Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Awesome News About an Awesome Guy (Bob Darden)
So... Razorite Bob Darden is changing the world. He and Mary Darden have traveled the South collecting gospel records for preservation, and now their work is going to become part of the Smithsonian Institute's new African American Museum in Washington, DC. You can read the excellent Waco Tribune Herald story about it here.
How amazing is that?
100 years from now, no one will care much what the Baylor football team did in 2013, or how nice their stadium was. They will, however, have the benefit of this musical legacy because of Bob's work, and many WILL care about that.
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I am so, so happy for Bob! I've known this was in the works for two years (since he was Wacoan of the Year in 2011), and it has finally come to pass!
Thank you all. I never get tired of spreading the word on America's ORIGINAL music form. Nor do I ever get tired of thanking the many people at Moody Memorial Library and Baylor IT who have done all of the heavy lifting to make sure the the music IS digitized and accessible!
Bob
Bob
# posted by 
: 5:58 PM
: 5:58 PM
Having lived in New Orleans all of my life, excepting the college and military years, I have been exposed to a lot of "Black' Gospel (We knew ii down here in the forties when I was a teenager, and still refer to it as" Negro" Gospel.) I am certainly aware of its historical significance.
Although it is omething I can take or leave, I am also aware of how much it can move some folks.
In 1991 I was singing with a Catholic Choir noted for its renaisance poliphony. e took a trip to Austria and Czeckoslavakia and arrived in Trnava for a concert at the local cathedral less than two weeks after th Russkies pulled out.
The church was packed with young and old, and they were very enthusiastic about the 16thand 17th century stuff, which was our bread and butter.
BEcause a number of locally well known black singers with tremendous voices talked our chori mistress into it, she allowed us to learn from them several of the Black Gospel standards, featuring as soloists, a couple of our second soprano and contralto black ladies.
In the second half of the concert we performed the four gospel songs we had prepared, and had to repeat all of them. finally, in an effort to "escape," and having run out of prepared pieces, we rather spontaneously broke out in "Do Lord," and becuse most in the coir were Catholics, we were limited to the first verse only. After about 3 or 4 minutes of singing the first verse over and over, we simply walked off of the platform. The Slovak congregation/audience was almost out of control, weeping and clapping and carrying on like second liners. It was amazing. It is likely that most in the audience of a certain age knew the old church motets, but that few if any knew the gospel songs, and almost none of them knew English.
Neither I, nor any other member of the group had ever experienced such an outpouring or been a part of such a stirring event.
I still tire of the music rather more quickly than most, but I have to admit that it is a force to be reckoned with, even in a culture as foreign to its roots as backwater Slovakia.
Apologies to all who perservered through this much too long reminscence.
Although it is omething I can take or leave, I am also aware of how much it can move some folks.
In 1991 I was singing with a Catholic Choir noted for its renaisance poliphony. e took a trip to Austria and Czeckoslavakia and arrived in Trnava for a concert at the local cathedral less than two weeks after th Russkies pulled out.
The church was packed with young and old, and they were very enthusiastic about the 16thand 17th century stuff, which was our bread and butter.
BEcause a number of locally well known black singers with tremendous voices talked our chori mistress into it, she allowed us to learn from them several of the Black Gospel standards, featuring as soloists, a couple of our second soprano and contralto black ladies.
In the second half of the concert we performed the four gospel songs we had prepared, and had to repeat all of them. finally, in an effort to "escape," and having run out of prepared pieces, we rather spontaneously broke out in "Do Lord," and becuse most in the coir were Catholics, we were limited to the first verse only. After about 3 or 4 minutes of singing the first verse over and over, we simply walked off of the platform. The Slovak congregation/audience was almost out of control, weeping and clapping and carrying on like second liners. It was amazing. It is likely that most in the audience of a certain age knew the old church motets, but that few if any knew the gospel songs, and almost none of them knew English.
Neither I, nor any other member of the group had ever experienced such an outpouring or been a part of such a stirring event.
I still tire of the music rather more quickly than most, but I have to admit that it is a force to be reckoned with, even in a culture as foreign to its roots as backwater Slovakia.
Apologies to all who perservered through this much too long reminscence.
# posted by : 11:35 PM
: 11:35 PM
Bob; We caught a Black Gospel concert in a small church in a small village in the south of France. One cannot escape the power of the music anywhere in the world. It reminds us of our common roots.
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