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Wheel in a wheel: an analysis of the use of counterpoint in the choral spirituals of William Dawson

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WHEEL IN A WHEEL: AN ANALYSIS OF THE USE OF COUNTERPOINT IN THE
CHORAL SPIRITUALS OF WILLIAM LEVI DAWSON

by

Ernest Henry Harrison II

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC THORNTON SCHOOL OF MUSIC
UNIERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS
(CHORAL MUSIC)

May 2023

Copyright 2023 Ernest H. Harrison II

ii

DEDICATION

I would like to dedicate this dissertation to my first four music teachers, Alberta Y . Davis,
Herbert Porea, Irma Street, and Janette Harrison. Thank you for your influence, guidance, and
love.

iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Many people have guided and supported me throughout my doctoral work at USC and
deserve to be recognized. I would like to thank my professors in choral music Dr. Jo-Michael
Scheibe, Dr. Nick Strimple, Dr. Tram Sparks, and Dr. Cristian Grases. I would also like to thank
Mary Scheibe for your mentorship and friendship. Thank you to Dr. Wayne Barr, Dr. William
Powell, Dr. Rosephanye Powell, and Dr. Joshua Pifer for seeing in me what I could not see in
myself and continuing to push, support, and encourage me. I would like to give a special
acknowledgement to my mentor and friend Dr. R. Paul Crabb who’s teaching, and guidance have
changed the entire trajectory of my life. I would also like to give a huge thank you to my brother
and friend Scott Rieker for your counsel, guidance, and friendship.
My family and friends have been my bedrock throughout this musical adventure through
academia. Thank you to my parent’s Ernest and Janette for you unending support and love.
Thank you to my sister Dr. Adrienne Harrison for your wisdom, your friendship, and your love.
I would also like to thank my entire Tuskegee, Alabama community. There is no village like
Tuskegee and Tuskegee University. Thank you to my husband Matthew White who inspires me
to be better every day. I would not have been able to finish this process without your support,
encouragement, patience, and love. Thank you for being who you are.
Foremost, I would like to thank Linda Cade and the Tuskegee Gospel Ensemble, St.
Joseph Catholic Church and the St. Joseph Choir, Pastor Derrick Thomas and my Global Impact
Church family, and every ministry that I have been a part of. My faith has brought me to this
place. My pulpit is firmly planted beneath my feet, and I am walking in the purpose God has
given me. I am so grateful that his promises are yes and amen.
iv
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Dedication…………………………………………………………………………………………ii
Acknowledgements………………………………………………………………………………iii
List of Musical Examples………………………………………………………………………...vi
List of Tables…………………………………………………………………………………….vii
Abstract………………………………………………………………………………………….viii
Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………….xi
Chapter 1: Biographical information……………………………………………………………...1
Chapter 2: Musical Styles, Influence, and Impact……………………………………………….11
Chapter 3: Analysis………………………………………………………………………………23
Ezekiel Saw de Wheel…………………………………………………………………...24

Steal Away………………………………………………………………………………..33

Hail Mary………………………………………………………………………………...37

Ain’-a That Good News………………………………………………………………….44

Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit……………………………………………………………...51

I Wan’ To be Ready………………………………………………………………………56

Soon Ah Will Be Done…………………………………………………………………...60

Zion’s Walls……………………………………………………………………………...64

There’s a Lit’l Wheel A-Turnin’…………………………………………………………72

In His Care-O…………………………………………………………………………….77

Chapter 4: Application and Performance Practice……………………………………………….85

Rhythm…………………………………………………………………………………...88
v

Balance…………………………………………………………………………………...92

Articulation……………………………………………………………………………..101

Dynamics……………………………………………………………………………….105

Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………...110
Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………………….111

