Gospel Music

Gospel music is religious music that proclaims the Christian message, the "good news" that gives it its name. The best-known tradition, African American gospel, grew in Black churches in the United States in the early 20th century, drawing on spirituals, hymns, the blues and jazz. A separate tradition, Southern gospel, developed in white churches of the American South, often sung by male quartets.

Musical features

• Powerful, expressive singing: soloists use wide dynamic range, growls, falsetto and long runs of decoration (melismas).
• Call and response between the lead singer and the choir or congregation.
• The choir singing in close, rich harmony, often in three parts (soprano, alto, tenor).
• Piano and Hammond organ at the center of the band, later joined by bass, drums and guitar.
• Rich harmony: seventh and extended chords, passing chords and the "amen" plagal cadence (IV–I).
• Rhythmic drive: handclaps on the backbeat, rising tempos and repeated vamps that build in intensity.

Key figures

• Thomas A. Dorsey, a former blues pianist, is often called the "father of gospel music." His song "Take My Hand, Precious Lord" (1932) is a standard.
• Mahalia Jackson became gospel's most famous singer, admired far beyond the church.
• Sister Rosetta Tharpe brought electric guitar and swing into gospel and influenced early rock and roll.
• The Edwin Hawkins Singers' "Oh Happy Day" (1969) became an international pop hit.
• Later artists such as Andraé Crouch and Kirk Franklin blended gospel with contemporary R&B and hip-hop.

Influence

Gospel shaped the sound of popular music. Many soul and R&B singers, Aretha Franklin among them, began singing in church, and gospel vocal style, harmony and piano playing run through R&B, soul, rock and pop.

Playing gospel piano

Gospel pianists fill the space between the singer's phrases, use passing chords that move in parallel, and play strong left-hand octaves. A good start is to harmonize a hymn with the primary chords, add a IV–I amen ending, then decorate it with passing chords. The Cadences and Chords & Progressions worksheets cover the basics.