25 Classical Music Listening Packs | Black History Month Activities

Just print & play! Do you need engaging music activities for Black History Month? Each composer/musician pack includes listening sheets, a research activity page, and more! Enjoy during February or throughout the whole year! Also great for sub plans. There are 13 composers/musicians study packs and 12 brain break packs!

Lifetime Updates

You'll have everything you need for classical music appreciation with 372 listening activities in this activity vault. You will also receive periodic updates for this resource for free! Keep an eye on your "My Purchases" tab for update notifications.

Bundle Benefits:

• Save time! The music selections are already curated for you
• Add music appreciation to various lessons and unit studies
• Students explore social-emotional themes through listening
• Low-prep engaging and mindful activities for students
• Easily find the music on YouTube or your favorite music services
• No musical training is required - print and play!

Learning Objectives

• increased knowledge of composers from different backgrounds
• familiarity with the composers' works
• ability to recognize, and engage with, popular pieces of music
• identify different instrument sounds
• social-emotional exploration of feelings and moods within the music
• creative expression by drawing and choosing colors related to a musical theme

Composer Study Packs (13)

• 1-page Resource Guide
• Listening Sheet Star Rating Guide
• Listening Sheets
• Weather and Emotions Listening Sheets
• Composer Biography Page - fact sheet (1 or 2 facts are already provided, a box to paste/draw the composer's portrait, and a birthday box to color in and decorate cupcakes!
• Composer Research Sheet - students can use their favorite reference materials to compile a full page of facts about the composer's home country.
• Composer Rating Activity - there are more options to profile the composer on the rating sheet, including which season and musical style they belong to.
• Word Composer Activity - in the classic letter puzzle, students can use all the letters from the composer's full name to create new, shorter words and record their scores.

Featured Composers/Musicians

1. Scott Joplin - The Entertainer, Maple Leaf Rag, Augustan Club Waltz, Kismet Rag, Ragtime Dance, Weeping Willow Rag, Swipesy Cake Walk, Silver Swan Rag (60 pages)
2. Charles Mingus - Nostalgia in Times Square, Boogie Stop Shuffle, Adagio Ma Non Troppo, Self-Portrait in Three Colors, Open Letter to Duke, Myself When I'm Real, E's Flat and Ah's Flat Too, Bird Calls (26 pages)
3. Duke Ellington - Take the 'A' Train, It Don't Mean a Thing, Mood Indigo, In a Sentimental Mood, Perdido, Rockin' in Rhythm, C-Jam Blues, Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue (26 pages)
4. George Walker - Sinfonia No. 4, Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 1, String Quartet No. 2, Piano Sonata No. 5, Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, Bleu for Unaccompanied Violin, Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, Pageant and Proclamation (26 pages)
5. John Coltrane - Countdown, Moment's Notice, Equinox, Naima, Lazy Bird, Cousin Mary, Afro Blue, After the Rain (26 pages)
6. Nat King Cole - Unforgettable, When I Fall in Love, Mona Lisa, L-O-V-E, Route 66, Autumn Leaves, Smile, Non Dimenticar (26 pages)
7. Melba Liston - Insomnia, Blues Melba, You Don't Say, Wonder Why, Christmas Eve, The Dark Before The Dawn, What's My Line Theme, Exodus (26 pages)
8. Art Tatum - Tiger Rag, Tea for Two, Over the Rainbow, Yesterdays, Someone to Watch Over Me, Moonglow, My Heart Stood Still, Night and Day (26 pages)
9. Dizzy Gillespie - A Night in Tunisia, The Champ, Stardust, Round Midnight, Blue 'N Boogie, Birks' Works, On the Sunny Side of the Street, Things to Come (26 pages)
10. Mary Lou Williams - Don't Blame Me, My Blue Heaven, All Blues, A Fungus Amungus, A Grand Night (sometimes spelled Nite) for Swinging, Scorpio, Gloria, Walkin' and Swingin' (26 pages)
11. Charlie Parker - Yardbird Suite, Blues for Alice, Scrapple from the Apple, Anthropology, Barbados, Donna Lee, Now's the Time, Bebop (26 pages)
12. Thelonious Monk - Bemsha Swing, 'Round Midnight, Blue Monk, Well, You Needn't, April in Paris, Reflections, Ask Me Now, Bye-Ya (26 pages)
13. Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges - Symphony in G Major, Op. 11, L' Amant Anonyme, Ouverture, Violin Concerto in G Major, Op. 2, No. 1, Symphony Concertante in B-Flat Major, Op. 6, No. 2, Adagio in F Minor, Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 3, No. 1, Concerto for Violin, Op. 7, No. 1, Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Major (26 pages)

Brain Break Packs

Listening Sheet - There are no wrong answers! Students can note how they feel and what they imagine while listening to a selected piece of music. Choose from musical instruments, nature scenes, colors, and more.

Weather & Feelings - Weather is a recurring theme in classical music. Does a musical piece remind the listener of a snowy day or a cheerful sunny afternoon? Students can select the weather symbols that come to mind. Is the music happy or sad? A set of emotional characters allows your group to pick the feelings that best relate to a piece of music.

Listen & Color a Carnival - Students can color their own carnival while listening to the selected music! Which carnival rides and activities would best fit a piece of music? Does the tempo feel like a roller coaster or a peaceful swing ride in the sky? Choose a tasty treat from the snack bar, then stop at the prize booth before finishing. There are no wrong answers!

Emoji Checkbox Listening - This listening sheet style is all about checkboxes! Students note how they feel and what they imagine while listening to a selected piece of music. Choose from musical instruments, nature scenes, colors, and more! Time, nature, settings, instruments, and colors are also listed. Students color in the emojis that best describe their listening experience in the emoji grid. The 'Inspiration Box' can be used for inspired drawing, journaling, notes, poetry, etc.

1-5 Star Rating Guide in color

1-5 Star Rating Guide in black & white

Emoji Rating Guide in color

Emoji Rating Guide in black & white

Word Composer - compose a list of new words using letters from the composer's name. Add a timer for an extra challenge!

Drawing/Writing Page - a freestyle approach to listening! Students can draw a scene inspired by the music selection or use the page as a writing space. Great for bulletin boards and displays!

Featured Music

1. Pastoral, Julia Perry (10 pages)
2. Clarinet Sonata, Zenobia Powell Perry (10 pages)
3. Love Let The Wind Cry...How I Adore Thee, Undine Moore Smith (10 pages)
4. Here Comes the Sun, performed by Nina Simone (10 pages)
5. Somewhere Over the Rainbow, performed by Sarah Vaughan (10 pages)
6. Backwater Blues, performed by Bessie Smith (10 pages)
7. Pennies from Heaven, performed by Billie Holiday (10 pages)
8. At Last, performed by Etta James (10 pages)
9. Bemsha Swing, Cecil Taylor (10 pages)
10. Violin Concerto in G Minor, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (10 pages)
11. Blue Nile, Alice Coltrane (10 pages)
12. The Muffin Man, performed by Ella Fitzgerald (10 pages)

BONUS FILE

This bundle has you covered with engaging listening activities, but what about visual learning? Grab this pack of 70 Composer Fact Sheet Posters as a free bonus! These calming rainbow-themed posters can also work as handouts, or resize them in your print settings for colorful flashcards.

Need More Black History Month Resources?

Share stories, create conversations, and spark a deeper appreciation for the arts all month (and all year) long! Explore ALL of the Black History Month composer packs, activities, and digital resources.