vi
List of Musical Examples

Example 3.1 William L. Dawson, “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel,” mm. 70-82……………...27
Example 3.2 William L. Dawson, “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel,” mm. 10-29……………...31
Example 3.3 William L. Dawson, “Steal Away,” mm. 29-46…………………………34
Example 3.4 William L. Dawson, “Steal Away,” mm. 54-61…………………………36
Example 3.5 William L. Dawson, “Hail Mary,” mm. 35. -57…………………………39
Example 3.6 William L. Dawson, “Hail Mary,” mm. 62-70…………………………..43
Example 3.7 William L. Dawson, “Ain’-a That Good News,” mm. 24-55……………45
Example 3.8 William L. Dawson, “Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit,” mm. 25-48………..52
Example 3.9 William L. Dawson, “I Wan’ to be Ready,” mm. 1-24………………….57
Example 3.10 William L. Dawson, “I Wan’ to be Ready,” mm. 32-40………………...59
Example 3.11 William L. Dawson, “Soon Ah Will be Done,” mm. 30-36……………..61
Example 3.12 William L. Dawson, “Soon Ah Will be Done,” mm. 54-68……………..62
Example 3.13 William L. Dawson, “Zion’s Walls,” mm. 33-40………………………..65
Example 3.14 William L. Dawson, “Zion’s Walls,” mm. 63-92………..........................67
Example 3.15 William L. Dawson, “Zion’s Walls,” mm. 100-108……………………..71
Example 3.16 William L Dawson “There’s a Lit’l Wheel A-Turnin,” mm. 12-14……..73
Example 3.17 William L. Dawson “There’s a Lit’l Wheel A-Turnin,” mm. 21-33…….74
Example 3.18 William L. Dawson “In His Care-O,” mm. 9-34………………………...78
Example 3.19 William L. Dawson “In His Care-O,” mm. 43-49……………………….81
Example 4.1 William L. Dawson, “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel,” mm. 83 – 85……………91
Example 4.2 William L. Dawson, “Hail Mary,” mm. 35-57…………………………..94
Example 4.3 William L. Dawson, “Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit,” mm. 33-48………..98
Example 4.4 William Dawson, “Ain’-a that Good News,” mm. 24-27………………103
vii
Example 4.5 William L. Dawson, “There is a Balm in Gilead,” mm. 1-8……………107

viii
List of Tables

Table 1.1 List of Choral Spirituals by William Levi Dawson……………………….9
Table 3.1 “Hail Mary” Text Comparison…………………………………………...82
Table 3.2 “Steal Away” Text Comparison………………………………………….83

ix
Abstract
The contrapuntal structures of William Levi Dawson’s choral spirituals are one of the
most important compositional contributions to the concerted choral negro folk song. In a
departure from the primarily homophonic techniques most often applied to the choral spiritual
during the first half of the twentieth century, Dawson’s use of counterpoint helped to reshape the
setting of the concerted spiritual. Through a careful study, the author intends to highlight the
approach to the contrapuntal textures of Dawson’s choral writings will help highlight the
complexity and care with which these lines were conceived. The application of counterpoint
should be viewed in a similar vein as Bach, Mendelssohn, and other champions of contrapuntal
composition which should guide the conductor in their performance preparation.
Through a careful study, the author intends to highlight the approach to the contrapuntal
textures of Dawson’s choral writings will help highlight the complexity and care with which
these lines were conceived. The application of counterpoint should be viewed similarly to Bach,
Mendelssohn, and other champions of contrapuntal composition, which should guide the
conductor in their performance preparation.
In this study the author will address how Dawson’s approach to setting the choral
spiritual—namely, his use of the elements of sixteenth century and eighteenth century
counterpoint—sets him apart from his compositional forebears in the arena of the concerted
choral spiritual. Through analysis of ten of his choral compositions, the author will highlight
specific instances of Dawson’s use of free and imitative counterpoint. Much of my research will
focus on the primary resources of Dawson’s music and secondary sources, including
dissertations, articles, and books on Dawson. This study will be divided into four sections.
Chapter 1 will encompass biographical information pertaining to Dawson’s life. In Chapter 2,
x
the author has written about Dawson’s musical style. The author will also include a discussion
of the influence of the composers of the negro spiritual who preceded Dawson as well as make
brief reference to Dawson’s impact on the composers who followed him. Chapter 3 will feature
an analysis of Dawson’s use of counterpoint, and Chapter 4 will contain a section on the
performance practice of Dawson’s music with specific focus to the intricate nature of his
compositional style.
Many composers and conductors have researched and created resources that address
many elements of performance practice as it pertains to the concerted choral spiritual. These
books and articles address issues of dialect, phonetic decay, tone (see Dr. Andre Thomas’ Way
Over in Beulah Lan’
1
, James Weldon Johnson and J. Rosamon Johnson’s The Books of American
Negro Spirituals
2
, Rosephanye Powell’s The African-American Spiritual: Preparation and
Performance Considerations
3
, and Felicia Barber’s A New Perspective for the Use of Dialect in
African American Spirituals: History, Context, and Linguistics
4
), but there has not yet been a
significant study on the influence of sixteenth and eighteenth century counterpoint on Dawson’s
compositional style and how a theoretical analysis and application of the techniques and
approaches most commonly associated with these influences can be applied in both the analysis
and performance of Dawson’s spirituals.
Dawson spent much of his career navigating the space between Western, “high art”
compositional techniques and the vocal, stylistic, and expressive musical characteristics most

