AMERICAN singers Yolanda Adams, Donnie McClurkin, CeCe Winans and Kirk Franklin are among the today’s gospel music elites. However, before them, there were those who paved the way.

Specially invited guests of the US Embassy’s Public Affairs division were taken on an interactive exploration of the roots of gospel music at the Grand Atrium of the US Embassy on Old Hope Road on Friday, February 17. The presentation was made by public affairs officer Yolanda Kerney.

In between her presentation, Kerney made her way through the audience, microphone in hand, giving guests the chance to show off their vocals as they blended their voices with the music clips being played.

The journey began with the “rise of the Black church as an institution” which saw the over four million freed slaves needing some way to establish themselves — out of that began the rise of black ministers taking care of the various needs of the church members.

Not to be forgotten is the era of ‘lining of hymns’ (tracking) as pastors would track hymns as some members were illiterate.

Kerney then explored the “rise of the field hollers and work songs” expaining that workers used their voices as codes to the ‘water boy’ so he would know just who to take the water to. In return the water boy would receive a tip.

From Chain Gangs — imprisoned black men engaged in the reconstruction work in US following the civil war — to the rise of the black university choirs such as Fisk University Singers singing slave melodies or spirituals, going into folk idiom of art which saw Howard University making a 360 degree turn embracing the negro spirituals they had previous rejected. It went on to sweet nostalgia when Kerney introduced the Paul Robeson era who is fondly referred to as “champion of negro spiritual and work songs”.

Robeson embraced Negro spirituals and sang it as he heard it in his father’s church.

The gospel roots journey then shifted to Blues and Gospel parallel development which saw Kerney highlighting singers such as Blind Willie Johnson and the great influence from the Church of God In Christ (COGIC) seeing the rise of powerful black singers.

“They were disfellowshipped and started to form their own organisation, developing their own music” the public affairs officer pointed out. The COGIC women, she said changed the music with their introduction of guitar, using an entertaining clip from one such Rosetta Thorpe singing Up Above My Head while vigorously strumming the guitar to bring home her point. The clip earned shouts of Oh Yeah! Whew! from the audience.

Thomas Dorsey another COGIC member wrote one of the most popular hymns of today Take My Hand Precious Lord. Out of his pain — losing his wife who died during childbirth and his son a few days later — gave birth to that beloved hymn. Dorsey remains arguably the most influential figure ever to impact the genre. Among his many popular hymns are Peace In The Valley, Old Ship of Zion and The Lord Will Make A Way.

The interesting seminar saw Kerney introducing names such as Mahalia Jackson, tapping into the birth of The Quarter Style Gospel which ushered in five member groups such as Five Blind Boys of Alabama, Mighty Clouds of Joy and Dixie Hummingbirds with Harry Tucker who brought “a difference between purely religious experience and entertainment,” explained Kerney as she informed that Tucker brought ‘showmanship’ to the music.

The roots of gospel seminar concluded where jazz and gospel reunite which saw some powerful performances from Mahalia Jackson and Duke Ellington at Carnegie Hall.

Among those in attendance at the seminar were Carlene Davis, her husband Tommy Cowan, Ryan Mark, his wife Chrissy D, Marjorie Whylie, Rev Garnet Roper and former musical director of St George’s Anglican David Reid.