Gospel Music In American Culture

Today, gospel music is nearly all closely associated with church gatherings, choirs and high energy performances. Gospel music’s history is rich and its roots can be tied to Africa and early American history. More recently, it has had an influence on both contemporary in style music and African-American culture.

Gospel music’s origins can be found in Africa. While the tribal songs of Africa may seem distant in sound to contemporary gospel, African slaves brought with them a close relationship with spiritualized music.

Of course, maximum subjugation of slaves was the true motivation for such injunctions against possible inter-communications among slave populations. Hence, newly-captured Africans resorted to the creation of a musical innovation that employed Christian themes. The combination of Western modes of musical expression and conventional African types formed the basis of the musical origins, history, and genesis of contemporary gospel music.

Its roots first took hold in the American slave-holding Southern states in the 17th century. Colonists also enforced compulsory slave attendance at white worship services. Such psychological oppression served to exacerbate the already-pervasive “bondman mentality.” Mainstream faith became a major spiritual sanctuary for slaves. Ultimately, it also became the biggest stabilizing force in slave society and remained as a major sanctuary against myriad hardships far after Emancipation.

Before much longer, African Americans began their own brand of elite musical culture within the relative safety of church confines. Slave converts to Christianity began adopting the obviously sedate, somber music of Methodist hymns. They soon started to interweave their unique native kinds into the reverent strains. Indeed, a lot popular contemporary gospel song formats that continue to be colossal musical forces in contemporary African American religious culture are traceable back to native African tribal music. Two notable examples are the “call and reply” structure and the use of complicated rhythmic percussion as a musical accompaniment. Gospel music really began completing off in North America during the late 19th century.

It was about this time that former slaves were afforded meaningful plans to gather and perform public musical presentations within groups. Exclusively Caucasian audiences rapidly popular this new musical breed. Their collective interest was undoubtedly enhanced by the novelty of the sound patterns and rhythmic tempo. Before much longer, gospel music began to impact both conventional religious hymns and secular American songs.

Gospel music has influenced a number of of the biggest names in American accepted music, including Sam Cooke, Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley and Mahalia Jackson. Mahalia Jackson has become the unrivaled Queen of gospel music and has maintained an interest in the genre throughout her career. Other stars have managed to successfully combine both gospel and secular types of music during their occupation.

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