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The Shakers in New Hampshire and Maine
The last two Shaker communities have been in New England.
The former one at Canterbury, New Hampshire no longer has
any Shakers living there and is now a well preserved museum.
The last Shaker member, Sister Ethel Hudson, died at Canterbury in 1992.The other one is at Sabbathday Lake, Maine.
It is the only active Shaker community
and is believed to be the oldest religious communal society
in the United States, having begun back in the 1780s.There are two Rounder CD releases available with Shakers
from these two communities
singing and speaking about their music.
They were recorded between 1960 and 1980:Early Shaker Spirituals (with illustrated booklet) -- Sabbathday Lake Shakers
A CD featuring the Boston Camerata and other musicians,
joined by the Shakers from Sabbathday Lake
is available at this link:Simple Gifts: Shaker Chants and Spirituals
See these pages for memorial tributes to departed Shakers:
Read about the last printed Shaker hymnal of 1908 at this link:
Shaker Music History - 20th Century
An choral arrangement of
"Celestial Praises" (Canterbury, New Hampshire, 1841)
is included in the Music Supplement of
In his eBook, composer and music preservationist Roger Lee Hall tells the story how he met several Shaker sisters during the 1970s that led to his extensive research, publications and performances in Shaker music.
In 1972, he interviewed two Shakers from Canterbury, New Hampshire:
Eldress Bertha Lindsay , and the Shaker sister shown here...
Sister Lillian Phelps (1876-1973)
at Canterbury, New Hampshire in 1972©Photo by Gail Hall
[not to be reproduced without permission]
Later, he met and recorded several Shaker singing at Sabbathday Lake, Maine from
Sister R. Mildred Barker and Sister Frances Carr.Also discussed in the eBook is the first and only meeting of the Sabbathday Lake Shakers with the distinguished composer, Aaron Copland (1900-1990) in 1974, known for his wonderful arrangements of "Simple Gifts" in Appalachian Spring and Old American Songs.
The story about meeting the Shakers is included in the eBook along with Roger's early song lyrics and poems from the 1960s and 1970s. There are also additional poems, photos and audio files on the CD-ROM titled...
For more about this illustrated eBook,
which includes music files,
click on this link:"Dream World" - Songs, Poems and Stories
Hear singing by the Shakers from Canterbury and Sabbathday Lake
on this new CD release: Gentle Words: A Shaker Music Sampler
Coming Soon!
A new publication by Roger Lee Hall
about 20th century Shaker music,
including at Canterbury, Hew Hampshire
and Sabbathday Lake, Maine.This publication is due out in the Summer of 2009.
The most popular and best known Shaker song today was written back in 1848
by Elder Joseph Brackett Jr. and titled: "Simple Gifts."There have been many arrangements of this well known Shaker dance song,
notably those by Aaron Copland.Also there have been different editions of"Simple Gifts" which have been published, including those by Edward Deming Andrews, Roger Hall, and Daniel Patterson.
With all the versions of "Tis the gift to be simple" being written today, there exists some confusion between what is an arrangement and what is an edition.
Arrangements
An arrangement is a piece of music that has been significantly altered, such as adding new voice parts and keyboard or other accompaniment. Therefore, "Love is Little" for four part chorus [shown at left] is an arrangement, since it has added voice parts to the original melody. Examples of Shaker arrangements are found in the Music Supplement of
A Guide to Shaker Music.
To order CDs with Shaker arrangements, go to: CD Releases
Editions
An edition is basically the original music with only minor corrections or comments. No significant alterations are made to the original music. Examples of this are found in Daniel Patterson's The Shaker Spiritual and Roger Hall's Love is Little: A Sampling of Shaker Spirituals [shown at left].
See the music collections listed at
There are also recordings with
edited Shaker music at
Whichever type is used for performance,
the arranger or editor should always be credited in concerts or recordings.Remember that original Shaker music may be in public domain, but much of it would not be available for performance
if it were not for the work of the arrangers and editors.
They deserve to be recognized for their work.One example of a Shaker song with both an edition and arrangement is by...
The last Shaker from a Massachusetts Shaker community, Brother Ricardo Belden (1870-1958), was interviewed by Jerome Count from the Shaker Village Work Camp in New Lebanon, NY. The year was 1957 and Brother Ricardo sang one Shaker song
during this recorded interview:
"Living Souls, Let's Be Marching" [included on the CD: "Gentle Words"]This Shaker marching song from Tyringham, Massachusetts is available in
two different CDs and songbooks, the first one a transcribed version of Brother Ricardo's singing, and the second an arrangement:Love is Little: A Sampling of Shaker Spirituals (edited by Roger Hall)
Rare TV Programs
Read about a DVD with programs about
Ken Burns and Shaker Music
Ken Burns is known for his well received series on PBS television,
such as"The Civil War"; "Baseball"; and "Jazz."One of his first documentary films he made was premiered on PBS in 1985:
Ken Burns' America: The Shakers
A story treatment is available for consideration by filmmakers or film producers interested in a making a dramatic film about the early Shakers, including their most prominent early songwriter, Father James Whittaker.
The story of their early years and voyage from England to America, their triumph over persecution and prejudice, and their early missionary travels
would make a highly compelling dramatic film or a documentary.The hauntingly beautiful Shaker music would be ideal
for the film's soundtrack.Inquiries about this story treatment and music should be directed to:
Would you like to commission one or more Shaker spirituals for a concert,
church service or a special event like an anniversary?Composer Roger Lee Hall has arranged many Shaker tunes
over the past three decades.He is available to edit or arrange Shaker music for solo voice and accompaniment
or for a chorus with or without asccompaniment.Examples of his Shaker arrangements are found on these CDs:
Gentle Words -- A Shaker Music Sampler
To inquire about special music,
write to:
Are you interested in scheduling an entertaining music program
for your school, college, church, museum or other organization?For more information, click on this link:
Shaker Music Lectures and Workshops
AS IT IS IN HEAVEN -- a review of the play by Arlene Hutton about nine Shaker sisters.
CD and DVD Releases -- a list of original and arranged Shaker music.
Joseph Brackett's 'SIMPLE GIFTS' -- information about the best known Shaker song.
Shaker Music History -- background from 1781 to 2001.
Books and Articles -- relating to Shaker music.
Wikipedia -- article about "Simple Gifts."
If you have any questions or comments,
write to:
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