Last weekend I had the opportunity to serve as one of six judges at the State Annual Singing Convention in my home town of Benson, NC. (For those who are unfamiliar, this event has basically developed into a Southern Gospel music competition, although its origin was something that grew out of the presence of local singing schools that took place in various churches in the area back in the early twentieth century. At these schools people learned to read music via shaped notes on the musical staff. The music was of the type that evolved into what we now think of as Southern Gospel. In some other places, especially the Appalachian mountains, singing conventions are held nowadays at which large groups of people gather and sing hymns and gospel songs which they are reading from musical scores with shaped notes.) Well, at the Benson Sing, three of the judges listened to the contestants on Saturday, and two other judges and I listened on Sunday. The scores for both days served to provide the final scores for each group. As a judge I can honestly say that from what I could tell, everything was handled in a very fair and sensible manner. I am confident that no one, including judges or Benson Sing Board members, knew who the winners were until all the scores from Saturday AND Sunday were computed. Of course, competition is not the main reason to participate. But it is fun to wait in anticipation, hear ones groups name called as winner, run onto the stage and accept the loving cup, and possibly pose for a photo. Of course, the older I get, the less enthused I am about that very last part. I was glad that when we posed for the picture of the Sunday judges, there was no fluorescent light shining down on my receding hairline and thinning hair in general. Find out more about the event on its Facebook page or its website, gospelsingingconvention.org.
Posted on: Fri, 27 Jun 2014 20:43:26 +0000
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