Sacred Harp: Voices rise in informal, cathartic praise of God

Voices rise in informal, cathartic praise of God

Sacred Harp singers Brandy Siler (from left), Katy Black, Bonnie Wood and Bonnie Whitbeck sing Oct. 24 during the Sacred Harp Singing Convention in Springdale. Sacred Harp singing is a method of traditional, easy-to-use shape notes, probably brought to the Ozarks by early settlers.
Sacred Harp singers Brandy Siler (from left), Katy Black, Bonnie Wood and Bonnie Whitbeck sing Oct. 24 during the Sacred Harp Singing Convention in Springdale. Sacred Harp singing is a method of traditional, easy-to-use shape notes, probably brought to the Ozarks by early settlers.

Fa Sol La Fa Sol La Mi Fa.

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NWA Democrat-Gazette

The hymn book Sacred Harp, originally published in 1844, presents music hymns and anthems in four parts. Singers are encouraged to sing out with enthusiasm for the joy of singing and not to entertain an audience.

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NWA Democrat-Gazette

Andrew Albers of Valley Springs leads Sacred Harp singers in a song in an all-day singing. Various members of the group have the opportunity to choose and lead songs during an event.

Voices raised loudly to sing the scale of the Sacred Harp on Oct. 23 in the general store building at the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History in Springdale. Sacred Harp singing enthusiasts came from around the region and even other states for a singing school and an all-day singing the next day in the Community Room of First Security Bank, across the street from the museum.

Sacred Harp

fasola.org

Shiloh Singers

When: 1:30-4 p.m. second Sunday of each month

Where: General Store of Shiloh Museum in Springdale, 118 W. Johnson Ave.

Information: shilohsingersnwa.bl….

Sacred Harp is a method of a capella shape-note singing, following in the tradition brought to the United States from England. The tradition traveled west with the settlers to the Ozark Mountains, said Susan Young, outreach coordinator for the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History in Springdale. The tradition was probably popular among the Primitive Baptists, who populated the area.

"'Sacred Harp' is the name of the songbook we use," explained Robert Vaughn, who came from Oak Flat, Texas, to lead the singing school. "But 'sacred harp' is also the human voice."

The Sacred Harp, 1991 Revision proclaims itself "the best collection of sacred songs, hymns, odes and anthems ever offered to the singing public for general use."

The Sacred Harp songbook was first published in 1844 in Georgia by Benjamin Franklin White and Elisha J. King.

"And 170 years later, we are still singing the same songs, plus some new ones," Vaughn said.

SHAPE

The hallmark of Sacred Harp singing are the four, simple, easy-to-remember shape notes. Most other traditions today use seven.

"This is its predecessor," Vaughn said.

Fa is presented on a staff with the shape of a triangle, like a flag, explained Stanley Smith. Sol is a circle like the sun. La is a square, formed by putting two Ls together, and Mi is a diamond.

"Ladies never have trouble learning Mi," Smith joked. "It's 'Mi want diamonds.'

"You don't have to be a music scholar."

"You learn to sing by shape notes," Vaughn said. "With the (primary) shapes, you can see where you're going. The round shapes of regular notes most people have to translate."

As the Sacred Harp tradition gained enthusiasts, singing schools came to rural towns and churches. "One or two weeks in the area, and they turned out singers," Vaughn said. "Then they could go into the community and teach other folks to sing."

"It was a blessing for anybody as opposed to having to go somewhere to learn," Smith added. "You could look at the notes and do it yourself."

Although Vaughn was the leader of the singing school, he was joined by other teachers Dan Brittain of Harrison and Smith of Ozark, Ala., who both came just to sing.

"Sacred Harp is different than church choirs and quartets," Vaughn continued.

Singers sit in a square, facing each other, with different parts -- tenor, bass, alto and treble -- assigned to individual sides. The leader stands in the middle, facing the tenor section.

Those who don't know where their voices fit are encouraged to sit in the tenor section. "It's informal," Brittain said. "Just come on in and take a spot.

"No one is going to tell you what to do," he continued with a joke for those newcomers lost in the unfamiliar notes.

The lessons of this local singing school started with class members singing the scales. Through this, they learned the intervals between the notes were the same. "The difference is the same every time," Vaughn said.

"You can practice singing the scales while you are driving around in your car," Brittain said.

JUST SING

The lessons moved on to concepts like key, pitch and timing -- perhaps a bit much for those starting out and unfamiliar with reading music. But all skill levels are eligible.

The Shiloh Sacred Harp Singers greeted everyone personally -- some friends from previous events and others who had been participating in Sacred Harp "for about 10 minutes," one participant noted.

"Some are spiritual, and some are not," added Bonnie Woods of Fayetteville.

"We want to be sure you feel welcome," Brittain said -- even poor singers.

"Find someone to sit next to -- someone who knows what they're doing. You'll get it," Smith added.

"Pitch is relative," said Woods, an accomplished vocalist. "You have to rethink it -- it's a good brain exercise. But you don't have to worry about it. The voices just seem to blend."

"If you make a mistake, someone covers you up," said Andrew Albers of Valley Springs. "You don't have the pressure of performing for an audience ..."

... Because there is none.

"It's not set up for an audience. It's just set up for singing," Vaughn said. "We are singing to each other and to God. It makes a beautiful choir."

When a group of Sacred Harp singers open their mouths, they sing loudly, they admit. "We're not trying to outdo the others," Vaughn said. "But you want to sing out where people can hear you and you can hear yourselves."

"In Sacred Harp singing, loud is usually good and louder is better," reads a FAQ document provided by Vaughn. "This is partly because of the music's origins as a true folk music, sung by ordinary people for pleasure and worship, and partly because loud singing provides more catharsis, more instant gratification, more visceral pleasure, than controlled singing."

"I enjoy it because I can open my mouth and sing out, proclaiming my faith to God," said Chris Nicholson, who came to the singing from Galveston Island in Texas. "It's a grand song as it comes from my mouth and travels along my body to roll out the toes. It's wonderful to be able to make that sound to praise God."

Then have the trumpet sounded everywhere on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement sound the trumpet throughout your land.

-- Leviticus 25:9

"It's earthy. It's natural. It's unpretentious. It's genuine," Woods said of the traditional songs she started singing in June.

"And it's amazing when you stand in the middle to lead a song and hear the voices," she added.

Vaughn explained that at different singings, various singers would be asked to choose songs and lead the class. As an example, Smith led "Haw Ridge," a song he published in 1982, during the singing school.

"Whatever they call, we will do," Vaughn said. "We may do a good job, or we may do a horrible job. But we will try hard on their songs, and we will enjoy it."

"If you like singing, this is the kind of music to sing -- you just sing," Brittain said. "We make a joyful noise no matter what."

NAN Religion on 10/31/2015

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