October is a busy month for the Shiloh Singers...

Finally, the cool mornings and mild afternoons have arrived in the Arkansas mountains. Fall colors will soon follow. October is also an active month for Sacred Harp singing in Northwest Arkansas. The Shiloh Sacred Harp Singer's monthly 2nd Sunday singing is scheduled for October 13th from 1:30 until 4:00 P.M. in the General Store on the grounds of the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History located at Springdale, AR.

Rene Greene

Then on Friday evening, October 25th, from 6:30 P.M. until 8:30 P.M. the Shiloh Singers will sponsor a singing school for new singers, or those who want to learn more about shape note singing. We are very fortunate to have a guest instructor, Rene Greene, a veteran singer from Alabama, who will be with us on Friday evening and for the all-day singing that follows on Saturday, October 26th, from 9:30 until 3:00.

Both the school and the NWA Fall Singing Convention will be conducted in the Springdale First United Methodist Church Annex located on the north side of the church complex. The church is also conveniently located just across the street from the Shiloh Museum and is very easy to find. There will also be a pot luck lunch for the singers on Saturday at noon and the usual water and soft drinks will be available during breaks and lunch.

Photo: The front entrance of the First United Methodist Church of Springdale faces south on Johnson Ave. The Friday school and Saturday singing convention will use the north entrance and parking lot along W. Price Ave.

During the 10/13 Sunday singing we'll also take a few minutes of planning time before the break to discuss any remaining loose ends for the Fall singing convention and school. Please keep in mind that everyone - new or old - is also invited to attend the singing school to help the new singers and then hopefully help reinforce what the new singers have learned during the regular Fall Singing Convention the next day. We'll also need to at least start a list of "who can bring what" for the pot luck lunch on Saturday. If you cannot attend the 2nd Sunday singing but plan to attend the Saturday all day singing on 10/26, please call 479-369-0003 or send an email to br.black@cox.net so we can add your name and the dish you plan to bring. We need to make sure all the major food groups - like desserts - are covered.

Recent updates and reminders: The singing school closing time has been adjusted to 8:30 to comply with a request that we start packing up at that time so that everyone exit the building and the church staff can make sure everything is secure by 9:00 P.M. Also keep in mind that the kitchen was not available when the room was booked and cool storage is limited. We'll have the usual ice chests used for drinks, but please plan to insulate or cool your own pot luck items planned for lunch. We'll also plan to send another short reminder after the regular October 13th singing with any further updates.

You can click on the blue text as links to PDF copies of the event flyer and event map that you can print for a friend or a church bulletin board. We hope you will. to share the school and convention information with others. You can also share the links via email.

And one more thing... Don't forget everyone is also invited to the optional before Sunday gatherings at AQ's Chicken House "around noon" (just ask for the singers) and Denny's at I-540 after the singing for those who wish to get a cup of coffee before the drive home. Hope to see you on Sunday.

The "early" September Singing Report

The September's 2nd Sunday singing at the Shiloh Museum was as early in the month as a 2nd Sunday can ever get! The Shiloh Singers of NW Arkansas enjoyed a good turnout on a fine Sunday afternoon on September 8th in the General Store at the Shiloh Museum in Springdale.

The singers also made a joyful noise at the August 11th singing. We had 19 singers and visitors who sang or listened during the August session. You'll also notice in the photo that the boxes used to store our loaner books were just about empty. We opened the doors, turned up the fans, (electric and hand-powered) and really had a good time singing. I hope you can join us and bring a friend or two this Sunday.

Photo: Even with 19 singers and visitors, we still had room for more singers and more visitors. All the parts were well covered. We are in the process of ordering more books for the October 25th Friday evening Singing School and the NWA Fall Singing Convention on Saturday, October 26. We'll try to update everyone on the details on Sunday, but go ahead and mark the events on your October calendar. We'll also post more details on the web page as they become available.

One more thing... We'll also had the usual optional gatherings:  Those who enjoy chicken on Sunday are invited to join us at AQ's Chicken House in Springdale "around noon." Ask the staff at the cashier's desk for the singers and they'll point you in the right direction. The singers who prefer their Sunday dessert after the singing are also invited to join us at the Denny's in Springdale for pie and coffee or ice cream to soothe the throat after a full afternoon of old fashioned singing. Both are opportunities to enjoy the fellowship of other singers, share ideas and catch up on what other singers have been doing. We all enjoy the singing but it's the singers that make our Sunday afternoon singings so very special. All singers and visitors are always invited and we hope your Sunday schedule will allow you to attend one or all of the events

Hope to see you at our next 2nd Sunday singing.

Story in @Urban Magazine - Sacred Harp Singing on Aug 11th

It's good to be back from vacation but it takes a little longer each time to recover from trips "further west" and then get my biological clock running on Arkansas time again. This trip was no different and my schedule for the past week looked like it had been shredded and reassembled by hand. While it's not quite time for a reminder about the August 11th Sunday singing at the Shiloh Museum, there was certainly enough good news to justify an early newsletter this month.

I got a note from Marla Cantrell, Managing Editor of @Urban magazine that the story she had started a couple of months ago had been posted on the Internet and published in the August issue now on the newsstands. Marla took the time to distill what she saw and heard into an article that I think captured what Sacred Harp Singing and the Shiloh Singers are about and how a cross section of our singers feel about it. The final result in print was well worth the wait.

Thanks to Marla, Mark Mundorff, who took the pictures, and @Urban for telling our story and putting the Shiloh Singers into the printed record and online. Preserving our history is important and the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History also deserves recognition for their efforts to preserve our traditional form of singing. The museum has been a tremendous help to the singers over the years.

Photo: If you live in the area, look for a rooster on the August cover of @Urban. If you live out of their distribution area, you can just click on the link below and read the article at: http://www.aturbanmagazine.com/home/AtUrbanArticles/tabid/73/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/730/inside-the-sacred-harp.aspx

Gail Cowart noted that Syd Caldwell discussed some of the plans for the Fall NWA Singing Convention and he also recorded the attendance at the July singing as, "Ten people singing today, 4 bass, 2 alto, 1 treble and 3 tenors.  Totally beautiful day and beautiful singing."

I missed my chicken and dumplings last month so we'll plan on being at AQ's Chicken House around noon on August 11th. If you let us know you plan to join us, we'll save you a seat or we'll find a chair if you just walk in. We'll start singing at the Shiloh Museum's general store at 1:30 P.M. and adjourn for dessert after the singing. As you can see from the July head count, we always appreciate new singers, we have openings for additional singers in all sections, and welcome your participation.

I've also made a note to bring fans for additional cooling. Hope to see you August 11th.