Fa So La
When I was a child, my grandfather sang me odd, halting songs, seemingly atonal and operating within a structure I could scarcely remember, let alone master. Lyrically they were very simple and very much about the Crucifixion and its attendant imagery. The lyrics were preceded by syllables more akin to shouts than notes, and though I had no idea what he was trying to teach me, I was completely fascinated by the performance.
He called it “Fa So La,” so named for the musical syllables sang before the lyrics began. This was done so that members of the congregation could get an idea of the melody before the lyrics began on the second time through. Later, I learned that this was called “Shape Note Singing” or, more commonly, “Sacred Harp,” so named for the song book in which the music was found (my mother has my grandfather’s tattered copy, an heirloom from the late 1880s — multiple attempts to smuggle it out of the house during holiday visits have failed).
Sacred Harp, such as it is, is a dying thing. Even when my grandfather was a child in the 1920s, it was falling out of fashion, in favor of more structured congregational singing. It was viewed as backward and rustic by many, even crude and unsavory by others. What it ultimately was was an utterly unique form of music, complete with a historical pedigree dating back to the 17th century and producing a wall of wailing, shack-shaking noise that still reverberates through the piney North Alabama foothills where I was born.
Anthropological context aside, Sacred Harp, when performed correctly, is a wonder to behold. Matt and Erica Hinton, Georgia natives and Emory grads, have produced what is easily the definitive documentary on the subject. Awake, My Soul! is marvelous, and it makes me indescribably homesick. The trailer is something to behold, but the music itself can’t be missed. Once on the film’s website, the song “Idumea” will begin to play automatically, and they could hardly have chosen a better introduction to the art form.
What’s ultimately reflected in Awake, My Soul! is both defiance and deference. At best, mainstream America (what few who are aware) will look at these singers as a curiosity; at worst, they will be painted broadly as rustics and unschooled zealots tucked away in remote corners of the South. They are accustomed to both and are bothered by neither. They venerate their dying art where they may, and I suspect you are welcome to join.
Posted: by Ryan June 23rd, 2009 under Favorites.
Tags: Awake My Soul, Documentaries, Dust to Digital, North Alabama, Sacred Harp
Comments
Comment from Ryan
Time June 24, 2009 at 8:23 am
Hi David. I’m thrilled to find someone so well versed in the subject, but it looks as though I have some explaining to do.
I never accused the music of being “atonal,” I described it as “seemingly atonal” to my 5 year old ears, a sensation that anyone who has heard actually heard someone singing the syllabic parts of Sacred Harp will recognize.
As far as the future of Sacred Harp, I’m well aware that there are practitioners elsewhere. Hipsters in Brooklyn love it, apparently, and I’m sure that’s the case in enclaves throughout the country. While perhaps not dying, the traditional form (that practiced by Southerners with a direct connection to the history of this art within their region) is certainly not growing. What may be practiced elsewhere is no doubt delightful, but if it’s being “transformed unrecognizably,” then it’s no longer Sacred Harp.
I’m well aware of its current vogue status among hipsters. It experienced a similar vogue during the late 1960s with the same set of people. Eventually, they will move on to another, more trendy anthropological curiosity, and the same people who have been singing Sacred Harp for more than a century will continue to do so, unbothered.
Comment from Ramey in Alabama
Time June 24, 2009 at 1:15 pm
My father, who was born in Alabama in 1911, often told us about the famous singing instructor who came to teach Fa So La singing at a church my father attended. Probably about 12 years old at the time, my father said he never mastered the technique! But it was always delightful to hear his demonstrations, and he explained the theory pretty well. There was only one song he remembered, which unfortunately I don’t remember now. But I’m so delighted to see your post about Fa So La.
Comment from David in Nashville
Time June 24, 2009 at 7:54 am
I’m glad you appreciate the wonders of fasola, but as a Sacred Harp singer myself I need to address some misconceptions. First, shape-note music is not “atonal” in the least. It’s not even chromatic, but is firmly anchored in the major and minor scales. It has some dissonances, and the chordal structure isn’t what most modern Americans are used to, but it’s definitely tonal.
My big problem, though, is with this notion that Sacred Harp is “dying.” People have been saying that for most of the twentieth century, and it’s not not still here, but by some measures it’s thriving. Indeed, the big issue right now within the tradition is how to handle all the nontraditional singers who are taking it up in places like Chicago, New England, the Pacific Northwest, and the U.K.; are they revitalizing it, or transforming it unrecognizably? Matt and Erica Hinton’s documentary is a case in point; while it focuses on the elders of the Sacred Harp tribe, it also pays attention to those of us who have come to the tradition over the last 20-30 years–Matt and Erica included. Sacred Harp has made it into the movies, has been taken up by classical performers like Chanticleer and Anonymous 4, and is influencing quite a few indie rock bands. A flash in the pan? Maybe–but for the present, while Sacred Harp will never be “mainstream,” it’s holding its own nicely, thank you.