1
Thomas, André J. (André Jeome). Way Over in Beulah Lan’:Understanding and Performing the Negro Spiritual.
Dayton, OH: Heritage Music Press, 2007.
2
Johnson, James Weldon. The Book of American Negro Spirituals. New York: Viking Press, 1925
3
Dunn-Powell, Rosephanye. “The African-American Spiritual: Preparation and Performance Considerations.”
Journal of singing 61, no. 5, 2005: 469-475.
4
Barber, Felicia Raphael Marie, and AndréJ.Thomas. A New Perspective for the Use of Dialect in African American
Spirituals: History, Context, and LInguistics. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books, 2021.
xi
commonly linked to the “negro spiritual.” The author believes that a study based upon the
marriage of the "high art" and "negro spiritual" should be applied to the performance practice of
Dawson's concert spiritual to ensure and honor his legacy of settings of the concert spirituals.
William Dawson preferred the terminology “negro folk song” rather than “spiritual.” “He
found inspiration for the piece in traditional spirituals, which he preferred to call ‘Negro folk-
music.’”
5
The term spiritual has become an acceptable parlance for describing the music of the
slave, as evidenced by its almost constant use by many of the authors this author has studied and
cited. For that reason, the author will use the terms “negro folk song” and “spiritual”
interchangeably. The author would like to thank Neil A. Kjos Music Company and Mark Kjos for
the licensed use of these musical examples.

5
Huizenga, Tom. Someone Finally Remembered William Dawson’ s “Negro Folk Symphony.” Deceptive cadence
[BLOG], Waghington: NPR, 2020.
xii
Introduction
“It’s a spiritual. We can just sing it loud and put a lot of vibrato in it, right?”
The author can still hear these words of a fellow chorister ringing clearly in his mind. As
we sat in our choir rehearsal, and the octavo of William Dawson’s spiritual (or negro folk song as
he preferred to call them. It is here that the author would like to remind the reader that I will use
the terms “spiritual” and “negro folk song” interchangeably throughout the body of this study)
“Soon ah Will Be Done” was passed around to the students; a friend leaned over and whispered
these words to me in a half-joking manner. The author has encountered this assumption of
musical similitude pertaining to the music of the African Diaspora in many academic spaces. The
same choral academicians who would spend weeks getting the proper pronunciation of the
Germanic Latin in Orff’s Carmina Burana (to not fall into experienced choristers’ natural
tendency towards Italianate Latin pronunciation) or spend hours arguing over musica ficta in
Lechner’s “Si Bona Suscepimus,” appear to frequently hand out a spiritual the week before a
performance and sing it through twice. They appear to give no thought to the meaning behind the
text, to an understanding of the narrative of the enslaved Africans who created the art form or
demonstrate regard to the performance practice needed to give a historically accurate
performance that aligns with the original intent of the composer. As a native son of Tuskegee,
Alabama and a graduate of Tuskegee University, the author has spent their entire life listening to
the Tuskegee Golden V oices singing the music of William Dawson. In the music of Dawson,
there is a depth of musicality there that must be honored.
1
Chapter 1
Biographical Overview

William Levi Dawson was born in Anniston, Alabama, to Eliza and George Dawson on
September 26, 1899. He was the eldest of seven sons. Dawson’s parents, Eliza, a descendant of a
property-owning, middle-class family, and George, a tradesman from a working-class
background, instilled values of education, self-sufficiency, and religious faith in him at a young
age.
1
Dawson’s love for the religious Negro folk song began early. Dawson was well acquainted
with the music of the spiritual and that of the Black gospel church despite having had no formal
musical training until his time as a student at Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University). In
Way Over in Beulah Lan', Dr. André Thomas (b. 1952) quotes the retelling of a story by Mark
Malone where Dawson attended a Fisk University Jubilee Singers performance and exclaimed,
"Oh, Mama! I know those songs."
At thirteen, Dawson left home with thirteen dollars in his pocket, to begin his pre-college
studies at Tuskegee Institute. After meeting several Tuskegee students during a trip there with his
parents, Dawson felt Tuskegee would be the best place to further his studies.
When I was about 12 years old, my parents took me on a visit to Tuskegee. I can
remember two things about that visit. One of these things is the uniforms. The other thing
I remember is a brick-laying exhibit. They represented institutionalization and
regimentation. That is what they represented to me then and that is what they mean to me
now. That is still the way I feel about Tuskegee Institute after listening to the Tuskegee
Institute Choir.
2

