William Billings
Encyclopedia
William Billings was an American
choral
composer
, and is widely regarded as the father of American choral music. Originally a tanner
by trade, and lacking formal training in music, Billings created what is now recognized as a uniquely American style.
"He had one eye, a deformed arm and a harsh voice; he was lame in one leg; and he was addicted to snuff
." At the age of 14 his father's death stopped his formal schooling. He was married with six children. Billings died in poverty on September 26, 1800. His funeral was announced in the Columbian Centinel "Died- Mr. William Billings, the celebrated music composer. His funeral will be tomorrow at 4 o'clock, PM from the house of Mrs. Amos Penniman, in Chamber-street, West-Boston."
, singing a cappella
. His many hymns and anthems were published mostly in book-length collections, as follows:
Sometimes Billings would revise and improve a song, including the new version in his next volume.
Billings' music can be at times forceful and stirring, as in his patriotic song
"Chester
"; ecstatic, as in his hymn "Africa"; or elaborate and celebratory, as in his "Easter Anthem". The latter sounds rather like a miniature Handelian
chorus, sung a cappella. As might be expected from a composer who was very close to his roots in folk music
, Billings' music shows a striking purity.
His "Jargon," written to a tongue-in-cheek
text, contains jarring dissonances that sound more like those of the 20th century than of the 18th century. He also wrote several Christmas carols, including "Judea" in 1778 and "Shiloh" in 1781.
As an example, McKay and Crawford (see Books, below) compare Billings' metrical rendering of Luke
2:8-11 with that of Nahum Tate
, thought to be the inspiration for Billings' work:
Tate:
Billings:
. They also provide information on choral performance practice in Billings's day; for instance, a passage from the preface to The Continental Harmony indicates that Billings like to have both men and women sing the treble (top) and tenor lines, an octave apart:
With changes in the public's musical taste, Billings' fortunes declined. His last tune-book, The Continental Harmony, was published as a project of his friends, in an effort to help support the revered but no longer popular composer. His temporary employment as a Boston street sweeper was probably a project of a similar nature.
Billings died in poverty at age 53, and for a considerable time after his death, his music was almost completely neglected in the American musical mainstream. However, his compositions remained popular for a time in the rural areas of New England, which resisted the newer trends in sacred music. Moreover, a few of Billings' songs were carried southward and westward through America, as a result of their appearance in shape note
hymnals. They ultimately resided in the rural South, as part of the Sacred Harp
singing tradition.
In the latter part of the twentieth century a Billings revival occurred, and a sumptuous complete scholarly edition of his works was published (see Books, below). Works by Billings are commonly sung by American choral groups today, particularly performers of early music
. In addition, the recent spread of Sacred Harp
music has acquainted many more people with Billings' music: several of his compositions are among the more frequently sung of the works in the Sacred Harp canon 1.
The Stoughton Musical Society
, formed by former students of Billings, has carried on his tradition for over 200 years, and included twenty-seven Billings tunes in their 1878 music collection, The Stoughton Musical Society's Centennial Collection of Sacred Music. Among the favorite tunes by Billings sung by this choral society are: "Majesty" and "Chester"http://www.americanmusicpreservation.com/billings.htm.
The modern American composer William Schuman
featured Billings' American Revolutionary War
anthem "Chester
", along with two other of Billings' hymns, in his composition New England Triptych
.
William Billings was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame
in 1970.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
choral
Chorale
A chorale was originally a hymn sung by a Christian congregation. In certain modern usage, this term may also include classical settings of such hymns and works of a similar character....
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, and is widely regarded as the father of American choral music. Originally a tanner
Tanning
Tanning is the making of leather from the skins of animals which does not easily decompose. Traditionally, tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound from which the tanning process draws its name . Coloring may occur during tanning...
by trade, and lacking formal training in music, Billings created what is now recognized as a uniquely American style.
"He had one eye, a deformed arm and a harsh voice; he was lame in one leg; and he was addicted to snuff
Snuff
Snuff is a product made from ground or pulverised tobacco leaves. It is an example of smokeless tobacco. It originated in the Americas and was in common use in Europe by the 17th century...
." At the age of 14 his father's death stopped his formal schooling. He was married with six children. Billings died in poverty on September 26, 1800. His funeral was announced in the Columbian Centinel "Died- Mr. William Billings, the celebrated music composer. His funeral will be tomorrow at 4 o'clock, PM from the house of Mrs. Amos Penniman, in Chamber-street, West-Boston."
