What is shapenote music?
The music we sing is unaccompanied three- and four-part vocal harmony in a rustic style dating back to eighteenth- and nineteenth-century America, still a living tradition in the South, and recently taken up all over the English-speaking world and beyond. The songs are found in "tunebooks" such as the Sacred Harp (1844), the Southern Harmony (1835) and the Christian Harmony (1866/67), and modern collections such as the Shenandoah Harmony (2013); new shapenote songs are constantly being composed, even in Scotland! 2025 saw the first revised edition of the Sacred Harp since 1991, adding some new songs (both recent and old) and removing some less popular ones.
The words are usually (though not always) religious in nature, but people of all faiths and none sing this music, not as an act of worship but for sheer enjoyment. Religion and politics are not discussed at singings, and different singers will appreciate the words in their own way. It's not a performance but a communal participative event, and a "good" voice is not necessary. At workshops we teach by ear, and while music-reading ability is an advantage, it's not essential.
In the last decade or two there has been a growing interest around Europe in this uniquely American style, with groups springing up in Ireland, Poland, Germany and elsewhere, boosting the more long-established shapenote scene in England. Dundee is currently the northernmost outpost of regular shapenote singings in the UK.
If you want to get some singing going in your area, we may be able to help, for example by arranging a workshop. Contact us on [email protected].
Click here to get an idea what shapenote singing sounds like. The internet is full of good information about shapenote singing. Here is a list of links to start you off: muldoonspicnic.org.uk
The words are usually (though not always) religious in nature, but people of all faiths and none sing this music, not as an act of worship but for sheer enjoyment. Religion and politics are not discussed at singings, and different singers will appreciate the words in their own way. It's not a performance but a communal participative event, and a "good" voice is not necessary. At workshops we teach by ear, and while music-reading ability is an advantage, it's not essential.
In the last decade or two there has been a growing interest around Europe in this uniquely American style, with groups springing up in Ireland, Poland, Germany and elsewhere, boosting the more long-established shapenote scene in England. Dundee is currently the northernmost outpost of regular shapenote singings in the UK.
If you want to get some singing going in your area, we may be able to help, for example by arranging a workshop. Contact us on [email protected].
Click here to get an idea what shapenote singing sounds like. The internet is full of good information about shapenote singing. Here is a list of links to start you off: muldoonspicnic.org.uk
