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The Sacred Harp musical tradition evolved in the American South from a particular way of producing congregational sacred choral music. This form of music uses a special kind of musical notation called shaped notes, which represent each tone within the octave as a distinct shape in order to facilitate sight reading. Modern music is very different from the forms employed in the Sacred Harp style of music. Historically, the roots of this music were the choral music and hymn-singing from church choirs and congregations, but it places more emphasis on a single song leader. Strong emphasis is placed on relative pitch and polyphony and the harmonies use open fifths, and parallel octaves and fifths not commonly heard in more modern choral usage. There are two forms of this music that are common, 'fuguing tunes' and anthems. The fuguing tune is not the same as the classic fugue, but rather a more simple, though similar, form. Like the traditional fugue, the voices enter one at a time, coming together in the creation of a collective piece. Anthems tend to be longer songs, containing only one verse. Shape note singing evolved in the early 19th century in many different ways, with Sacred Harp singing being one of them. It was created and intended to make singing by sight reading easier for younger children and new singers without a music theory background. People who couldn't read traditional music loved the shaped notes and how easy they were to read. The old English form of four shapes within an octave was the approach that that this musical tradition uses. In the North, shape note systems lost out to the more traditional approach of classical academic harmony. However, in the South, shape note singing never disappeared. Harp singing has remained as a popular way for making ancient sacred choral music. Sacred Harp music isn't restricted to only traditional choral music. Many of its practitioners are actively writing new music for this unique genre. Every performance is a unique yet collaborative experience in which each singer is both an active participant and part of the creation. It is a musical form that is continually growing and changing. Hence, this music can be labeled as both in transition and participatory. This is an art form that embraces the spiritual. Those who practice it are able to combine the joy of singing with others who unite to amplify their relationships as well as to create a unique musical expression.
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The sacred harp is a musical style that has its roots in the American South, based on a unique form of congregational sacred choral music. The notes use a distinct shape to facilitate sight reading of the music. Modern music is very different from this style of music. It has two common forms: anthems and "fuguing tunes". www.littlevinecollection.com/
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