The music
Virtually all of Billings' music was written for four-part chorusChoir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
, singing a cappella
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
. His many hymns and anthems were published mostly in book-length collections, as follows:
- The New-England Psalm-Singer (1770)
- The Singing Master's Assistant (1778)
- Music in Miniature (1779)
- The Psalm-Singer's Amusement (1781)
- The Suffolk Harmony (1786)
- The Continental Harmony (1794)
Sometimes Billings would revise and improve a song, including the new version in his next volume.
Billings' music can be at times forceful and stirring, as in his patriotic song
"Chester
Chester (song)
Among the patriotic anthems sung during the American Revolutionary War, only Yankee Doodle was more popular than William Billings's Chester. Billings wrote the first version of the song for his 1770 songbook The New England Psalm Singer, and made improvements for the version in his The Singing...
"; ecstatic, as in his hymn "Africa"; or elaborate and celebratory, as in his "Easter Anthem". The latter sounds rather like a miniature Handelian
George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel was a German-British Baroque composer, famous for his operas, oratorios, anthems and organ concertos. Handel was born in 1685, in a family indifferent to music...
chorus, sung a cappella. As might be expected from a composer who was very close to his roots in folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
, Billings' music shows a striking purity.
His "Jargon," written to a tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek is a phrase used as a figure of speech to imply that a statement or other production is humorously intended and it should not be taken at face value. The facial expression typically indicates that one is joking or making a mental effort. In the past, it may also have indicated...
text, contains jarring dissonances that sound more like those of the 20th century than of the 18th century. He also wrote several Christmas carols, including "Judea" in 1778 and "Shiloh" in 1781.
Verse
Billings often wrote the lyrics for his own compositions. Like the notes, the words are occasionally awkward but always forceful and vivid.As an example, McKay and Crawford (see Books, below) compare Billings' metrical rendering of Luke
Gospel of Luke
The Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...
2:8-11 with that of Nahum Tate
Nahum Tate
Nahum Tate was an Irish poet, hymnist, and lyricist, who became England's poet laureate in 1692.-Life:Nahum Teate came from a family of Puritan clergymen...
, thought to be the inspiration for Billings' work:
Tate:
- While shepherds watched their flocks by night
- All seated on the ground,
- The angel of the Lord came down,
- And glory shone around.
Billings:
- As shepherds in Jewry were guarding their sheep,
- Promiscusly seated estranged from sleep;
- An Angel from heaven presented to view,
- And thus he accosted the trembling few
- Dispel all your sorrows, and banish your fears,
- For Jesus our Saviour in Jewry appears.
Pedagogical writing
Billings wrote long prefaces to his works in which he explained (often in an endearingly eccentric prose style) the rudiments of music and how his work should be performed. His writings reflect his extensive experience as a singing masterSinging school
Historically, singing schools have been strongly affiliated with Protestant Christianity. Some are held under the auspices of particular Protestant denominations that maintain a tradition of a cappella singing, such as the Church of Christ and the Primitive Baptists...
. They also provide information on choral performance practice in Billings's day; for instance, a passage from the preface to The Continental Harmony indicates that Billings like to have both men and women sing the treble (top) and tenor lines, an octave apart:
- "...in general they are best sung together, viz. if a man sings it as a Medius, and a woman as a Treble, it is in effect as two parts; so likewise, if a man sing a Tenor with a masculine and woman with a feminine voice, the Tenor is as full as two parts, and a tune so sung (although it has but four parts) is in effect the same as six. Such a conjunction of masculine and feminine voices is beyond expression, sweet and ravishing, and is esteemed by all good judges to be vastly preferable to any instrument whatever, framed by human invention.
Reception
Billings' work was very popular in its heyday, but his career was hampered by the primitive state of copyright law in America at the time. By the time the copyright laws had been strengthened, it was too late for Billings: the favorites among his tunes had already been widely reprinted in other people's hymnals, permanently copyright-free.Billings died in poverty at age 53, and for a considerable time after his death, his music was almost completely neglected in the American musical mainstream. However, his compositions remained popular for a time in the rural areas of New England, which resisted the newer trends in sacred music. Moreover, a few of Billings' songs were carried southward and westward through America, as a result of their appearance in shape note
Shape note
Shape notes are a music notation designed to facilitate congregational and community singing. The notation, introduced in 1801, became a popular teaching device in American singing schools...
hymnals. They ultimately resided in the rural South, as part of the Sacred Harp
Sacred Harp
Sacred Harp singing is a tradition of sacred choral music that took root in the Southern region of the United States. It is part of the larger tradition of shape note music.- The music and its notation :...
singing tradition.