During his tenure as a student at Tuskegee, Dawson studied harmony, piano, sight singing, and
ear training with Alice Carter Simmons (1883–1943). He sang in the Institute Choir under the

1
Russell, Ralph Anthony. “A Black Composer Speaks: William Levi Dawson.” In Black Lives: Essays in African
American Biography, ed. Conyers, James L, (Routledge, 1999), 110.
2
Malone, Mark Hugh. “William Dawson and the Tuskegee Choir.” Choral Journal 30, no.8, 1990: 17.

2
direction of Jennie Cheatham (1866–1956) and played in the band under the leadership of Franke
Dyre (dates not found).
3

Dawson worked through school as an Institute employee, much like Tuskegee’s first and
most famous president, Booker T. Washington (1856–1915), who had done the same while
attending Hampton University in Virginia. Dawson paid his tuition at Tuskegee by working as a
music librarian and through other manual labor on campus. During his time as a pre-college
student, Dawson performed in the band and orchestra, where he learned to play almost all the
instruments. His personal experience with the function and capabilities of the instruments would
serve him well in the future as a composer of instrumental music.
As with all Black people existing under the strict and unforgiving heel of the Jim Crow
South, Dawson’s genius often went unnoticed or unacknowledged. During Dawson’s
commencement, where Dawson was required to be seated in the balcony, segregated from the
white students who were also graduating, even though members of the Kansas City Symphony
Orchestra performed Dawson’s Trio in A for Violin, Cello, and Piano. Dawson was, however, not
permitted to be acknowledged, despite the “thunderous applause.”
4

After he completed his studies at Tuskegee in 1921, Dawson began his teaching career as
the bandmaster for the Kansas V ocational College (KVC) in Topeka, Kansas. Dawson also
studied composition, orchestration, and double bass at Washburn College during his tenure at
KVC.
5
In 1922, Dawson accepted a position as the band, orchestra, and chorus director at
Lincoln High School in Topeka, Kansas. The Lincoln High School choir premiered many of
Dawson's earliest arrangements, including “King Jesus is A-Listening” and “My Lord What a

3
Russell, “A Black Composer Speaks,” 111.
4
Malone, “William Dawson and the Tuskegee Choir,” 50.
5
Russell, “A Black Composer Speaks,” 112.
3
Mornin’.”
In 1926, Dawson moved to Chicago to continue his studies in composition with Adolph
Weidig (1867–1931) at the American Conservatory of Music. Under Weidig's tutelage, Dawson
studied composition, orchestration, and counterpoint. After receiving his master’s degree in
1927, Dawson furthered his compositional studies with Dr. Thorvald Otterstrom (1868–1942) at
the American Conservatory in Chicago.
During this period, Dawson continued incorporating Negro folk melodies and rhythms in
his choral and instrumental pieces. Otterstrom, who had composed the American Negro
Suite—a work based on Negro folk melodies—encouraged his ambitious student to
continue his experiments with [B]lack American folk Music.6

On the composition of spirituals, Dawson states the following:

The Negro folk songs express the emotions and experience of the Negro slave in the
United States. They involve no individual composer or poet. To interpret them properly
one must become familiar with the conditions and circumstances which gave birth to
them. It is equally important to study the characteristics of the music itself, to capture the
mood and feel of it, in order to express adequately the sentiments that it embodies.
7

After several years composing and performing in Chicago, Dawson returned to the
Tuskegee Institute at the behest of the current president, Robert Moton (1867–1940). Moton
came to Chicago to visit Dawson and to personally ask him to “come home” to Tuskegee to
create a world-class music program there. After some initial ambivalence, Dawson acquiesced
and returned to Tuskegee. “Dawson established a program that reflected both Tuskegee’s
heritage as a vocational school and its future as a center for higher learning, hiring faculty
members with impressive credentials yet remaining committed to a strong music education
program.”
8

6
McMillan, William Robert. “The Choral Music of William Dawson.” ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 1991, 76.

7
Dawson, William L. “Interpretation of the Religious Folk-Songs of the American Negro,” Etude Vol. 73, No. 3,
March 1955, 11.

