A Socio-Pedagogical Analysis of Five Short Choral Works by Adolphus Hailstork

Abstract

The focus of the present research is to examine the socio-pedagogical aspects of Adolphus Hailstork's Five Short Choral Works. The socio-pedagogical benefits of these and similar compositions stem from their potential to encourage more critical cultural engagement of the choral contributions of Black composers in both the classroom and rehearsal hall. While the music on its own merit is worthy of deeper study and analysis, the added benefit to students, teachers and conductors is that the inclusion of diverse groups in music education has proven sociological benefits. Therefore, these five works have potential benefits in terms of representation, cultural engagement, and holistic consideration of American music. Furthermore, if students are given more diverse expressions of diversity, then there is greater likelihood that they will grow socially to appreciate and understand heterogeneous expressions of culture and be more engaged in culture criticism.