THE NEGRO SPIRITUAL

Dr. Sonja Sepúlveda

AN AMERICAN ART FORM: PERFORMANCE PRACTICES OF SELECTED COMPOSITIONS AND COMPARISONS TO

GOSPEL

AFRICAN MUSIC TO THE

CONCERT SPIRITUAL

Dr. Sonja Sepúlveda

AFRICAN CHARACTERISTICS

• Complex rhythms• Percussion and movement• Harmony in open fifths and fourths• Call and Response• Beat emphasis that moves the

melody forward• Singers need to move

Praise the name of Jesus, for the name is high.

Jesu Waca / African Chant

• Sotho tradition• There’s no one like Jesus. There’s no

one like Him. I looked around everywhere. I turned around everywhere. I finally found my Jesus. There’s no one like Him.

• L=Z, H=silent, NG=nasal

Ahuna Ya Tswanang Le Jesu

• Congo/ Zimbabwe Hymn Tune• Ezatele: Come here.• Uyaimose: Come all ye people, come and praise

the Most High. Come now and worship the Lord.

Ezatele / Uyaimose

CONCERT AFRICAN FOLK

• African song arranged into a European traditional choral arrangement

• Wana Baraka:• Stacks African melodies• Call and response• Open 5ths • Unbridled joy• Latin vowels• Word stress

• Kenyan religious tune • They have blessings, those who pray;

Jesus himself said so. Alleluia! They have peace, joy and well-being.

Wana Baraka

• South African song, in Xhosa dialect, arranged into European choral style

• Stacking melodies• Call and response• Open 5ths• Unbridled joy because of hope• Th=T, X=Click or K, S=Z, ND=spoken,

2nd consonant most important. Q=k

Bawo Thixo Somandla

Father God Almighty what are our sins? What have we done that we kill each other thus? This world is full of troubles. On this earth we carry a heavy burden. I have a continuous cry in my heart. Let this be over. Let this cup pass from me.

Bawo Thixo Somandla

• Stacking of melodies• Secular• Polyrhythms • Energy• Movement• Added sounds

Dubula, a Xhosa folk song

• The honey bird carries sour milk. It is no good for my child. Let us chase him away with a big bang.

• XH=click (K sound at back of throat and click backwards like a “kuh” sound), PH=f, TH=t, ND=like hand, NT=plant, G=always hard, even before an “e”, Latin vowels, percussive consonants.

Dubula, Stephen Hatfield

• Kituba dialect, Congo• Call and answer• Movement• Drums• Polyrhythms • Added sounds• Passion• Vowels like Latin

Noel

Noel, Jesus has come to live with us. If you want to know the Child, you have to come kneel.

Noel

CONCERT SPIRITUAL

• Keeps African characteristics• Concert Spirituals are arranged in

European choral format retaining African characteristics

• Combines African music with European hymn tune

Africa

HOW TO SING THE CONCERT

SPIRITUALDr. Sonja Sepúlveda

Jester Hairston (1902-2000)

Performance Concerns in the SpiritualAccording to Jester Hairston• Dialect/ Style

• Use it. All people can do it, no matter their color

• Tempo and Rhythm• It is the rhythm that sells the songs

• Spirituals bring people together• Unity through purpose with song

• Vocal Color• Sing fully and beautifully…• “Sing it with your heart”

Purposes of Slave SongsAccording to Jester Hairston

• Religious Spirituals• Images of King Jesus, the devil, judgment day, the

Lord, and Heaven• Freedom Spirituals

• Refers to Moses, the Hebrews, the people of Israel, and earthly deliverance

• Escape Spirituals• Coded or telegraphed spirituals with messages of

escape• The Shout and Hollers

• Instruction, hypnotic song and dance• Work Songs

• Passes time for people who worked in the fields

Spiritual Style Categories According to John Work

• Call and Response • Rapid in tempo and fiery spirit

• Slow sustained, long-phrase melody• Most beautiful• Most popular as solos

• Syncopated, segmented melody• Segments of melody or rhythmic patterns

• Syncopated figures• Repeated words or word phrases• Fast tempo, usually

o Call and responseo Religious purpose styleo Some dialect, body percussiono Improvisation at the endo Rising keys represent going to

heaveno Phonetic decay adds buoyancyo Terrace dynamics, driving energy

In Dat Great Gittin’ Up Mornin’Soloist: Herbert Johnson

o Easter Spiritualo Very chordal o Solo and choir accompanimento Improvisation at the endo Accompanied concert spiritual-not

gospelo Similar to the solo spiritual with

piano

Angels Rolled De Stone AwaySoloist: Michael Loredo

Birth of the Concert Spiritual

Original Fisk University Singers

Birth of the Concert Spiritual

George L. WhiteFirst Arranger

of the Concert Spiritual

Ella SheppardFisk Jubilee Soprano,

Pianist, Choral Assistant and Arranger

My Lord, What a Mourning George L. White’s Original Score

My Lord, What a Mourning

o Hymn tune textureo This original text had the word

“mourning” which changes the meaning of the song

o This was changed by oral traditiono This is the basis of the arrangement

by H.T. Burleigh

Harry Thacker Burleigh (1866-1949)