In the latter part of the twentieth century a Billings revival occurred, and a sumptuous complete scholarly edition of his works was published (see Books, below). Works by Billings are commonly sung by American choral groups today, particularly performers of early music
Early music
Early music is generally understood as comprising all music from the earliest times up to the Renaissance. However, today this term has come to include "any music for which a historically appropriate style of performance must be reconstructed on the basis of surviving scores, treatises,...
. In addition, the recent spread of Sacred Harp
Sacred Harp
Sacred Harp singing is a tradition of sacred choral music that took root in the Southern region of the United States. It is part of the larger tradition of shape note music.- The music and its notation :...
music has acquainted many more people with Billings' music: several of his compositions are among the more frequently sung of the works in the Sacred Harp canon 1.
The Stoughton Musical Society
Stoughton Musical Society
Organized in 1786, this is currently America's oldest choral society. Over the past two centuries it has had many distinguished accomplishments. In 1908, when incorporated under the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the name was changed to Old Stoughton Musical Society...
, formed by former students of Billings, has carried on his tradition for over 200 years, and included twenty-seven Billings tunes in their 1878 music collection, The Stoughton Musical Society's Centennial Collection of Sacred Music. Among the favorite tunes by Billings sung by this choral society are: "Majesty" and "Chester"http://www.americanmusicpreservation.com/billings.htm.
The modern American composer William Schuman
William Schuman
William Howard Schuman was an American composer and music administrator.-Life:Born in Manhattan in New York City to Samuel and Rachel Schuman, Schuman was named after the twenty-seventh U.S. president, William Howard Taft, although his family preferred to call him Bill...
featured Billings' American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
anthem "Chester
Chester (song)
Among the patriotic anthems sung during the American Revolutionary War, only Yankee Doodle was more popular than William Billings's Chester. Billings wrote the first version of the song for his 1770 songbook The New England Psalm Singer, and made improvements for the version in his The Singing...
", along with two other of Billings' hymns, in his composition New England Triptych
New England Triptych
New England Triptych is a symphonic composition by William Schuman. The work lasts about 16 minutes, and is written for an orchestra of 3 flutes , 2 oboes, English horn, E-flat clarinet, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion , and...
.
William Billings was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame
Songwriters Hall of Fame
The Songwriters Hall of Fame is an arm of the National Academy of Popular Music. It was founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer and music publishers Abe Olman and Howie Richmond. The goal is to create a museum but as of April, 2008, the means do not yet exist and so instead it is an online...
in 1970.
Scholarly edition of Billings's works
- Complete works of William Billings in four volumes, edited by Karl Kroeger and Hans Nathan:
- The New England psalm-singer. University of Virginia PressUniversity of Virginia PressThe University of Virginia Press , founded in 1963, is a university press that is part of the University of Virginia.-External links:*...
(1981). - The Singing Masters Assistant, Music in Miniature. University Virginia Press (1984). ISBN 0-8139-0839-6.
- The Psalm-Singer's Amusement. University of Virginia Press (1987). ISBN 0-8139-1130-3.
- The Continental Harmony. University Press of Virginia (1990). ISBN 1-878528-01-7.
- The New England psalm-singer. University of Virginia Press
Other
- McKay, David P. and Richard Crawford (1975) William Billings of Boston. Princeton: Princeton University PressPrinceton University Press-Further reading:* "". Artforum International, 2005.-External links:* * * * *...
. ISBN 0-691-09118-8. - Gary, Charles & Mark, Michael. (2007). A History of American Music Education. Rowman & Littlefield Education: UK.
- Hall, Roger L. MAJESTY: A discussion of Facts and Fiction about William Billings and The Stoughton Musical Society (PineTree Press, 2000)
- Nathan, Hans. 1976. William Billings: Data and Documents. Detroic: College Music Society.
See also
- Africa (William Billings), hymn tune with music score
- Chester (song)Chester (song)Among the patriotic anthems sung during the American Revolutionary War, only Yankee Doodle was more popular than William Billings's Chester. Billings wrote the first version of the song for his 1770 songbook The New England Psalm Singer, and made improvements for the version in his The Singing...
, a Revolutionary WarAmerican Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
anthem - Creation (William Billings)Creation (William Billings)-History:Billings included Creation in his final collection, The Continental Harmony . The words are by Isaac Watts: the first stanza is from Psalm 139 and the second from hymn 19, book 2, of his Hymns...
, hymn tune