Minutes of Sacred Harp Singings

This year’s location was a change from the usual Pisgah Presbyterian Church in Versailles, which is currently closed to any singing group until further notice because of Covid. The singing took place in a compressed schedule, with two 1-hour sessions of singing followed by the Memorial Lesson. There was no dinner on the grounds. The 39th annual Kentucky State Sacred Harp Singing, hosted by the Appalachian Association of Sacred Harp Singers (AASHS), was called to order at 10:05 a.m. by Ron Pen convening the first session and leading 73b. Zach Davis offered the morning prayer. The Sacred Harp, 1991 Edition, and Southern Harmony were used throughout the day. Leaders: Raphael Finkel 535; Mary Brinkman 313b; Donna Kwon 82t; Tim Gregg 59; David Boyd 49t; Zach Davis 159; Erin Fulton and Joy Dunn 294; Erin Fulton 327 (SoH); Rob Coulston 31t; Zach Davis and Diane Arnson-Svarlien 47b.

RECESS

The second session was convened by Rafi Finkel leading 117. Leaders: Ron Pen 455; Donna Kwon 45t; Mary Brinkman 147b; Tim Gregg 299; Zach Davis 322 (SoH); Joy Dunn 515; Erin Fulton 566; Pearl Marshall 300; Lance Brunner and Ron Pen 276; Rafi Finkel 159b (SoH); Donna Kwon 354b; Mary Brinkman 147t.

RECESS

Rafi Finkel conducted the memorial lesson. Rafi led 496 in memory of Bob Meek, a Kentuckian and beloved shape note singer who died in 2011. Ron Pen memorialized Lee Sexton of Kentucky, beginning by commenting that Jean Ritchie had taught him the magical relationship that bound music and memory in a union in which people, places, relationships, and events are encoded in the music which has the power to conjure vivid recollections. As he was seated at Mount Zion Methodist Church, Ron was reminded of all the people that are conjured up by our singing of the old songs from the Sacred Harp and Southern Harmony. One of those is Lee Sexton who died on February 10, 2021, just a few weeks shy of what would have been his 93rd birthday. Born March 23, 1928 at Line Fork in Letcher County, Kentucky, Lee “Boy” Sexton was a retired coal miner. He worked for thirty-four years in truck mines, and later worked at mechanical mines before retiring because of health issues related to Black Lung. Growing up in a musical family, Lee began playing banjo as soon as he was old enough to hold it, and he bought his first banjo at age eight. In addition to tending the homeplace and working as a coal miner, Lee initiated a part-time music career in 1941, playing with Estill Blair and the Jolly Mountain Boys at radio stations and square dances. That year he met fiddler Marion “Fiddle King of the South” Sumner (1920-1997) with whom he played until Marion died. Lee performed throughout the region at a number of festivals and workshops including Hindman Settlement School’s Appalachian Family Folk Gathering, Warren Wilson College’s Swannanoa Gathering, Appalshop’s Seedtime on the Cumberland Festival, The Smithsonian Folklife Festival, the “Appalachia in the Bluegrass” series at the University of Kentucky’s Niles Center for American Music, and was a regular at the Carcassonne Square Dance. Lee Sexton’s extensive musical career was recognized by receipt of the Kentucky Governor’s Award in the Arts in 1999. Lee was with Ron at many Sacred Harp singings through the years, though he didn’t sing shapes himself. He always liked to tease Ron about his singing style, exhaling loudly and exclaiming that “the mixture was a little rough, so he needed to pull out the choke.” Ron led 163b. Erin Fulton remembered Harry Eskew of Georgia, Curtis Owen a Texan, Peter Golden of Maine, and Margaret Spurlock an Alabaman. Erin commented particularly about Harry Eskew. Harry was a music professor at SEBTS in New Orleans and established the Sacred Harp singing at the seminary there. Most of his research was on Baptist hymnology and the tune-book of William Walker and early Shenandoah Valley composers (including both Southern Harmony and Kentucky Harmony). Erin met Dr. Eskew when she ran into him in a stairwell at a Society for Christian Scholarship in Music conference, and they immediately sparked up a conversation. Once he realized that she was a hymnologist, he wanted to know all about her research and even called her when she was driving home from the conference. He kept checking in on her and her work—regularly enough that she was surprised when she hadn’t heard from him in some time. Erin inquired about him early last fall and was told by his wife that his memory was failing and that he had gone into end-of-life care. Erin shared that The Big Singing is as close to her heart as anything could be and that Southern Harmony singers (and anyone else who sings from or studies the Walker tune-books) owe a particularly large debt to Dr. Eskew. Erin led 309 (SoH). Zach Davis led 569b for Keith MacAdam, a Lexingtonian and long-time singer with the AASHS who had died suddenly in November of 2016. The following sick and shut-ins were named: Jim Thobaben, Pat Waggoner, and Jesse Vear. Rafi Finkel led 479.

That concluded the memorial lesson and the day of singing. Zach Davis gave a blessing to end the singing, after which the class sang 267 as the closing song. A few people moved outside for a picnic lunch of their own and to socialize for a while.

Chairman and Treasurer—Charles H. Coulston; Secretary—Mary Brinkman