Performance Concerns of the Spiritual According to H.T. Burleigh

• Sing with deep feeling• Rhythm is more important than the

voice• Never make them funny…serious

music

My Lord, What a Mornin’ by H.T. Burleigh• Tempo changes• Added parts• Word stress• Dialect for the word “my”• Use of portato for lilt and energy• Changing “mourning” to “mornin’”

Religious spiritual that has a slow, sustained melody. These are most beautiful and used many times as solos. The use of word stress is still very important. It also has a climax point that changes the energy and that is stylistic of most slow, melodic spirituals.

We Shall Walk Through the Valley in Peace arr. Moses Hogan

Like the last two spirituals, this is a slow melodic style that is based on Psalm 23. It is full of hope and also has a contrasting center section. “My” is sung in a dialect and word stress with contrasting dynamics continues to be very important to the style. This spiritual has a solo built into the middle with the choir accompaniment.

Deep River, arr. Norman LuboffSoloist: Byron Barr

William Dawson (1899-1990)

Performance Issues in the SpiritualAccording to William Dawson

• Recreate Spiritual motivations• Dialect• Rhythms are highly syncopated• Keep the tempo• Spirituals are serious music• Observe markings of arranger• Seek the real music

Accents of William Dawson

• Legato or tenuto -• Strong or marcato ۸• Normal Accent ح• fz or forzando fz• Staccatissimo ▼• Staccato •• Normal and Staccato ح •

Portato Device

It achieves a kind of pulsation or undulation, rather than separating the notes. It has been notated in various ways.  Not as heavy as a fp. The pulse of the meter is one of the most important things in performing the Spiritual.

Soon Ah Will Be Done Accents

Soloist: Carla Thomas•Combining the two tempos that speak of two different stories•Terrance dynamics•Accents for energy•Unbridled enthusiasm at the climaxes•Portato

Soon Ah Will Be Done by William Dawson

Roland Carter (b.1942)

Performance Issues in the SpiritualAccording to Roland Carter• Dialect

• Don’t over do it• Tempo and Rhythm

• There is a direct correlation between the tempo and the purpose of the song

• All strong beats are not equal• Understand all the accents• Don’t interrupt rhythmic flow

• Vocal Color• Use Italian vowels• Be careful that dark sound does not hurt pitch

• Dynamics are relative• Lilt must be flexible• Clipping should not be too harsh

In Bright Mansions by George L. White

In Bright Mansions by Roland Carter

In Bright Mansions by Roland Carter• Thicker texture than White’s

arrangement• Use Italian vowels• Lilt of phrases• Combination of Madrigal style &

dark tone• Changing meter to accommodate

the text• Word stress• Anthem style

Undine Moore (1904-1988)

Performance Issues in the SpiritualAccording to Undine Moore• Tempo and Rhythm are important• Vocal Color: timbres should be chosen

carefully• Scales and their awareness are

important• Harmonies with 4ths and 5ths

prominent• Sing climax with unrestrained fullness

Soloists: Paul Nutter and David Simmons•Accents on unusual parts of words•Use of two soloists gives contrast in vocal color•Driving rhythms•Parallel 4ths in soprano and 5ths in the bass and alto

Daniel, Daniel, Servant of the Lord by Undine Moore

Hall Johnson (1888-1970)

Hall Johnson

• “The Negro spiritual is a distinct type of music which resembles no other and therefore requires special treatment in performance.”

• “The singer who has not first-hand acquaintance with the authentic racial style should have, for the best results, either an intelligent model or a coach who is thoroughly familiar with this music at its source.”

Soloists: Byron Barr and David Simmons•Extreme syncopation•Sharp accents•Imploded consonants like the “t” in “ain’t”•Rest after “takes” so you can attack “all”•Clip the “s” on Jesus•Features “lining” by the soloist

Ain’t Got Time to Die

Keep Your Lamps by George L. White

André Thomas (b.1952)

Performance Issues in the SpiritualAccording to André Thomas • Dialect:

• Use it but don’t over do it• Tempo and Rhythm:

• Drive and energy important• Keep it vibrant and alive• Energy comes from a rapport, “a joy”, built between conductor and choir in rehearsal

• Vocal Color: • Rich and at the same time bright with focus

Performance Issues in the SpiritualAccording to Anton Armstrong

• Use of dialect• Phonetic

decay• Diphthongs• Schwa• Clipping

• Tempo and Rhythm• Most important part of the spiritual• Make sure there are accents and lilt

• Appropriate Type of Vocal Timbre/Color• Darker hue is typical of the Afro-American voice

• Jamey Johnson, Percussion• Demonstration of how the tempo

of a song changes the meaning• Coded spiritual• Clipped consonances • Missing word: “Christian journey

soon be over” has missing “will”

Keep Your Lamps!

