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CALIFORNIA
GOSPEL
CRUISE
MINISTRIES
Info Contact:
Liz Elegant Travel
Liz Williams
916 424-5452
Tickle Me Travel
Leona Hunter
415 671-0115
Go Globe With Noble
Sonja Noble
916 804-2863
BMoore Promotions
Monty Embry
661 324-2897
Liz Elegant Travel
Liz Williams
916 424-5452
Tickle Me Travel
Leona Hunter
415 671-0115
Go Globe With Noble
Sonja Noble
916 804-2863
BMoore Promotions
Monty Embry
661 324-2897
You must be a
Guests who Book
Directly through
California Gospel
Cruise Ministries
to enjoy the
Concerts,
Seminars and
Entertainment.
Guests who Book
Directly through
California Gospel
Cruise Ministries
to enjoy the
Concerts,
Seminars and
Entertainment.
CALIFORNIA GOSPEL CONFERENCE
MARCH 4 -12, 2009
Power By God
Gospel music is music that is written to
express either personal or a communal belief
regarding Christian life, as well as (in terms of
the varying music styles) to give a Christian
alternative to mainstream secular music.
Like other forms of Christian music the
creation, performance, significance, and even
the definition of Gospel music varies
according to culture and social context.
Gospel music is composed and performed for
many purposes, ranging from aesthetic
pleasure, religious or ceremonial purposes,
or as an entertainment product for the
marketplace. However, a common theme of
most Gospel music is praise, worship or
thanks to God and/or Christ
Origins (1920s – 1940s)
What most people would identify today as
'Gospel' began very differently 85 years ago.
The Gospel music that Thomas A. Dorsey,
Sallie Martin, Dr. Mattie Moss Clark, Willie
Mae Ford Smith and other pioneers
popularized had its roots in the more
freewheeling forms of religious devotion of
'Sanctified' or 'Holiness' churches —
sometimes called 'holy rollers' by other
denominations — who encouraged individual
church members to 'testify', speaking or
singing spontaneously about their faith and
experience of the Holy Ghost and "Getting
Happy", sometimes while dancing in
celebration.
Dorsey, who had once composed for and
played piano behind blues giants worked hard
to develop this new music, organizing an
annual convention for gospel artists, touring
with Martin to sell sheet music and gradually
overcoming the resistance of more
conservative churches to what many of them
considered sinful, worldly music. Combining
the sixteen bar structure and blues modes
and rhythms with religious lyrics, Dorsey's
compositions opened up possibilities for
innovative singers such as Sister Rosetta
Tharpe to apply their very individual talents to
his songs, while inspiring church members to
'shout' — either to call out catch phrases or to
add musical lines of their own in response to
the singers.
In the 1920s Sanctified artists, such as Arizona
Dranes, many of whom were also traveling
preachers, started making records in a style
that melded traditional religious themes with
barrelhouse, blues and boogie-woogie
techniques and brought jazz instruments,
such as drums and horns, into the church. It
is also important to note that gospel music is
not just a form of music. It is an intricate part
of the religious experience for many
churchgoers.
This looser style affected other black
religious musical styles as well. The most
popular groups in the 1930s were male
quartets or small groups such as The Golden
Gate Quartet, who sang, usually
unaccompanied, in jubilee style, mixing
careful harmonies, melodious singing
Golden age (1940s – 1950s)
The new gospel music composed by Dorsey
and others proved very important among
quartets, who began turning in a new
direction. Groups such as the Dixie
Hummingbirds, Pilgrim Travelers, Soul
Stirrers, Swan Silvertones, Sensational
Nightingales and Five Blind Boys of
Mississippi introduced even more stylistic
freedom to the close harmonies of jubilee
style, adding ad libs and using repeated short
phrases in the background to maintain a
rhythmic base for the innovations of the lead
singers. Individual singers also stood out
more as jubilee turned to "hard gospel" and
as soloists began to shout more and more,
often in falsettos anchored by a prominent
bass. Quartet singers combined both
individual virtuoso performances and
innovative harmonic and rhythmic invention
— what Ira Tucker Sr. and Paul Owens of the
Hummingbirds called "trickeration" — that
amplified both the emotional and musical
intensity of their songs.
Gospel's Influences (1950 -
Gospel artists, who had been influenced by
pop music trends for years such as Ray
Charles, James Brown, and James Booker,
had an even greater impact later in the 1950s,
helping to create soul music by bringing even
more gospel to rhythm and blues. Many of the
most prominent soul artists, such as Aretha
Franklin, Marvin Gaye, Wilson Pickett and Al
Green, had roots in the church and gospel
music and brought with them much of the
vocal styles of artists such as Clara Ward.
During the 1970's, some gospel greats
included James Cleveland, The Staple
Singers, Walter Hawkins and Love Alive, the
Clark Sisters and Andre Crouch. Many artists
(including some of those mentioned above)
started singing in the church and then later
crossed over to pop, rhythm and blues, and
blues. "Goin' Up Yonder" by Walter Hawkins
and Love Alive represents the early era of
gospel music.
During the 1980's, church music took another
turn. Characterized by an increase in mass
choirs, this era produced groups such as the
Georgia Mass Choir, Mississippi Mass Choir
and The Brooklyn Tabernacle Singers. Other
genres of music heavily influenced gospel
music as well. Instruments like the organ,
piano, drums and bass played a stronger role
than before. Most churches have at least four
of these instruments accompanying their
gospel choirs. In remaking the old hymn,
"Amazing Grace" in this new style, the
Mississippi Mass Choir achieved fame. Listen
to the Mississippi Mass Choir.
