Traveling Home

20 Years a Shape-Note Singer
Reflections on Traveling Home
By
Kiri Miller
First, thanks to Haruo for drawing my attention to this book. It is a nice addition to my other books on the history and life of shape-note singing, and a well written popularization of her disertation.
Kiri is an atheist, a yankee and a late comer to singing in the hollow square from the Sacred Harp (harp being both a book and the human voice). One of the centerpieces of her research is a poll of singers she did back in the 90's. I responded to the poll and wondered then what would become of it. Now I know.
I give Kiri full credit for being a better musician and a more experienced singer than I am. I felt right at home reading her book. She mostly gets things right. As a singer, a southerner and a Christian, however I was sometimes just a little irritated for being treated as a object in a cultural anthropology exercise, but this exercise is the principle value of the book. No other written record probes the inner workings of the hollow square in relation to the personal feelings of the singers in relation to the blending of disparate people who would normally not associate with each other under any circumstances. But put an oblong tune book in one's hand and lead them to a seat in the hollow square and the gay atheist and the homophobic Christian can sit side by side and raise their voices in praise to God. Kiri tells us how this is done. Reading her book makes me believe we should start a Sacred Harp singing in Congress. Maybe then Congress could find a way to get its work done.
Those of you who may have experienced Sacred Harp singing over a period of time may have noticed the emphasis placed on leading from the center of the square. Kiri covers the musical, physical and psychological aspects of leading quite well. I do not lead often because I find it stressful and because it interferes with the singing experience for me.
One aspect of singing that Kiri does not cover in depth is the risk to which the atheist/agnostic puts his or her soul. On the old mail list that Kiri references often, we had a lengthy thread that lived for some months about the testimonies of singers drawn to faith through their singing. I have a book on the camp-meeting revivals that refers to the “better singers” surrounding the sinners on the mourner's bench and “singing them through to faith.” It seems the old techniques still work.
Another aspect that seems off the mark to me is the frequent references to Appalachia. Sacred Harp is not the book of choice in the high-up hills. There it gives way to Christian Harmony and New Harp of Columbia. There one finds a different tribe similar in the visible attributes but different at the core. It is the tribe that first adopted me into the hollow square and the one in which I most feel at home.
In closing, I add one more thought. For a book lover like me who has more books on singing, Southern culture and Appalachia than any other subjects, the bibliography alone is almost worth the price of the book.
Reflections on Traveling Home
By
Kiri Miller
First, thanks to Haruo for drawing my attention to this book. It is a nice addition to my other books on the history and life of shape-note singing, and a well written popularization of her disertation.
Kiri is an atheist, a yankee and a late comer to singing in the hollow square from the Sacred Harp (harp being both a book and the human voice). One of the centerpieces of her research is a poll of singers she did back in the 90's. I responded to the poll and wondered then what would become of it. Now I know.
I give Kiri full credit for being a better musician and a more experienced singer than I am. I felt right at home reading her book. She mostly gets things right. As a singer, a southerner and a Christian, however I was sometimes just a little irritated for being treated as a object in a cultural anthropology exercise, but this exercise is the principle value of the book. No other written record probes the inner workings of the hollow square in relation to the personal feelings of the singers in relation to the blending of disparate people who would normally not associate with each other under any circumstances. But put an oblong tune book in one's hand and lead them to a seat in the hollow square and the gay atheist and the homophobic Christian can sit side by side and raise their voices in praise to God. Kiri tells us how this is done. Reading her book makes me believe we should start a Sacred Harp singing in Congress. Maybe then Congress could find a way to get its work done.
Those of you who may have experienced Sacred Harp singing over a period of time may have noticed the emphasis placed on leading from the center of the square. Kiri covers the musical, physical and psychological aspects of leading quite well. I do not lead often because I find it stressful and because it interferes with the singing experience for me.
One aspect of singing that Kiri does not cover in depth is the risk to which the atheist/agnostic puts his or her soul. On the old mail list that Kiri references often, we had a lengthy thread that lived for some months about the testimonies of singers drawn to faith through their singing. I have a book on the camp-meeting revivals that refers to the “better singers” surrounding the sinners on the mourner's bench and “singing them through to faith.” It seems the old techniques still work.
Another aspect that seems off the mark to me is the frequent references to Appalachia. Sacred Harp is not the book of choice in the high-up hills. There it gives way to Christian Harmony and New Harp of Columbia. There one finds a different tribe similar in the visible attributes but different at the core. It is the tribe that first adopted me into the hollow square and the one in which I most feel at home.
In closing, I add one more thought. For a book lover like me who has more books on singing, Southern culture and Appalachia than any other subjects, the bibliography alone is almost worth the price of the book.