About Sacred Harp Singing

The music we sing is from The Sacred Harp, a hymnal originally published in 1844 in a tradition older still. It is passionate, spirited music that harks back to the days when church music was intended to be sung by the congregation rather than the choir. Any type, quality, and range of voice should find a comfortable and important place within its harmonies. The “sacred harp” is the human voice!

This music is for singers, not for listeners. And for amateur, untrained voices at that. We set our chairs in hollow square facing each other because there’s no audience at our singings. We don’t rehearse, or perform; we sing as an end in itself. Anyone is welcome to just sit and listen, but will be encouraged to borrow a tunebook and sing along. We have no auditions and no rehearsals. If a song doesn’t sound quite right, we shrug it off and move on. All are welcome to join in. 

For more information, download Lisa Grayson's beginner guide here.