|
Showing 1 - 7 of
7 matches in All Departments
The Sacred Harp, a tunebook that first appeared in 1844, has stood
as a model of early American musical culture for most of this
century. Tunebooks such as this, printed in shape notes for public
singing and singing schools, followed the New England tradition of
singing hymns and Psalms from printed music. Nineteeth-century
Americans were inundated by such books, but only the popularity of
The Sacred Harp has endured throughout the twentieth century. With
this tunebook as his focus, John Bealle surveys definitive moments
in American musical history, from the lively singing schools of the
New England Puritans to the dramatic theological crises that split
New England Congregationalism, from the rise of the genteel urban
mainstream in frontier Cincinnati to the bold "New South" movement
that sought to transform the southern economy, from the nostalgic
culture-writing era of the Great Depression to the post-World War
II folksong revival. Although Bealle finds that much has changed in
the last century, the custodians of the tradition of Sacred Harp
singing have kept it alive and accessible in an increasingly
diverse cultural marketplace. Public Worship, Private Faith is a
thorough and readable analysis of the historical, social, musical,
theological, and textual factors that have contributed to the
endurance of Sacred Harp singing.
In the summer of 1972, a group of young people in Bloomington,
Indiana, began a weekly gathering with the purpose of reviving
traditional American old-time music and dance. In time, the group
became a kind of accidental utopia, a community bound by
celebration and deliberately void of structure and authority. In
this joyful and engaging book, John Bealle tells the lively history
of the Bloomington Old-Time Music and Dance Group how it was
formed, how it evolved its unique culture, and how it grew to shape
and influence new waves of traditional music and dance. Broader
questions about the folk revival movement, social resistance,
counter culture, authenticity, and identity intersect this
delightful history. More than a story about the people who forged
the group or an extraordinary convergence of talent and creativity,
Old-Time Music and Dance follows the threads of American folk
culture and the social experience generated by this living
tradition of music and dance."
Combining classical chamber music with traditional folk elements,
Wondrous Love features the original compositions of John Beall.
Inspiration for the music ranges from gospel music to the majestic
mountain Spruce Knob, portrayed in Beall's second symphony. The
pieces, performed by ensembles ranging from two to six in number,
all draw upon Appalachian folksongs or southern hymn tunes as
melodic material. Among the hymns represented are ?Trust and Obey?
and the beloved ?Amazing Grace? as well as selections from the 1815
hymnbook Kentucky Harmony and the Southern Harmony hymnbook from
1835. The booklet accompanying these CDs offers notes by Penn State
professor of piano, Steven H. Smith, who discusses concert notes
and provides analyses of the pieces presented here.
|
|