The Art of the Spiritual: Enhancing Performance of the Concert Spiritual - Paperback

by Susheel Bibbs (Author)

This brief guidebook for classical singers and those (of any culture) who love the Spiritual explains the use of interpretive elements, modes of delivery, colloquial dialect, cultural and historical considerations, and artful variation that can help bring Spirituals to life on the concert stage. Spirituals are religious/inspirational songs, born during slavery or a related successive period, and designed to express heartfelt emotions or to uplift, motivate, or share information with a group. Many Spiritual melodies originated during slavery, but only became widely known or sung during the latter parts of the 19th century when various composers (white and black) began arranging them for the public and concert stage. For clarity and authenticity, this work gives musical examples and key quotes from acclaimed arrangers and presenters of this music. It should help all classical singers feel comfortable interpreting this national treasure, this wonderful genre of song called the Spiritual, in ways that are both traditional and personal

Author Biography

Cheryl Susheel Bibbs (aka Susheel Bibbs), holds advanced degrees in opera, vocal performance and the mass communication of African-Diaspora history. In music, she received her Bachelor's of Music degree in Opera from Boston University's College for the Arts and her Masters in Vocal Performance at The New England Conservatory of Music. Bibbs also received diplomas in opera and art song from the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria, and apprenticed at the Santa Fe Opera. She is an award-winning director of independent films on performance. Bibbs sang opera in Austria and then performed in the US and Canada to critical acclaim. She served as a continuing solo artist on the rosters of The Opera Company of Boston and The Associate Artists (now Boston Lyric) Opera for several seasons and appeared in diverse leading and supporting roles with other major and regional companies that ranged from Boston's Opera Rosa to California's Diablo Light Opera to The renowned Santa Fe Opera. Her concert debut was in Boston's famed Jordan Hall and she completed 3 national concert tours and performed oratorio and orchestral works in the US. Since 1988 Susheel has created and toured works related to African-American art song, neglected classical song, and unsung heroes. The critic of the St. Louis Post Dispatch twice called these concerts "quite simply superb." Bibbs has won numerous awards, among them a national Emmy and one of the first Keeper of Spiritual Heritage Awards from Friends of Negro Spirituals (Oakland, CA), a genre in which she began touring as a teen. She later coached with Spirituals stalwarts of this genre. Her master class on the Spiritual has been presented at Conferences, for organizations, colleges, and Universities. Her DVDs on black classical song and Mary Ellen Pleasant are on Amazon.com, and one can be seen on PBS. The San Francisco Supervisors, The California African-American Museum of Los Angeles and The City Museum of St. Louis awarded commendations to Dr. Bibbs for her portrayals and contributions to Women's History. She now teaches master classes and gives lecture-performances for professional singers, including one on performing the concert Spiritual. Bibbs founded and also heads The Living Heritage Foundation in Sacramento, which aids arts professionals who have championed underserved works on/by African Americans and women. More at www.susheelbibbs.com.