Photo courtesy Martha Beverly, Kalamazoo, Mich.
sacred harp warren steel
Warren Steel, professor of music at the University of Mississippi, has attended every national convention since1980.
National Sacred Harp Singing Convention
June 12-14 • 9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
First Christian Church
olemiss.edu, search “Sacred Harp Singing Convention”
This month, more than 500 Sacred Harp singers from more than 20 states will converge in the 280 area, and amongst the crowd will be Gaston White.
White is an engineer by trade, but he has a history with classical choral singing. For more than 20 years, he used some of his free time leading a choir in the area. With the rest, he harmonized with his wife — a trained soprano soloist and choral professor at Samford University for more than 25 years.
White’s wife passed in 1997, and White began to look for an outlet. In 1980, he and his wife were introduced to the National Sacred Harp Singing Convention in Birmingham. Eighteen years later, in 1998, he found it again, and it’s been a part of his life ever since.
From June 12-14, the 35th annual National Sacred Harp Singing Convention will be held at First Christian Church, 4954 Valleydale Road. In years past, the event has welcomed up to 600 attendees who filter in and out over the course of the three days. Some come from down the road; others as far as the United Kingdom.
Sacred Harp gets its name from the Sacred Harp Hymnal, which was originally published in 1844. White said its roots — a style called shape-note singing — can be traced back further to Colonial Americans and composer William Billings, regarded as the first American choral composer.
The style of Sacred Harp is reverberating a cappella in four-part harmony that White said is more of a participation event than a performance.
“You just have to completely shift gears,” White said of those new to the style. “You’ll sing a song through once, and for the first time through it sounds maybe like we’re speaking in tongues.”
For the convention, singers divide into groups of bass, tenor, treble and alto. A part of the church will be arranged into the “Hollow Square,” setting up pews and chairs to face opposite one another. Imagine a tiny version of Bryant-Denny or Jordan-Hare stadiums.
From there, one at a time, an individual will move to the center of the square and lead a song of his or her choosing. Popular picks include “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name,” “Jesus, Lover of My Soul” and “Amazing Grace.”
Participants come and go throughout the day, but the music lasts from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. for three days straight, only pausing to either let singers catch their breath or grab some lunch. White said it’s a welcoming atmosphere that people connect with quickly — even if they have no experience with the hymnal.
“Sure, most are unfamiliar,” he said. “But we always tell them not to worry about the notes. We’re going to stumble all over those anyway. “Just sing ‘la la la’ and you’ll be right 30 percent of the time.”
The event is open to the public, and White said all are welcome to both watch and participate.
For more, visit olemiss.edu and search “Sacred Harp Singing Convention.”
