Public worship, private faith
Subtitle: sacred harp and American folksong
By: John Bealle.
Publisher: University of Georgia Press
Published: 1997
Place of publication: Athens
Language: eng
Number of pages: 308
Subjects: Shape note singing -- Southern States -- History and criticism.; Hymns, English -- Southern States -- History and criticism.
Description: The Sacred Harp, a tunebook that first appeared in 1844, has stood as a model of early American musical culture for most of this century. Tunebooks such as this, printed in shape notes for public singing and singing schools, followed the New England tradition of singing hymns and Psalms from printed music. Nineteenth-century Americans were inundated by such books, but only the popularity of The Sacred Harp has endured throughout the twentieth century.

With this tunebook as his focus, John Bealle surveys definitive moments in American musical history, from the lively singing schools of the New England Puritans to the post-World War II folksong revival. Although Bealle finds that much has changed in the last century, the custodians of the tradition of Sacred Harp singing have kept it alive and accessible in an increasingly diverse cultural marketplace.

Public Worship, Private Faith is a thorough and readable analysis of the historical, social, musical, theological, and textual factors that have contributed to the endurance of Sacred Harp singing.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 283-297) and index.