8
Russey, Elizabeth. “Dawson, William Levi: (1899-1990) COMPOSER AND EDUCATOR.” In The New
Encyclopedia of Southern Culture, 211-. The University of North Carolina Press, 2014., 21.

4
The choir has always been a fundamentally important part of Tuskegee Institute, dating
back to its earliest beginnings. The school’s first president, Booker T. Washington, wrote in the
school bulletins and in his biography about the choir and the many musical students on campus
who participated in the numerous musical organizations, including “a large choir of seventy-five
voices, a 150-voice choral society, male and female glee clubs of forty and twenty singers
respectively, and the traveling male quartet.”
9
Having been a former singer at Tuskegee Institute,
Dawson would have understood the significance of the choral legacy of Tuskegee. Shortly after
arriving in 1930, Dawson put out a school bulletin to the student population describing the
purpose and value of the choir.
10

The Institute Choir is an organization of 100 members. Its aim is to cultivate a knowledge
of and a taste for the best in choral music. Much stress is put on the interpretation and
singing of Negro melodies and other folk music. The choir rehearses daily and sings the
Institute Chapel every Sunday morning and evening, and on other important occasions.
11

Although Dawson put his students through a rigorous audition process, he was noted for
never turning a singer away. “Dawson worked with his choir to produce exciting, well-developed
choral sound. And, he accomplished this goal with a group which was not ‘select.’”
12
He felt that
everyone should be exposed to music.
During his tenure at Tuskegee, Dawson composed some of his most well-known choral
spirituals.
In keeping with the sentiments of Booker T. Washington, the greater portion of the
Choir’s repertoire consisted of Negro folk songs. Dawson himself arranged some of these
songs and had succeeded in getting several published before returning to his Alma Mater
(Tuskegee). So important were these songs to the thousands of Afro-Americans who had

9
Malone, “William Dawson and the Tuskegee Choir,” 17.
10
Ibid
11
Ibid
12
Ibid
5
first sung them as slaves, and to their posterity, that complete concerts of Negro Music
were frequently presented.
13

While teaching at Tuskegee, Dawson began the Tuskegee Choir Series, which published
many of his most recognized compositions. Further, the Tuskegee Institute choir performed his
arrangements worldwide to great acclaim. During their 1932–33 national tour, Dawson
performed with the Tuskegee Choir in Carnegie Hall, at the White House for both Herbert
Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt and had a six-week residency performing in New York City's
Radio City Music Hall, where more than seven thousand people saw the performances. Under
Dawson's direction, Tuskegee's choir would go on to cement a legacy of choral excellence in the
performance of the spiritual.
14

The Radio City Music Hall residency received noted acclaim for four weeks of successful
performances. A 1932 review from the The Wall Street Journal read as follows:
Other musical interludes are furnished by the Tuskegee Choir under the direction of
William Dawson, who wrote and arranged the songs offered by this 100-strong group of
Negro singers. Mr. Dawson plays upon the voices of his mixed chorus as if he were
playing an organ, and an organ is the only instrument to which the tones he evokes are
comparable. It is grand music.
15

In April of 1933 an incredibly powerful review of this performance was included in the
Art-Music-Theatre section of the April edition of American Business Survey. Following the
Radio City Hall performance, Dawson and the Tuskegee Choir were invited to perform on
multiple platforms with national reach. In 1940, as a part of the efforts towards the restoration of
peace during World War II, Tuskegee’s choir participated in a radio broadcast performance for

13
Ibid
14
Ibid
15
Ibid
6
the Christian Foreign Service Convocation as organized by the Foreign Mission Conference of
North America. In this same year, Dawson would appear on the Columbia Broadcasting System
(CBS) for the first time, on a program entitled Alabama—A Symphony of the New South. In
1945, the Tuskegee Choir performed a series of four Sunday morning broadcast performances for
CBS. These performances were so well received that Tuskegee was invited back for a second
four-week performance the following year.
16

