America's Soundtrack
A free course that teaches American history through the music that lived it.
Expected to launch July 1, 2026
Sign Up for UpdatesWhat Is America’s Soundtrack?
Every era of American history has a soundtrack. Revolutionary soldiers sang hymns. Enslaved people coded messages in spirituals. Jazz broke rules during Prohibition. Hip hop gave voice to communities the news ignored.
America’s Soundtrack is a free course that uses music to teach history. It’s designed for K-12 students, but honestly, most adults will learn something too. We’re not teaching music theory or how to play an instrument. We’re using songs as a way into the stories behind them.
Practicing Musician is partnered with the National Endowment for the Humanities on America250 programming.
What’s Inside
The course has 225 lessons total, covering five eras: 1776–1850, 1850–1900, 1900–1945, 1945–2000, and 2000–Present. That’s 15 lessons per grade group (elementary, middle, and high school) for each of the five eras.
Each lesson includes:
- A short video
- Discussion questions
- Assessment questions
- Resources for further reading
- Recordings you can actually listen to
Everything is free. We built this so teachers could use it without budget approvals and families could access it without subscriptions.
Lara Downes
Lara Downes is the Artistic Collaborator and Steering Committee member for America’s Soundtrack. She’s a pianist, an NPR host, and someone who has spent her career exploring what American music says about who we are. She’s helping guide the creative vision of this project.
Steering Committee
Dr. Jennifer DeLapp-Birkett
Independent Scholar
Dr. J. Peter Burkholder
Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Musicology
Jacobs School of Music, Indiana University
Dr. John Graziano
Professor Emeritus of Music History and Director of the Music in Gotham Project
City University of New York
Dr. Lara Colgate
Co-Founder & Artistic/Executive Director
Boulanger Initiative
Dr. Caiti Beth McKinney
Research Manager
Boulanger Initiative
Dr. Nate Ruechel
Assistant Professor, Humanities
College of Southern Idaho
Dr. Emily Ruth Allen
Instructor of Music / Institute for Southern Studies / Music History
University of Southern California
Dr. Mark Samples
Professor
Central Washington University
Dr. Bret Smith
Professor
Central Washington University
Dr. Matthew Franke
Senior Lecturer – Coordinator of Music History
Howard University
Dr. Zach Walmark
Associate Professor of Musicology
University of Oregon
Lara Downes
Artistic Collaborator
Dr. Rory Creigh
Vice President of Education
Practicing Musician
Project Lead
Partners and Collaborations
Our partners help with the Steering Committee, provide resources, and bring expertise we don’t have in-house.
PM is partnered with the NEH on America250 programming.
Get Involved
There are a few ways to be part of this.
Practicing Musician is a politically neutral, nonpartisan organization. Any reference on this website to third-party organizations, companies, individuals, or events—including links, sponsors, advertisers, vendors, and other partners—is provided solely to indicate the breadth of support for Practicing Musician’s mission and values.
