Shape Note Singers program at NC Museum of History rescheduled for Feb. 24
This Music of the Carolinas concert will be a bit different, as the Triangle Shape Note Singers will share this distinctive music in the Museum lobby! This concert was rescheduled due to inclement weather in December; if you have already reserved a ticket for the December show, it will stil be valid on this new date.
In the shape note singing tradition, singers sing a cappella (without accompaniment) and sit arranged by vocal part in a “hollow square,” facing one another across the square and taking turns at leading. Shape note singing began in Protestant churches in New England in America’s early years, and it survived in the rural South and became recognized as an American art form in the 1960s. Today, local singers still gather three times a month around the Triangle to share the music and fellowship of the Shape Note Sing. The Shape Note Singers meet the second Sunday of each month in Durham, the third Sunday of each month in Chapel Hill, and the fourth Sunday of each month in Raleigh. They also host an annual convention in March, drawing singers from across the state and beyond.
Sacred harp singing is another name for this style, referring to vocal cords; early practitioners of this musical style viewed vocal cords as the only instrument necessary. An 1844 songbook is titled Sacred Harp, which gives the music its name and helped it spread by using shapes (triangle, circle, square and diamond) to help singers identify the four notes used in each song.
A limited number of books will be available for anyone who wants to follow along.
FOOD DRIVE
This concert was originally scheduled to take place in December during the Museum’s annual Holiday Food Drive for the Food Bank of Central and Eastern NC. Check out the list of the Food Bank’s “Most Needed Items,” and please consider participating while you’re at the Museum. You can also donate to the Food Bank online – For every dollar donated, the Food Bank can provide $10 worth of food or five meals!
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Street parking is free on weekends in downtown Raleigh, and the lot across Wilmington Street from the Museum is also free on the weekend. Learn more about parking options in downtown Raleigh
A ramp from Edenton St provides access to the Museum’s main entrance. A ramp is also available from Jones St. and the entrance from Fletcher Garden. Wheelchairs for interior use are available free of charge at the Museum information desk. The Museum entrance closest to the auditorium is a staircase that leads up to glass doors on Edenton St.
Large print program notes and assistive listening devices will be available at this event. Please call us at 919-664-8333 with any questions about accessibility.
