Pitching Sacred Harp Music
In Sacred Harp music, it is the custom to sing a song in a key chosen for the moment, rather than the one notated in the hymnbook. Pitching (also: keying) is the act of finding such a key. A person to whom this task has been entrusted is called a pitcher or keyer.
Read more about Pitching Sacred Harp Music: Why Pitchers Are Needed, The Pitcher's Task, Pitch Pipes, Tuning Forks, Etc., The Value of Skilled Pitchers, History
Famous quotes containing the words sacred, harp and/or music:
“They reckon ill who leave me out;
When me they fly, I am the wings;
I am the doubter and the doubt,
And I the hymn the Brahmin sings.
The strong gods pine for my abode,
And pine in vain the sacred Seven;
But thou, meek lover of the good!
Find me, and turn thy back on heaven.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“The harp is an insipid instrument—no good for dancing, feasting, or marching, only for sitting primly in a parlor or on a cloud.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)
“Great music is that which penetrates the ear with facility and leaves the memory with difficulty. Magical music never leaves the memory.”
—Thomas Beecham (1879–1961)