Learning Resources

Black Sailors and Sea Shanties

This pack explores the influence of black sailors on sea shanties and presents three songs with accompanying sheet music, recordings and activities – arranged by artists Adriano Adewale and Hazel Askew.

‘Black Sailors and Sea Shanties’ introduces learners to sea shanties and explores the influence of black sailors on shanties. The resource provides arrangements of three shanties with extended learning activities, and is aimed at Key Stage 3 (age 11 and above).

The pack also provides useful background information and discussion points to explore the meanings and interpretations of the songs. Audio recordings of the songs to assist learning can also be freely downloaded here.

The English Folk Dance and Song Society is here to champion the English folk arts – music, song, dance and related art forms and traditions – as part of the rich and diverse cultural landscape of the UK. As part of our mission to celebrate diversity and promote equality we produced this learning resource in 2015 in celebration of Black History Month. 

You might also be interested in our resource Black Singers and Folk Ballads, which was written by musician and singer Cohen Braithwaite-Kilcoyne in 2020. And our latest resource Black British History and Folk Songs,  written by Angeline Morrison in 2023.