Abraham Lincoln

On April 15, 1865, Abraham Lincoln was assassinated – just six days after General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant at the courthouse in Appomattox, Virginia, thus ending the American Civil War. It's been 150 years since we lost one of the most liked and respected presidents of all time. To honor this great American, we present the song "Abraham Lincoln." The lyrics provide you with a few facts about the man and his presidency. There are also three spots in the song where an Abraham Lincoln quote is spoken – giving even more insight into who he was. We've provided you with three quotes in the music, but you could use others if you wish. There certainly is no shortage of memorable quotes from Abraham Lincoln. As a matter of fact, if you wanted to add one, you could begin the song with a quote as well. The opening of the song uses the same four bar interlude as the three other places where quotes are used.

These quotes could be spoken by one, two, or more students. They should be read with thoughtfulness and great enunciation. They will also need to pay attention to timing, as each quote must be read within the four bar interlude. For a really dramatic presentation, you might consider having an adult male (such as a teacher, parent, administrator, etc.) read the quotes. He could do this just as a dramatic reading, or perhaps dressed as President Lincoln – dark suit, beard, and stovepipe hat.

The song itself is fairly easy to learn. It's unison and has three verses and a bridge that is sung twice. The bridge features a phrase from the well-known Shaker song "Simple Gifts," which will no doubt be familiar to some of your singers. The accompaniment features a full orchestra which will really add a lot to your performance. However, we are also including a playable piano part in case you want to do a totally live rendition. One advantage of doing it this way would be that you could make the quote interludes longer if you wanted to, thus giving you more options on which ones you use.

There are many cross curricular opportunities here, of course. The life and presidency of Abraham Lincoln, the Civil War, Presidents' Day, or more specific topics like the Gettysburg Address, the Emancipation Proclamation, and much more. As with any topic that you can bring across the curriculum through the use of music, we recommend you communicate with other teachers to let them know of this useful musical tool.

By the way, if you are interested in doing an entire program or segment of a program dedicated to President Lincoln and/or the Civil War, we have several other songs that would work very well. "Abraham" (Music K-8, Vol. 14, No. 3), "Battle Hymn For Gettysburg" (Music K-8, Vol. 19, No. 3), When Johnny Comes Marching Home" (Music K-8, Vol. 12, No. 4), "Follow The Drinking Gourd" (Music K-8, Vol. 13, No. 3), just to name a few. Consult your Music K-8 Index (which was included with your first issue) for a complete list. You'll also find this useful Index on our web site MusicK8.com