Songs of Slavery and Emancipation

The extensive liner notes for this two-CD set, with lyrics, tout its achievement of ‘bringing together the music of the enslaved with what has come to be known as the abolitionist songbook.’ The 31 songs heard here date from 1784 to the years of the American Civil War. They’re admirably sourced in historical sheet music and collections, as well as in the holdings of the US Library of Congress. They’ve been assembled, by producer Mat Callahan, as recordings by a curious variety of contemporary artists, including a chorus from Berea College in Kentucky, Sacred Harp shape-note singers from western Massachusetts, ensembles in New York City and Bern, Switzerland and several soloists. There's variety also in the style and appeal of both the music and the exposition of the lyrics, aside from Songs of Slavery and Emancipation's undeniable ethical justification.

The musical performances generally evoke the relaxed quality of field recordings, although the culture of the 18th and 19th centuries has the composers and especially the lyricists aspiring to the formality of hymns and anthems. The result is either inspirational or polemical, no doubt a sort of acoustic documentary fit with the full-length book and film that are also part of this project. The propulsive energy of shape-note vocalising is particularly well matched to the intent. Also engaging are the more informal arrangements allowing for shouts, claps, and sharing of solos.