In 1946, Dawson and the Tuskegee Choir would embark on an extended national tour that
would begin at New York University at a special ceremony honoring Booker T. Washington. The
tour would see the choir traveling through Philadelphia, Atlantic City, Baltimore, and
Washington, D.C. In Washington, Dawson and his choristers received an invitation to perform at
Constitution Hall, owned by the Daughters of the American Revolution.This venue had famously
turned away performers of color in the past, including operatic mezzo soprano Marian Anderson
(1897–1993). Picketing occurred by protestors who saw the DAR’s invitation to Dawson as a
performative gesture. “James Baker, head of the Committee for Racial Democracy in the
Nation’s Capital, said the line was thrown around the hall because ‘the DAR has not changed its
policy on the restriction of Negro artists. Marian Anderson still can’t come here.”
17
These
protestors shouted at concertgoers and paraded with picket signs but their efforts did little to stop
the more than three-thousand audience members from attending the performance. That evening,
under Dawson's direction, the Tuskegee Choir became the first African American organization to
perform in Constitution Hall. Glenn Dillard Gunn, author of a review of the performance in the
Washington Times Herald recalled the following:

16
Ibid, 19.
17
Ibid, 22

7
Though picketed by a mixed group who carried placards and shouted slogans derogatory
to the D.A.R. and its policy affecting the rental of Constitution Hall, the Tuskegee Choir
last night gave the concert they had. Been invited by the “Daughters” to present. They
were heard by a capacity audience which was about equally divided between the races.
The union of Negro colleges benefitted…The man responsible for this splendid choral
mechanism is Conductor William Dawson. He chose the program chiefly from Negro
spirituals, a field of folk music in which his research has been fruitful.
18

Dawson continued to tour with the Tuskegee Choir throughout his tenure. In 1955, a year before
his retirement from Tuskegee, Dawson recorded an album with the Tuskegee Choir through
Westminster Records. This recording became one of the most significant recordings of the choral
spiritual.
It would be unfair to say that the excellence of this choral organization is due to the
genius of one man; yet towering above the singers, training their voices, directing the
difficult countermelodies, selecting suitable music and, frequently producing his own
scores is the figure of the choir’s distinguished director, William Levi Dawson. A notable
figure in the world of music, Mr. Dawson’s distinctive contributions have been in the
field of native Negro music, and there is no one to gainsay him the position of
prominence.
19

Dawson had already finished his Negro Folk Symphony in 1931, a work that he had
begun during his time studying in Chicago. Dawson’s symphony was deeply informed by the
spiritual and other vernacular Black music of the time.
Dawson would be the first to say that he does not own the ‘spiritual’ for these
masterpieces belong to humanity and represent the most important indigenous body of
folk music in the country. He has, however, through his compositional ingenuity
expressed his individuality and personality in his folk song arrangements and the famous
Negro folk Symphony.
20

18
Ibid, 23.
19
Ibid, 18
20
Haberlen, John B. “William Dawson and the Copyright Act.” The Choral Journal, 23 no. 7 (1983), 8.
8
The Negro Folk Symphony received its premiere on November 14, 1934, with the
Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Leopold Stokowski. Combining musical
quotations of spirituals and original melodic material, the Negro Folk Symphony has been
regarded by many scholars as one of Dawson's most significant musical achievements.
In 1952, Dawson was awarded a sabbatical in West Africa, where he spent time traveling,
studying, and recording the melodies and rhythms of the indigenous people. The influence of the
West African cultures found its way into Dawson’s music in many ways, most noticeably through
his revisions of the Negro Folk Symphony. The revised symphony—recorded in 1962 and
containing additional rhythmic and melodic material—now featured African percussion
instruments. In his doctoral dissertation, William Robert McMillian referred to the impact of
Africa on Dawson's composition. “He has voiced the spirit of his people struggling in a new
land; the ancient voice of Africa transferred to America and here expressed through the medium
of the white man's highly developed instrument, the symphony orchestra.”
21
This quote provides
the reader with another example of Dawson’s aptitude for synthesizing so-called Western musical
elements and the music of the enslaved Africans.
Although Dawson's tenure at Tuskegee Institute ended with his retirement in 1956, he
continued to compose and arrange into his seventies. “In 1956, he was sent to Spain by the
United States Department of State to conduct various choral groups of that country. In 1972,
Dawson was featured as the keynote speaker at the Afro-Caribbean Music Conference in St.
Thomas, Virgin Islands.”
22
He received numerous awards and accolades in the final years of his
life, including three honorary doctorates from Tuskegee Institute in 1956, Ithaca College in 1978,

21
McMillan, “The Choral Music of William Dawson,” 90
22
Haberlen, “William Dawson and the Copyright Act,” 5.
9
and Lincoln University in 1982. Dawson died at the age of ninety in Montgomery, Alabama, on
May 2, 1990, from complications of pneumonia.
Table 1.1 List of Choral Spirituals by William Levi Dawson
Title

