In the tradition of African-American sacred music personal music-making plays a large role. Historically, gospel music has been one of the most prolific forms of this music-making. The particular musical characteristics of gospel music have changed over time to fit the practitioners. As a result, gospel music can be seen as a reflection of the personal, "individualized," beliefs of various groups. At Texas Tech, a group of gospel music singers have formed a community identity centered around their shared love of gospel music. This group, the Visions of Light gospel choir as a whole and as individual members, is the focus of our investigation.
The purpose of this project is to explore the relationships between religious beliefs and music for the African-American young adult in the Visions of Light Gospel Choir. Through the evidence presented here in the form of interviews, questionnaires, videos, sound recordings, and participatory observation reports, we will show how, by creating a community of faith separate from connection with any individual church, the members of the choir have negotiated a psychological religious space distinct from established religious organizations and constructed a community and individual belief identity.
Author:
Robert Peacock
Last modified:
12/5/2006 7:18 AM (EST)
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