Classroom Materials

This lecture was created by Cameron Thiel, a student in Prof. Loren Kajikawa’s Music & Politics class at George Washington University. To download this lecture and accompanying slides, click here. Cameron Thiel is a senior at George Washington University studying History. Cameron is from Fort Lauderdale, Florida where she interned with the Vice Mayor’s office.Continue reading “Taylor Swift’s Alignment with the Democratic Party and its Effect on the 2020 Presidential Election”

Over the past few electoral cycles, political candidates have capitalized on the popularity of playlist sites such as Spotify, circulating campaign playlists in hopes of forging a bond with voters, communicating their values and vision, and asserting their pop culture cred. This assignment offers students the opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of playlists as aContinue reading “Analyzing and Creating Playlists”

Trax on the Trail in the Classroom (Workshop) In this workshop presented at the Georgia Music Educators Association Conference, Haley Strassburger and Dana Gorzelany-Mostak offer strategies for teaching 9-12 students about the history of American songs. The attached documents include assignment instructions for a lesson on “Battle Hymn of the Republic” and slides from theContinue reading “Studying the Presidential Soundscape”

Eric T. Kasper and Benjamin S. Schoening, authors of Don’t Stop Thinking About the Music: The Politics of Songs and Musicians in Presidential Campaigns, bring you a lesson plan that will guide students through the history of campaign music.

Kassie Kelly (Trax Education and Outreach Coordinator) and Dana Gorzelany-Mostak (Trax Creator and Co-editor) join forces with Leah Branstetter (Rock Hall Digital Education Coordinator), Mandy Smith (Rock Hall Education Programs Manager), Kathryn Metz (Rock Hall Manager of Education Outreach) and Deanna Nebel (Rock Hall Education Instructor) to bring you an exciting and timely lesson unitContinue reading “Trax on the Trail and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame join forces to bring you Rock & Roll to the White House”

The research assistants at Trax on the Trail have curated a collection of Pinterest Boards with links to campaign music videos, articles, and resources. You can access these boards here.

A Short History of Music on the Campaign Trail (Digital Lecture) From the 1840 bid of William Henry Harrison, who was “sung into office,” to Donald Trump, who entered the 2016 Republican National Convention to Queen’s “We Are the Champions,” music has played a significant role in presidential campaign pageantry. This lecture traces the historyContinue reading “Songs in the Key of President C”

Dana Gorzelany-Mostak presented this workshop at the William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum in Little Rock, Arkansas on May 1, 2018. The attached document offers a list of resources for teachers and lesson plan outlines that address campaign playlists and parodies.

Teaching Music History Conference, Berklee College of Music, Boston, MA, June 11, 2017 Presenters Dana Gorzelany-Mostak (Georgia College), Naomi Graber (University of Georgia), Hanna Lisa Stefansson (University of Georgia), Cameron Steuart (University of Georgia), Mary Helen Hoque (University of Georgia), Sarah Kitts (Georgia College), and Kassie Kelly (Trinity University) gave a workshop on how toContinue reading “Campaign Music 101 in the Music History Classroom”

Candidates typically enter the rally stage to a pop song, but what happens when they use these tunes in their commercials? In this lesson plan, Joanna Love (University of Richmond) offers discussion points and activities for teachers of non-majors who wish to explore the role pop music plays in branding the candidate.