Journal issue: Vol. 3, No. 2
Introducing Vol. 3, No. 2 of the Sacred Harp Publishing Company Newsletter
The seventh issue of the Sacred Harp Publishing Company Newsletter documents the continuing spread of Sacred Harp singing in Europe, sheds new light on important moments in Sacred Harp’s early history, and reports on recent developments at the Sacred Harp Museum. Our issue opens with three writers exploring transatlantic Sacred Harp connections from different angles.…
Come Sound His Praise Abroad: A Report on the First Germany Sacred Harp Convention
A note from the editor: On the first Sunday in June and the Saturday before, Germany joined the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Poland as the fourth European country to hold an annual Sacred Harp convention. Sacred Harp singings have been held in Germany since late 2010, and were bolstered by a pair of all-day singing…
The Old World Seeks the Old Paths: Observing Our Transnationally Expanding Singing Community
In 1982, Alan Lomax, the controversial ethnomusicologist and folklorist, predicted that thousands of Americans would be singing from The Sacred Harp across the country in the following years. He cited Sacred Harp singing’s rich sound, democratic ideals, and generous community as portending its future as a national singing phenomenon. In a winded spout of inspiration…
American Tunes in West Gallery Sources
The conventional model of the flow of hymn tunes across the Atlantic is that music went from the United Kingdom to America in the years before the American Revolution and that American tunes came across to Britain in the 1860s and 1870s with the arrival of the Chicago evangelist Dwight Moody and the musician Ira…
Elphrey Heritage: Northern Contributor to the Nineteenth-century Sacred Harp
All of the direct contributors to the nineteenth-century editions of The Sacred Harp lived in Georgia or Alabama with one exception: Elphrey Heritage, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Heritage contributed two songs to the 1870 fourth edition of The Sacred Harp: “Warning” (p. 213b in The Sacred Harp, 1991 Edition) and “The Savior’s Call” (p. 489). Who…
There’s an App for That: A Review of the “FaSoLa Minutes” App
One year ago, Mark Godfrey and Lauren Bock unveiled a new smartphone app made especially for Sacred Harp singers. It’s called “FaSoLa Minutes,” and it is enhancing how we look up song, singer, and singing information. I started using the app as soon as it became available, and have found it enjoyable, easy to use, and frequently…
The Chattahoochee Convention, August 1, 1880: Memorial for Benjamin Franklin White
Benjamin Franklin White, co-compiler of The Sacred Harp, prolific composer, and the person largely responsible for building the traditions that continue to define Sacred Harp singing, died on December 5, 1879. The following year, the Chattahoochee Musical Convention, at that time a leading Sacred Harp singing institution, held a special memorial session in his honor. Cornelius…
Our Hope for Years to Come: Digitizing Recordings at the Sacred Harp Museum
As part of our ongoing efforts to enhance the security and accessibility of our collections, the Sacred Harp Museum has partnered with Osiris Studio in Atlanta to digitize all of the museum’s open-reel tapes. Ranging in date from the 1960s to the early 1990s, the tapes include everything from amateur recordings of singing conventions to…
A Brief History of A Brief History of the Sacred Harp
Trenton, Georgia, singer David Saylor recently came across an extraordinary piece of Sacred Harp history. A friend of David’s saw a thin book for sale at a used bookstore. Noting the name “Sacred Harp” in the book’s title, and remembering David’s involvement with the tradition, the friend bought the book for a dollar and gave…