Theomusicology

In addition to his long career as a choral director and publisher of African American sacred folk music, R. Nathaniel Dett was a concert pianist and a classical composer. THE CHARIOT JUBILEE was composed in 1919 and premiered  May 14, 1921 at Keith’s Theatre in Syracuse with the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra and the Syracuse Festival Chorus. Interviewed in 1943, Dett stated that it was “the first attempt to develop the spiritual into an oratorio form” (cited by Dominique-René de Lerma in BLACK MUSIC IN THE HARLEM RENAISSANCE, ed. Samuel A. Floyd, Jr. (NY: Greenwood, 1990), p. 190. See also the article by Georgia A. Ryder, “Harlem Renaissance Ideals in the Music of Robert Nathaniel Dett,” op. cit., pp. 60-63.

What I found intriguing about the lyrics was Dett’s use of the chariot image as a metaphor for the gospel, which he ties to God’s covenant of grace and salvation through the work of Christ. Concluding lines, followed by hallelujah chorus:

Tenor:  Swing low, sweet chariot, sweet cov'nant of God’s grace!
Chorus:  Coming for to carry me home. O hallelujah!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTGmL7eZaCc&ebc=ANyPxKpnTQuYnEv7QTVC0JlT1hXzkGv7kGLqrQujEtboI587WvdkXDOfs1tPZRgexw7kNT2vccegUxRVI7I07yAiE3_rzCqhgQ

For a video of the second half being performed in concert by the Nathaniel Dett Chorale, go here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmwviQIRhyw

R. Nathaniel Dett made his mark in the last century as a pianist, composer, and choral director. His complete piano works have been recently recorded and his oratorio, THE ORDERING OF MOSES was performed at Carnegie Hall in 2014. For these, and for his major contributions to the back choral tradition through his long association with Hampton Institute in Virginia, I thought it might be useful to give him some exposure during Black History Month.

I have previously posted his biographical timeline online and have updated it to correspond to the timeline included in this document as Appendix One. I have transcribed the lyrics to THE CHARIOT JUBILEE here.
https://www.academia.edu/22527580/R._Nathaniel_Dett_THE_CHARIOT_JUBILEE_lyrics_

The following are YouTube links to works referred to in the paper.

“Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” by The Fisk Jubilee Quartet, 1909
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUvBGZnL9rE

"Juba: Dance" from the suite IN THE BOTTOMS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gq834hTosEw

Oratorio, THE ORDERING OF MOSES
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2y3nKJt6FHg

“Listen to the Lambs” by the Nathaniel Dett Chorale
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhjJo3zsixk

"Chariot Jubilee" from the album SAINT LOUIS BLUES: CLASSICAL MUSIC IN THE JAZZ AGE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTGmL7eZaCc&ebc=ANyPxKpnTQuYnEv7QTVC0JlT1hXzkGv7kGLqrQujEtboI587WvdkXDOfs1tPZRgexw7kNT2vccegUxRVI7I07yAiE3_rzCqhgQ

For a video of the second half performed by the Nathaniel Dett Chorale, go here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmwviQIRhyw

The Dixie Hummingbirds are a gospel music group formed in Greenville, S.C. in 1928 whose work now spans eight decades. I looked up their classic version of “Rasslin’ Jacob” (or "Wrestlin' Jacob" as it is sometimes listed in the Hummingbirds' discography) after hearing a couple of sermons on Jacob’s getting prepared to meet his alienated and hostile brother Esau (Gen 32).

To listen, go to http://sonichits.com/video/The_Dixie_Hummingbirds/Rasslin'_Jacob. This site includes extensive biographical notes. Since I could not find the lyrics online, I transcribed them for myself and any others who might be interested in a graphic illustration of how they capture the heart of the text.

The original version of “Wrestling Jacob” was published in J. B. T. Marsh, THE STORY OF THE JUBILEE SINGERS WITH THEIR SONGS, rev. ed. (Boston: Houghton, 1880), No. 62, 181-82. A version of "‘Raslin’ Jacob" is one of the "Hymns on Biblical Themes" included in R. Nathaniel Dett, RELIGIOUS FOLK SONGS OF THE NEGRO AS SUNG AT HAMPTON INSTITUTE  (Hampton, Va.: Hampton Institute Press, 1927), p. 72.

The Dixie Hummingbirds originally recorded "Wrestlin' Jacob" in 1947 on the Apollo label. The flip side was an R&B arrangement of "Nobody knows the trouble I've seen." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_Y0Wt9uAgg

For more information on the Dixie Hummingbirds, check my article on American popular sacred music, Part D: "Thermon Ruth and the Caravan of Gospel Quartets."
https://www.academia.edu/28538219/Gospel_Harmony_American_Popular_Sacred_Music_1871-1969

Os conceitos de retórica musical desenvolvidos na época da Reforma Protestante ainda estão presentes na composição cristã da contemporaneidade? Este breve artigo reúne a retórica musical e a semiótica da canção segundo Luiz Tatit para verificar essa resposta na análise do cântico "Eu quero olhar", do quarteto Arautos do Rei

Diversos compositores, de Richard Wagner a Bono Vox (U2), têm mobilizado a linguagem religiosa na concessão de um caráter soteriológico à música. Embora a soteriologia, enquanto estudo da doutrina da salvação, esteja restrita à esfera da teologia cristã, a música pop tem ressignificado esta doutrina ao atribuir ao ato de cantar a função simbólica de salvar ou, pelo menos, de intermediar a salvação do “pecador”. Ao avaliar de que modo a música assume atribuições teológicas para aqueles músicos que não estão subscritos a credos formais, adoto a Teomusicologia como referencial metodológico da análise das relações entre a teologia e a música pop. Nessa perspectiva, busco verificar como os músicos podem acionar a transposição de conceitos da teologia cristã para o palco do culto à música.