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What is a spiritual?
Slaves led very difficult lives. They
were forbidden many things, but they were allowed to go to church and
play music. Because they had so few things to enjoy, they put a great
deal of energy into their music. Combining African rhythms and harmonies
with messages of hope from the Bible, they created what are called “Negro
spirituals.”
At the time, the word used to refer to
African-Americans was “Negro,” meaning “black”
in Spanish. It is no longer a respectful term to use. A “spiritual”
is a song that expresses worship or faith in God. Because slaves were
often banned from using musical instruments, they created complex voice
harmonies. The words of the songs were often taken from stories in the
Bible that told about freedom and hope for a better future.
One of the best-known spirituals describes
the Biblical tale of Moses leading the Jewish people out of slavery
in Egypt. This story was very powerful for African-American slaves.
Can you imagine what a slave thought about when singing these words?
“When Israel was in Egypt's
land: Let my people go,
Oppressed so hard they could not stand, Let my people go.
Go down, Moses, way down in Egypt land
Tell old Pharaoh,
Let my people go.”
If you know the song, “Michael,
Row Your Boat Ashore,” you know a spiritual from that time. Think
about the words, “River Jordan is deep and wide, milk and honey
on the other side.” That milk and honey meant more to a slave
than food. It meant hope for a better world – perhaps not in this
life, but in the next.
The Influence of Sprituals
Negro spirituals deeply influenced American
music. They changed over time and were the basis for gospel music, the
blues, and jazz. The basic structures of this kind of music are all
taken from spirituals. Those forms of music in turn influenced rock
‘n’ roll, R&B, soul, reggae, and hip-hop. Musicians
like the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Aretha Franklin or Kanye West all built
on the sound of Negro spirituals.
In fact, the earliest mention of rock
‘n’ roll comes from a spiritual called “The Camp Meeting
Jubilee,” which was recorded in 1916. It includes the words, “We've
been rocking and rolling in your arms,” which is a reference to
slaves being cradled in the arms of God.
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