Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Listening to "Chinaman" Songs

All audio recordings are located in the Audio folder in Resources on the class Collab site. You can work in pairs if you wish.

“John Chinaman, My Jo”: The lyricist of “John Chinaman, My Jo” used the tune of an originally Scots-Irish song called “John Anderson, My Jo.” Listen to the recording at least once. Read both sets of lyrics, and compare/contrast them. Note: "Jo" refers to "sweetheart."
  • Who is “John Chinaman” according to Moon? How is "John Chinaman" portrayed in this song?
  • The song appears in Conner’s Irish Song Book published in 1868. How is this historical context significant?
“The Geisha. Chin Chin Chinaman”: This was performed by New York Broadway actor James T Powers [http://www.answers.com/topic/james-t-powers] between 1890-1908. Listen to this recording at least once.
  • Is this a yellowface performance? How would Moon interpret this vocal performance?
Due: 5pm, today [1/27]

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