A religious musical tradition spanning back two centuries is alive and well in the Shenandoah Valley. WMRA's Randi B. Hagi reports.
[leader finds note on pitch pipe, congregation joins in]
About 60 people met in the 19th-century Union Church in Mount Jackson on Sunday afternoon. Many of them wore Old Order Mennonite head coverings and plain dress; others sported blue jeans and sweaters. One by one, attendees took turns leading the congregation in song – with people calling out requests by the hymn's number. This one is number 254.
SAM SHOWALTER: It's a very ecumenical kind of happening. … The oldest one was at Weaver's Church, out on Route 33. They've been singing there for over 120 years, out of this book.
Sam Showalter is a member of the Harmonia Sacra Society, which aims to promote the Mennonite hymnal that was arranged by Joseph Funk in 1832. The village of Singers Glen, where Funk made his home, was named in honor of his choral publications. An edition published in the late 1860s saw the introduction of the denomination's hallmark four-part harmonies.
[women start singing Hymn #445 in two parts, men join in]
SHOWALTER: I'm just excited about having more and more young people become interested in it, and as we old folks pass on, well, it's nice to know there are more four-part singers coming along. [chuckles]
The society's next endeavor is to purchase Funk's historic home and preserve it as a museum.