A short (about 2 minute) intro to the old American Sacred Harp/shape note singing. Way back when, when many people, especially those in the deepest of the Deep South, could not read or write, and certainly were not trained in music, Americans still wanted to worship God. So, a new type of music was developed...shape notes. People learned what the note shapes sounded like and thats how they read the lines of music. A leader would line or sing/speak the words and the congregation would follow. As everyone learned the words by heart, the leader would simply keep time and bring in the various voice groupings. In the shape-note hymnals, the songs are recognized by both name and number. Hence, you usually see a number preceding the hymn title. Or, sometimes, just the number. Another name for this is Sacred Harp music. My husband and I have done this with a Sacred Harp group. Its awesome and awe-inspiring. You really do feel lifted up, transported. Hope you enjoy a short part of a documentary about Sacred Harp music. ~cv #SacredHarp #SacredHarpMusic #ShapeNoteSinging https://youtube/watch?v=YHUfHNEZDPc
Posted on: Sat, 01 Nov 2014 00:39:55 +0000
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