V oicing(s) Copyright Date Publisher
Ain’-a That Good
News

SATB, TTBB, SSAA 1937 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Before the Sun Goes
Down

SATB 1978 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Behold the Star

SATB 1946 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Ev’ry Time I Feel the
Spirit

SATB, TTBB, SSAA 1946 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Ezekiel Saw de
Wheel

SATB 1942 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Feed-a My Sheep

SATB, TTBB, SSA 1971 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Hail Mary

SATB, TTBB 1946 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
I Couldn’t Hear
Nobody Pray

SATB 1926 H.T. Fitzsimmons
Company
I Wan’ To Be Ready SATB, TTBB, SSAA 1967 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
In His Care-o SATB, TTBB 1961 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Jesus Walked This
Lonesome Valley

SATB, TTBB, SSA,
SSAA
1927 Remick Music
Company
King Jesus is A-
Listening

SATB, TTBB, SSA SATB (1925), TTBB
(1929), SSA (1947)
H.T. Fitzsimmons
Company
Table 1.1 List of Choral Spirituals by William L. Dawson (cont.)
Lit’l’ Boy-Chile

SATB 1947 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
10
Mary Had a Baby

SATB, TTBB 1947 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
My Lord, What a
Morning

SATB 1926 H.T. Fitzsimmons
Company
Oh, What a Beautiful
City

SATB 1934 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Out in the Fields

SATB, SSA 1929 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Pilgrim’s Chorus

SATB 1968 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
The Rugged Yank

TTBB 1970 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Slumber Song

SATB, TTBB, SSA,
SA
1974 KNeil A. Kjos Music
Company
Soon Ah Will Be
Done

SATB, TTBB 1934 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Steal Away

SATB, TTBB 1942 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Swing Low, Sweet
Chariot

SATB, TTBB, SSAA SATB and TTBB
(1946), SSAA (1949)
Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Talk About a Child
That Do Love Jesus

SATB 1927 H.T. Fitzsimmons
Company
There Is a Balm in
Gilead

SATB, TTBB, SSAA 1939 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
You Got To Reap Just
What You Sow

SATB, TTBB, SSA 1928 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company
Zion’s Walls

SATB 1961 Neil A. Kjos Music
Company

11
Chapter 2
Musical Style, Influences, and Impact
Dawson has revised the folk songs with an exacting skill. An original source is thus
transformed into a well-wrought artistic and often extremely sophisticated composition
which never loses its relationship with its roots.
28

In order to understand the value of William Dawson’s contribution to the choral spiritual,
one must first understand the concerted spiritual was set prior to Dawson, the confluence of
musical languages that make up Dawson’s voice, and the impact his style had on the composers
that followed him.
Dawson’s music was born from his knowledge and love of spirituals coupled with his
prodigious classical musical training… Instead of presenting pieces in hymn-like fashion,
as was the prevailing tradition, Dawson brought his considerable musical skills to
elevating the form even further.
29

William Dawson was an inheritor of a rich legacy of spirituals arranged and composed by
those who wrote before him. The innovation in his approach to setting the spiritual is what sets
Dawson apart. Dawson stepped away from the homophonic harmonization of the spiritual that
came before him and embarked on new territory.
Dawson’s arrangements are extraordinary, and when compared to earlier and
contemporary settings, they are ground-breaking. Most published choral settings of
spirituals from this era were set as four-part hymns, but Dawson used his extensive
classical training to arrange songs in new, more technically challenging ways. In every
piece, however, the main tune is always easily discernible. In an era when composers
were moving toward more and more complex musical settings, Dawson could use
complex musical language, but never to the detriment or obfuscation of the original tune.
His arrangements are celebrations of songs from his youth, not merely academic
exercises.
30

