The East Texas Musical Convention, now usually called the ''East Texas Sacred Harp Convention'', is an annual gathering of shape note singers. Songs are sung

a cappella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...

from the

Sacred Harp Sacred Harp singing is a tradition of sacred choral music that originated in New England and was later perpetuated and carried on in the American South. The name is derived from ''The Sacred Harp'', a ubiquitous and historically important tune ...

tunebook. The Convention was organized in 1855, and is the oldest Sacred Harp convention in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, and the second oldest in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The East Texas Convention was modeled after the older (now defunct) ''

Southern Musical Convention The Southern Musical Convention was the first ''Sacred Harp'' musical convention, organized by B. F. White and others in 1845. It was formed at Huntersville in Upson County, Georgia. From its founding until 1867, White's ''The Sacred Harp'' was ...

'' established in 1845 by

Benjamin Franklin White Benjamin Franklin White (September 20, 1800 – December 5, 1879) was a shape note " singing master", and compiler of the shape note tunebook known as ''The Sacred Harp''. He was born near Cross Keys in Union County, South Carolina, the twelfth c ...

, the compiler of ''The Sacred Harp''. The East Texas Convention has a continuous history from 1868, the earliest year notated in its minutes. William Russell Adams, President of the Convention in 1874, 1884, and 1885, wrote to Aldine S. Kieffer, explaining that the convention missed a few years of meeting because of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. Re-established after the war, a large influx of Georgia and Alabama settlers added to its strength. In its early years it was generally considered a forum of Christian worship. Today many are attracted to its

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

aspect. Throughout its history, the East Texas Musical Convention has convened annually in six

East Texas East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that comprises most of 41 counties. It is primarily divided into Northeast and Southeast Texas. Most of the region consi ...

counties: Gregg,

Harrison Harrison may refer to: People * Harrison (name) * Harrison family of Virginia, United States Places In Australia: * Harrison, Australian Capital Territory, suburb in the Canberra district of Gungahlin In Canada: * Inukjuak, Quebec, or "Po ...

, Panola,

Rusk A rusk is a hard, dry biscuit or a twice-baked bread. It is sometimes used as a teether for babies. In some cultures, rusk is made of cake, rather than bread: this is sometimes referred to as cake rusk. In the UK, the name also refers to a whea ...

Smith Smith may refer to: People * Metalsmith, or simply smith, a craftsman fashioning tools or works of art out of various metals * Smith (given name) * Smith (surname), a family name originating in England, Scotland and Ireland ** List of people wi ...

and Upshur. The Convention presently meets for two days in

Henderson, Texas Henderson is a city and the county seat of Rusk County, Texas, in Northeast Texas. Its population was 13,271 at the 2020 census. Henderson is named for James Pinckney Henderson, the first governor of Texas. The city has functioned as a major cro ...

on the weekend of the second Sunday in August. The current "textbook" of the Convention is ''The Sacred Harp (2012 Revised Cooper Edition)'', first revised by W. M. Cooper and others in 1902.

Early officers

* John T. Holloway * James Pendleton Holloway * Mathew Mark Wynn * Thomas Jefferson Allison * Charles Absalem Mangham * John Franklin McLendon

References

*''Approaching 150: A Brief History of the East Texas Musical Convention'', by R. L. Vaughn *''The Chattahoochee Musical Convention: 1852-2002'', Kiri Miller, editor *''The Musical Million and Fireside Friend'', periodical, Dayton, VA; Aldine S. Kieffer, editor; Volume XI (1880), page 135 *''The Sacred Harp: A Tradition and Its Music'', by Buell E. Cobb *''White Spirituals in the Southern Uplands'', by George Pullen Jackson

External links

East Texas Convention
- 2004 online minutes
Texas Sacred Harp Historical page
Sacred Harp Shape note Organizations based in Texas Texas culture Recurring events established in 1855 1855 establishments in Texas Music festivals established in 1855 {{Texas-stub