Page 14 - June/July.indd

Hallelujah, Amen!

PERFORMING RELIGIOUS MUSIC OF THE AFRICAN AMERICAN EXPERIENCE

Performance Practice for Concert Spirituals What Hurston describes is the freedom experienced
and Black Gospel Music in community. It lends itself to the authentic African
It is perhaps Zora Neale Hurston who fi rst defi nitively practice of improvisation as integral to the oral tradi-
made a distinction between what she terms the “real,” tion. Though Hurston states that she fi nds value in the
“true,” or “genuine” spiritual and the “neo-spiritual.” 7 arranged spiritual as “good and beautiful,” she is clear
The neo-spiritual is the arranged or concert iteration of that these compositions that she deems “neo-spirituals”
9
spirituals; compositions that individuals have set for glee are not the spirituals. Therefore, when performing the
clubs or concert artists of formal, classical training. The concert or arranged spiritual, the music should be ap-

first of these “glee clubs” was the Fisk Jubilee Singers, proached as one would a formal composition, in the
who toured nationally and internationally to raise mon- same manner as other music written in the western clas-
ey for their school. Initially, the young students, some sical style. In most cases, the composers who set these
of whom were former slaves, were reluctant to sing the Negro folk melodies were trained in the style of western,
songs of their ancestors in public. In truth, never before classical music. Their arrangements refl ect that training
had these songs been sung for an audience, but only for and should be regarded as such.
the enslaved community, and at times, in the presence of Gospel music encourages improvisation by both sing-
the slave masters. Later, concert artists such as Marion er and pianist (or other accompanying instruments). In
Anderson, Paul Robeson, Roland Hayes, and many oth- fact, it is expected. The concert spiritual, however, is a
ers began including arrangements of spirituals on their diff erent matter. The arranger of the concert spiritual
solo recitals. Many composers such as H.T. Burleigh, expects that his/her music will be performed as writ-
Hall Johnson, William Dawson, Evelyn La Rue Pittman, ten, in the same way other composers of the Western
Margaret Bonds, and John W. Work began arranging tradition would expect. André Thomas in his book Way
these religious folk tunes for choral groups in the manner Over in Beulah Lan’ states, “Some conductors will impose
of the Fisk Jubilee Singers. rhythm and blues, gospel, and jazz techniques on all
These arrangements, patterned after Western Euro- performances of spirituals in an effort to create a ‘black’

pean composition, were more formal in their setting, sound… All of this may be full of good intention; the
and every rendering would undoubtedly be the same, result, however, is often an experience fraught with sty-
adhering to the notes in the score. However, according listic abuse and, ultimately, a mockery of the intentions
to Hurston, a genuine Negro Spiritual is not intended for of the arranger.” 10
solo, quartet, or choral presentation. The performing of Negro Spirituals may be met
with all manner of trepidation that includes fear of
The jagged harmony is what makes it, and it appropriation and blackface caricature. I encourage
ceases to be what it was when this is absent. Nei- my colleagues in the field of choral conducting to ap-

ther can any group be trained to reproduce it. Its proach this music with the same care you do music of
truth dies under training like flowers under hot the Western tradition; research the history, culture, and

water. The harmony of the true spiritual is not style of the music and seek to render a musically authen-
regular. The dissonances are important and not tic performance that honors the intent of the compos-
to be ironed out by the trained musician. The er (arranger). But please, do not “gospelize” concert/
various parts break in at any old time. Falsetto arranged spirituals unless the arranger has so indicat-
often takes the place of regular voices for short ed in the score. Two examples of gospel arrangements
periods. Keys change. Moreover, each singing of of the spirituals are “Guide My Feet” arranged by Avis
the piece is a new creation. The congregation is D. Graves, and “We Are Climbing Jacob’s Ladder” ar-
bound by no rules. No two singings are alike, so ranged by Horace Clarence Boyer. Both are published
that we must consider the rendition of a song by GIA Publications, Inc. Boyer’s arrangement explic-
not as a final thing, but as a mood. It won’t be itly states in the score, “Gospel arrangement.” While

the same thing next Sunday. 8 Graves’s arrangement does not explicitly state it is a

12 CHORAL JOURNAL June/July 2021 Volume 61 Number 11