Marked by even larger bands and more
complex arrangements, the 1990's brought
gospel into another musical genre known as
Inspirational. Instruments added to the music
included electric guitar, keyboards, trumpets
and saxophones. Recent artists that have
influenced Gospel music include Kirk
Franklin John P. Kee, Fred Hammond,
Yolanda Adams and Out of Eden. Although
effected by R&B and hip-hop, Inspirational
continue to reflect older styles of gospel.
Instead of selecting one genre, churches
today use all the styles of gospel music in
their services.
express either personal or a communal belief
regarding Christian life, as well as (in terms of
the varying music styles) to give a Christian
alternative to mainstream secular music.
Like other forms of Christian music the
creation, performance, significance, and even
the definition of Gospel music varies
according to culture and social context.
Gospel music is composed and performed for
many purposes, ranging from aesthetic
pleasure, religious or ceremonial purposes,
or as an entertainment product for the
marketplace. However, a common theme of
most Gospel music is praise, worship or
thanks to God and/or Christ
Origins (1920s – 1940s)
What most people would identify today as
'Gospel' began very differently 85 years ago.
The Gospel music that Thomas A. Dorsey,
Sallie Martin, Dr. Mattie Moss Clark, Willie
Mae Ford Smith and other pioneers
popularized had its roots in the more
freewheeling forms of religious devotion of
'Sanctified' or 'Holiness' churches —
sometimes called 'holy rollers' by other
denominations — who encouraged individual
church members to 'testify', speaking or
singing spontaneously about their faith and
experience of the Holy Ghost and "Getting
Happy", sometimes while dancing in
celebration.
Dorsey, who had once composed for and
played piano behind blues giants worked hard
to develop this new music, organizing an
annual convention for gospel artists, touring
with Martin to sell sheet music and gradually
overcoming the resistance of more
conservative churches to what many of them
considered sinful, worldly music. Combining
the sixteen bar structure and blues modes
and rhythms with religious lyrics, Dorsey's
compositions opened up possibilities for
innovative singers such as Sister Rosetta
Tharpe to apply their very individual talents to
his songs, while inspiring church members to
'shout' — either to call out catch phrases or to
add musical lines of their own in response to
the singers.
In the 1920s Sanctified artists, such as Arizona
Dranes, many of whom were also traveling
preachers, started making records in a style
that melded traditional religious themes with
barrelhouse, blues and boogie-woogie
techniques and brought jazz instruments,
such as drums and horns, into the church. It
is also important to note that gospel music is
not just a form of music. It is an intricate part
of the religious experience for many
churchgoers.
This looser style affected other black
religious musical styles as well. The most
popular groups in the 1930s were male
quartets or small groups such as The Golden
Gate Quartet, who sang, usually
unaccompanied, in jubilee style, mixing
careful harmonies, melodious singing
Golden age (1940s – 1950s)
The new gospel music composed by Dorsey
and others proved very important among
quartets, who began turning in a new
direction. Groups such as the Dixie
Hummingbirds, Pilgrim Travelers, Soul
Stirrers, Swan Silvertones, Sensational
Nightingales and Five Blind Boys of
Mississippi introduced even more stylistic
freedom to the close harmonies of jubilee
style, adding ad libs and using repeated short
phrases in the background to maintain a
rhythmic base for the innovations of the lead
singers. Individual singers also stood out
more as jubilee turned to "hard gospel" and
as soloists began to shout more and more,
often in falsettos anchored by a prominent
bass. Quartet singers combined both
individual virtuoso performances and
innovative harmonic and rhythmic invention
— what Ira Tucker Sr. and Paul Owens of the
Hummingbirds called "trickeration" — that
amplified both the emotional and musical
intensity of their songs.
Gospel's Influences (1950 -
Gospel artists, who had been influenced by
pop music trends for years such as Ray
Charles, James Brown, and James Booker,
had an even greater impact later in the 1950s,
helping to create soul music by bringing even
more gospel to rhythm and blues. Many of the
most prominent soul artists, such as Aretha
Franklin, Marvin Gaye, Wilson Pickett and Al
Green, had roots in the church and gospel
music and brought with them much of the
vocal styles of artists such as Clara Ward.
During the 1970's, some gospel greats
included James Cleveland, The Staple
Singers, Walter Hawkins and Love Alive, the
Clark Sisters and Andre Crouch. Many artists
(including some of those mentioned above)
started singing in the church and then later
crossed over to pop, rhythm and blues, and
blues. "Goin' Up Yonder" by Walter Hawkins
and Love Alive represents the early era of
gospel music.
During the 1980's, church music took another
turn. Characterized by an increase in mass
choirs, this era produced groups such as the
Georgia Mass Choir, Mississippi Mass Choir
and The Brooklyn Tabernacle Singers. Other
genres of music heavily influenced gospel
music as well. Instruments like the organ,
piano, drums and bass played a stronger role
than before. Most churches have at least four
of these instruments accompanying their
gospel choirs. In remaking the old hymn,
"Amazing Grace" in this new style, the
Mississippi Mass Choir achieved fame. Listen
to the Mississippi Mass Choir.
Marked by even larger bands and more
complex arrangements, the 1990's brought
gospel into another musical genre known as
Inspirational. Instruments added to the music
included electric guitar, keyboards, trumpets
and saxophones. Recent artists that have
influenced Gospel music include Kirk
Franklin John P. Kee, Fred Hammond,
Yolanda Adams and Out of Eden. Although
effected by R&B and hip-hop, Inspirational
continue to reflect older styles of gospel.
Instead of selecting one genre, churches
today use all the styles of gospel music in
their services.
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HISTORY OF GOSPEL MUSIC