Important contributors to the world of Sacred Harp singing
Adapted from the
Information page
of the "Awake, My Soul" website, with additions
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Index:
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William Billings (1746-1800) - Billings, who
lived during the American Revolution, is noteworthy as the
first published American composer. He lived and worked as a
tanner in Boston, and, following the tradition of choral
singing that dates to the Country Parish music of early 18th
century England, taught singing schools across New England
although he was evidently untrained in music himself. That
tradition quickly took hold following the publication of
William Billings' New
England Psalm Singer with the aim of teaching young
people sacred songs. They adopted the "shape note" method of
teaching music, first introduced in 1801 with the
publication of The Easy
Instructor by William Smith and William Little.
Two of Billings's primary publications
were The Singing Masters' Assistant and The
Continental Harmony. Much of his music was preserved in
the various shape note songbook collections of the 19th
century.
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William
Walker (1809 -1875) - Walker and B.F. White
(Compiler of the Sacred Harp) were brothers-in-law by
marriage, having married Amy and Thurza Golighty
respectively. Walker was also active in music in the
Spartanburg, SC area. He published The Southern Harmony
in 1835. The legend in the Sacred Harp tradition is that
Walker and White were great friends and both contributed
equally to the Southern Harmony compilation, however,
when Walker took the manuscript to Philadelphia, it included
only his name. Supposedly, the two never spoke again. Walker
would continue to be an active teacher of music. Following
the War between the States, he would publish The
Christian Harmony, a seven shape songbook, still in use
in sections of the deep south.
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B. F.
White - Benjamin Franklin White was born in
1800 near Spartanburg, South Carolina. He served in the war
of 1812 playing the fife. He moved to Hamilton, Harris
County, GA in 1842. where he would soon meet a young man,
E.J. King. Together, they published the 1st edition of
The Sacred Harp in 1844. Unfortunately, King died
shortly after the book came out. B.F. White continued to be
active in the growing Sacred Harp community. He was
instrumental in the founding of the Southern Musical
Convention in 1845, and this idea of holding singing
conventions would be an important means by which interest in
the Sacred Harp would be generated. During the 1850's The
Southern Musical Convention would publish the newspaper
The Organ, which would contain new shape note tunes that
were being written. He would serve as mayor of Hamilton, GA
in 1865, and moved to the Atlanta area following the War
between the States. White continued to be active in
maintaining the interest of The Sacred Harp with new
editions being published in 1850 and 1859, and a revision in
1869, until he died in 1879 after sustaining injuries from a
fall on Spring Street in Atlanta. White is buried in the
historic Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta. 27 songs published in
the current edition of The Sacred Harp were written
or arranged by White.
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E.J. King
- Little is known about Elisha King. He was the son of a
plantation owner in central, western Georgia. It is
generally accepted that he provided much of the financial
support for the publication of The Sacred Harp in 1844. He
died before any formal singing occurred from the songbook
while he was still quite young. Over 20 of the songs
published in the current edition of The Sacred Harp
are attributed to King.
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