"Like Cords Around My Heart": Sacred Harp Memorial Lessons and the Transmission of Tradition

Miller, Kiri

doi:10.1353/ort.2010.0020

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Many of my interlocutors expressed a hope that some form of online singing would continue into the future. At conventions and all-day singings, participants always take time to name and remember the “sick and shut-in” who are not able to be present ( Miller, 2010 , p. 253). During the pandemic, however, many of those singers were in fact able to participate, which in turn has produced enthusiasm for the continued use of technology.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…She seemed to be trying to explain to herself and others why she found the activity we were all engaging in to be so meaningful. The practice of Sacred Harp singing is rooted in memory: both the individual memories that singers carry of past experiences and friends, and the collective memories of the tradition and its most noteworthy bearers ( Miller, 2010 , p. 259). The significance of memory was borne out by several interviews in which my subjects were loath to discuss their online experiences, but instead wanted only to talk about singers they had known and conventions they had attended.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although neither leaders nor participants are traditionally encouraged to talk between songs, every online singing in which I participated was punctuated and shaped by the sharing of memories ( Miller, 2010 , p. 257). At the Utah zingings, for example, when singers were invited by Lamb to engage in “a little personal sharing,” their remarks almost always related to memory.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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“Like Pieces in a Puzzle”: Online Sacred Harp Singing During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Morgan-Ellis

2021

Front. Psychol.

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Sacred Harp singers the world over gather weekly to sing out of The Sacred Harp, a collection of shape-note songs first published in 1844. Their tradition is highly ritualized, and it plays an important role in the lives of many participants. Following the implementation of lockdown protocols to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, groups of Sacred Harp singers quickly and independently devised a variety of means by which to sing together online using Zoom (“zinging”), Jamulus (“jamzinging”), and Facebook Live (“stringing”). The rapidity and creativity with which Sacred Harp singers developed ways to sustain their activities attests to the strength and significance of this community of practice, and in this article I describe each modality and provide an account of how it came to be developed and widely used. As a participant-observer, I completed extensive fieldwork across these digital sites and conducted semi-structured interviews with 22 other singers. I found that online singing practices have reshaped the Sacred Harp community. Many singers who did not previously have the opportunity to participate now have access, while others have lost access due to technological barriers or lack of interest in online activities. At the same time, geographical barriers have disintegrated, and singing organizers must make an effort to maintain local identity. A stable community of singers has emerged in the digital realm, but it is by no means identical to the community that predated the pandemic. I also identify the ways in which online singing has proven meaningful to participants by providing continuity in their personal and communal practice. Specifically, online singing allows participants to access and celebrate their collective memories of the Sacred Harp community, carry out significant rituals, and continue to grow as singers. While no single modality replicates the complete Sacred Harp singing experience, together they function “like pieces in a puzzle” (as one singer put it), allowing individual participants to access many of the elements of Sacred Harp singing that are most meaningful to them.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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“Like Pieces in a Puzzle”: Online Sacred Harp Singing During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Morgan-Ellis

2021

Front. Psychol.

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Changes and Chances in a Multipart Singing Community and Its Tradition, before and throughout the Global Isolation

Dattilo

2023

JWPM

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The Sacred Harp community was among the groups most affected by pandemic seclusion. Their multipart singing practice is a cultural heritage that includes both oral and written traditions, and creates a strong interaction between people through formalized music codes and behaviours that emerge, develop, and manifest in highly iconic communal spaces. Since global isolation made live singing impossible, this trans-cultural community tried to preserve the continuity of its multipart singing tradition by developing a set of strategies based on virtual singing and online activities. Although the fundamental elements were drastically affected by the isolation, participants represented missing sound environments using all possible means to recreate the spirit and gestation of social singing. After participating as a singer with a local group during fieldwork, I had to reshape my research methods to the pandemic, focusing on aspects of music dissemination that are less evident during physical gatherings.

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"Like Cords Around My Heart": Sacred Harp Memorial Lessons and the Transmission of Tradition

Cited by 2 publications

References 33 publications

“Like Pieces in a Puzzle”: Online Sacred Harp Singing During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“Like Pieces in a Puzzle”: Online Sacred Harp Singing During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Changes and Chances in a Multipart Singing Community and Its Tradition, before and throughout the Global Isolation

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