Hello friends who love to sing!
A few months ago, a sweet friend and I chatted about some possibilities for upcoming Mother Culture evenings. We had two goals in mind. We desired an evening where like-minded moms could gather to enjoy each other’s company. We also desired an evening where our hearts and minds could be enriched. What is something we could do so we could all walk away feeling nourished? Or feeling like we learned something new? Or feeling like we honed a skill we already had?
After brainstorming out a number of ideas, we landed on an evening of folk singing.
To be honest, I was a bit skeptical. I’ve loved music and harmonies and singing almost my entire life, but I didn’t know if others would enjoy this time as well.
I had a few goals in mind as we sang. I desired the singing to be a cappella. Hearing voices is such a lovely sound. Music is so unifying, and I desired for us to hear each other sing. The less I played the piano, the better.
As a result, I specifically notated out some folk songs I felt we could do well with a cappella voices. I started with a couple in two part harmony. Then I notated a few in three part harmony. I progressed to four part harmony. At this point, all voices moved in homophonic movement. (We all moved together singing the same words at the same time.)
I also purchased a more complicated arrangement of Simple Gifts.
How did the evening go?
I was so encouraged at the smiles and laughter. Many moms mentioned how they so dearly miss singing harmonies and singing in choirs. As one mom put it, this evening seemed to have whetted the appetite for more singing. We have another evening scheduled in two weeks for some reading and singing specifically focused on nourishing our hearts for the Advent season.
Since many who visit this site also enjoy music and a cappella harmonies and folk singing, I thought I’d offer some of the music here for others to use. Feel free to download them for your own evening of Mother Culture singing. Here are the pieces we sang that evening:
Oh Shenandoah
Poor Wayfaring Stranger
Swing Low, Sweet Chariot
Down to the River to Pray
I also purchased a lovely arrangement of Simple Gifts from pianomomsheetmusc.com.