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Audio slideshow | Bright lights, big voices
A tap of the foot leads to a clap of the hands and a voice leads others in a rising symphony of sound. It resonates across the wooden church pews, echoes through the sanctuary and spills out the doors. Sometimes, the music is loud enough that you can feel the beat in your chest. And with Gospel music, you’re guaranteed to feel it in your soul.
On a recent Sunday, dozens of worshippers filled Greater Faith Missionary Baptist Church in Columbia for a Black History Old Timey Gospel Jubilee Celebration. Performers from as far away as Anderson and as close as Columbia — like Sharon Mack-Brown, above — performed as worshippers joined in singing songs that date back generations.
There are numerous Gospel music sub genres, growing from the roots of the early African-American experience. Slaves, forbidden to play or sing their native music, created rhythmic call and response songs to ease the grind of hard labor. After the Civil War, the songs evolved into spirituals and hymns.
“It’s always important to remember where we came from and the music we grew up with and the importance of this music,” says Loretta Coleman, who organized the event.
— Erik Campos,