Rosephanye Powell (b.1970)

Performance Issues in the SpiritualAccording to Rosephanye Powell • Prepare history of the song• Study the text like a foreign

language• Use the dialect• Stress accents and words• Learn melody without text• “Feel the music”• Use good diction to be understood

I’m Gonna Let It Shine

• Jazz chords peppered throughout the song

• Song has thick texture• Rhythm can not drag• Vamp at the end that allows

improvisation• Vocal color is lighter in places to

allow the tune to come out of the texture

Moses Hogan (1957-2003)

Performance Issues in the SpiritualAccording to Moses Hogan

• Crescendo through long notes• Terrace dynamics• Emphasis on wrong syllable• Clipped vowels• Sing “Off the Voice” for buoyancy• “Embody” the feeling and rhythm• Loss of energy in piano sections• Use correct diction for

percussiveness

• Clipped vowels going straight to the consonant

• Syncopation• Easy tempo that grooves• Improvisation at the end• Repeated chorus• Terrace dynamics

Walk Together Children

Other Performance IssuesAccording to Moses Hogan

• Dialect: Don’t over do• Tempo and Rhythm: Most important

• Use consonants for percussiveness

• Vocal Color: Full rich singing• Thick texture of voicing can add

richness and power

Hear My Prayer by Moses Hogan

• Slow, long phrase melody• Personal to Moses: reflected his

own life and death struggle• Dedicated to Jester Hairston• Word stress

My Soul’s Been Anchored in the Lord by Moses Hogancenter section repres

My Soul’s Been Anchored in the LordMoses Hogan • Call and answer• Altar call at the end• Unbridled enthusiasm• Solo sections• Lilt• “Anchored” means to be

saved in the Lord• Clipping and accents

Summary of Performance Issues & Practices

• Burleigh: feeling, rhythm, serious• Dawson: know motives, keep tempo,

observe markings, syncopation, dialect

• Hairston: listen to others, use dialect, rhythm most important, sing fully

• Thomas: don’t over do dialect, drive and energy important, rapport, rich and focused vocal color.

Summary of Performance Issues & Practices

• Moses: crescendo long notes for life, terrace dynamics, wrong syllable is accented for sake of rhythm, off the voice, use diction, clip voice, full singing

• Powell: Prepare history of the song, study the text like a foreign language

• Moore: Sing climax with unrestrained fullness, scales and their awareness are important

• Carter: Use Italian vowels, the lilt must be flexible

“The spiritual is our American Heritage and will bring all of us closer together through the sharing of this music.”

- Nathaniel Dett

Why keep the Spiritual Alive?

The Concert Spiritual

GOSPELDr. Sonja Sepúlveda

Gospel Style

• 1933-Thomas A. Dorsey • Precious Lord Take My Hand.

• Influence of Jazz and the Blues• It adds instruments such as organ, drums,

piano, guitar or sax and adds a driving beat.

• Gospel was a direct outgrowth of the Spiritual. The Gospel song is accompanied. The Concert Spiritual is almost always a cappella unless it is a solo arrangement.

Gospel Characteristics

• Call & Answer• Fast syncopated melody or slow

syncopated long phrased melody• Melodies that are more ornamented• Many polyrhythms• Instrumental accompaniment:

tambourine, drums and piano • Ostinato melodies and rhythms• Driving beat• Chicago was the cradle of the Gospel

Leaning On the Everlasting Arms• Hymn tune• Dareion Malone,

piano

God’s Gonna Set This World On Fire with I’m Gonna View That Holy City arr. Moses HoganSoloist: David Simmons

Rosephanye Powell

Hallelujah from “The Cry of Jeremiah”

‘Til I Die

arr. by Herbert JohnsonSoloist: David Simmons

Arr. by Barbara Baker

The Storm Is Passing Over

• Soloists: David Simmons and Beth Tuten• Clipping• Solos in contrast with the chorus

All Right by Robert Winder

He Never Failed Me Yet by Robert RaySoloists: Beth Tuten and David Simmons

The Spiritual and Gospel:Our American Heritage

“It is our American heritage and will bring all of us closer together through the sharing of this music.”

Nathaniel Dett