The Revolution and the Creation of American Music

The Revolution and the Creation of American Music Before 1776, American music was British music — because America was British. But the Revolution didn't just create a new nation; it sparked the search for a new national identity, and music was at the heart of it! This talk traces how, in the decades following independence, a distinctly American musical style began to take shape — moving well beyond the familiar strains of Yankee Doodle to explore the songs, sounds, and traditions that newly minted Americans actually lived with. What did people sing at home, at church, at taverns, and in the streets as they figured out what did it mean to be American? About the speaker : Matt Hollis has an MA