First Saturdays in Iowa City (during the school year)
Second Saturdays in Grinnell
Fourth Saturdays in Cedar Rapids
Every Sunday in Fairfield
Cedar Rapids: Fourth Saturdays - 10 a.m.-1
p.m. - Contact Bryan Davis for location, as Peoples Church is no
more. But the singing continues! Books
provided. All are welcome; no experience is
required. Please bring a snack to share, if you can.
And bring a friend, too! Info: Bryan
Davis.
Fairfield: Every Sunday - location varies. Info: Jennifer
Hamilton, email or
(641) 472-8422. And check out the new recording by
Prairie Harmony!
Grinnell:
Second Saturdays - 1-3 p.m. - Stewart
Art Center, 926 Broad St. (downtown, the former city
library) Info: Martha Pinder.
Iowa City: First Saturdays during school year - location
varies. September 3rd, the new season begins! Iowa
City Public Library, Meeting Room A - 10 a.m. All are
welcome; books and instruction provided. Info: Callie Garnett.
All-Day Singings in Iowa:
Second
Annual
Saints
Rest All-Day Singing - Saturday, October 29, 2011 - Grinnell,
IA. Details forthcoming....
All-day Singings in the Midwest:
(Click here for a complete, international
listing of annual singings.)
SEPTEMBER
Third Sunday and Saturday Before - Illinois State Convention -
Christian County Historical Society Museum, Taylorville IL. Info:
Berkley Moore (217) 793-0024, berkmoore@aol.com
or Janet Fraembs, (217) 345-6873, jfraembs@mchsi.com.
Fourth Sunday and Saturday Before - Minnesota State Convention -
Shakopee, location TBA. Info: www.freude.com/mnfasola/
or Matt Wells, matt@mattwells.com,
(651) 695-0086.
OCTOBER
Saturday before First Sunday - Northwest Pennsylvania Singing -
First Universalist Church of Girard, 107 Myrtle St, Girard PA.
Info: Gerald Hoffman cabanaman77@gmail.com
or (814) 734-5950. (Close to the Midwest - a nice little
singing.)
Saturday before Second Sunday - Dripping Springs Christian Church,
2701 Dripping Springs Rd., Columbia, MO. Info: Wendy Hofmann (573)
446-1075, whofmann@coin.org
or Lou and Penny Kujawinski (573) 874-1096.
Saturday before Fourth Sunday - Friends Meetinghouse, Bloomington
IN.
Saturday before Fourth Sunday - Northwest Arkansas Singing -
Chapel, First United Methodist Church, 206 W. Johnson, Springdale
AR.
Check out
these Links for more information
about Sacred Harp singing.
What is Sacred Harp singing?
Also known as "shapenote" or "fasola"
singing, you can think of it as Do-It-Yourself Choral
Singing for those who just love to sing, beginners and
proficient alike.
It's egalitarian: everybody
gets to pick a song and, if they want, lead it.
It's learner-centered: the
entire tradition is based on a book designed to teach
people to read music and sing it.
The repertoire is vast: from
ancient melodies to traditional folk, gospel, and hymn
tunes to the soaring masterworks of Western
hymnody.
Though most of the song texts are
based on religious themes and psalms, Sacred Harp
singings have long served as catalysts for
non-sectarian community building, whatever the
backgrounds or beliefs of the participants.
We sing
because we love to sing, and the Sacred Harp is a fabulous
collection of music to sing from. It is not a religious
service, although it is spiritually invigorating.
Certainly, it is a whole lot of fun.
Who to contact in Iowa?
I'm always happy to chat about Sacred Harp
and help folks get in touch with other singers. Please
feel free to contact me about that or to submit additional
information (or corrections) for this page by email or snailmail.
Thanks! Annie
