/books?id=23sAAAAAMAAJ

Though it has lots of stuff, there's a chapter specifically on songs, starting on p. 61. Unfortunately most of the tunes aren't given, though it might be possible to eke out common tunes for particular rhymes, by searching for those rhymes elsewhere. Ironically the first one is a rhyme that I learned when I was little, though only recited it and never sang it.

British influence is strong in the book, but I haven't looked at it enough to see if it's an English reprint or written by Americans for Americans.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@voyager.net

[GermanDraftee]

Re: Songs for Children

Another source would be the songs sung by the immigrant population, Irish & German being two of the largest of the period. Each has its share of lullabyes and nonsense songs, as well as adult tunes that children would have heard and initated. Many Irish tunes would be easier, because they are already in English. Even teaching a phrase or line, or just the chorus (if its simple) can engage children in a song that is unfamiliar or is done in another language. If its a school group and some children are already studying that language, so much the better.

Humbly suggested,