28
Haberlen, John B. “William Dawson and The Copyright Act.” The Choral Journal 23, no.7, 1983, 7.
29
Huff, Vernon. “William Levi Dawson (1899-1990) Reexamination of a Legacy.” Choral Journal 59, no. 10, 2019,
30
Ibid, 22.
12
In the article “Three Schools of Black Choral Composers and Arrangers 1900-1970,
31
”
Carl G. Harris places the composers of the choral spiritual into three distinct categories; Black
Trailblazers (composers from the late nineteenth and early twentieth century), Black Nationalists
(composers who rose to prominence during the late twenties, thirties, and forties), and Black
Innovators (composers who rose to fame between 1950 and 1970). The first school of
composers, Black Trailblazers, “dedicated their talents to presenting and preserving traditional
Negro music in the authentic style of its creators.”
32
These composers include Harry T. Burleigh
(1866–1949), Nathaniel Dett (1882–1943), and Frederick J. Work (1880–1942). Burleigh was a
prolific composer of both the concerted spiritual and the spiritual for solo performance. Dett, a
composer of vocal and symphonic music, became friends with Dawson, as evidenced by several
letters documented by Vernon Huff in his article “William Levi Dawson’s Life in Speeches,
Letters, and Writings.”
33
Work is considered one of the most important early composers of the
spiritual, most notably for his collaboration with his brother John Wesley Work, Jr., on New
Jubilee Songs as Sung by the Fisk Jubilee Singers (1901) and New Jubilee Songs and Folk Songs
of the American Negro (1907), two collections of Negro spirituals.
In that same article, Harris points to the influence of music of the nineteenth century as
one of the most important sources of “connective tissue” between the compositional styles of
these composers. “Harmonically, the spirituals of these pioneering composers and arrangers
show a tendency towards late nineteenth century romanticism with use of diatonic and chromatic
writing to achieve balance between tone color and word painting.”
34

31
Harris, Carl G. “Three Schools of Black Choral Composers and Arrangers 1900-1970.” Choral Journal 14, no. 8,
1974, 11.
32
Ibid, 11.
33
Huff, Vernon. “William Dawson’s Life in Speeches, Letters, and Writings.” Choral Journal 55, no. 10, 2019, 69.
34
Harris,”Three Schools,” 1974, 11.
13
The spiritual arranged in concert form began to receive national and international
attention thanks to these composers and to musical artists and ensembles dedicated to its
proliferation. The Fisk Jubilee Singers are considered by many to be the forebears of the
national—and international—spirituals movement. Their marriage of classical vocal techniques
with modern arrangements of the songs of the enslaved Africans would garner them much fame.
The popularity and power of their performance led to several national tours and a personal
invitation from Queen Victoria to perform in the royal palace in England in April 1873.
Contralto, Marian Anderson (1897–1993) brought many of the spirituals of H.T. Burleigh
to the national and international stage, helping to increase their popularity. The trailblazing
composers of this period became pioneers in publishing the Negro spiritual.
Of course, this music is rooted in oral traditions and was passed on simply by singing the
songs. Early twentieth century devotees to the traditions and importance of spirituals
recognized that if the songs were to be passed on to later generations, they must be
written down. The story of the earliest codified versions of spirituals is the effort to
preserve an integral part of African American culture and history.
35

The early art songs, hymns, and choral settings of these composers broke new ground in the
genre of spirituals.
The second school of composers, designated by Harris as the Black Nationalists, received
their musical premieres in the late twenties, thirties, and forties and helped to irrevocably situate
the presence of the concerted choral and vocal solo spiritual on the national and international
stage. This group of composers includes Hall Johnson (1888–1970), William Grant Still (1895–
1978), and Jester Hairston (1901–2000). Johnson was considered a master of the spiritual as an
art song, while Still was a composer of opera, ballet, symphonic, chamber, and choral works. At

35
Huff, William Dawson…Reexamination,” 2019, 22.
14
the same time, Hairston remains best known for his choral spirituals, gospel arrangements, and
contributions to television and film.
Harris points to the composers of this epoch sharing the unifying characteristic of being
more race-conscious than their forebears.
36
This state of consciousness and the forward-facing
artistic expression of the desire for equality for African Americans is a defining characteristic of
the Black Renaissance of the 1920s. The poetry of Langston Hughes (1901–1967), the
scholarship of Zora Neale Hurston (1891–1960), and the unstoppable wave of popularity that
carried the jazz of Louis Armstrong (1901–1971) and Duke Ellington (1899–1974) from the
streets of New Orleans to the stages of Chicago and New York—and right to the big screen and
the radio—rang with a loud, unapologetic blackness that would plant the seeds of revolution that
led to the Civil Rights Movement of the fifties, sixties, and early seventies.
The Black Renaissance of the 1920s, and the years directly preceding it, spawned one of
America’s most brilliant, productive, and impressive generations of musicians-William
Grant Still, Eubie Blake, James P. Johnson, Thomas “Fats” Waller, Duke Ellington, W. C.
Handy, Robert Nathaniel Dett, William L. Dawson, Harry T. Burleigh, Paul Robeson,
Roland Hayes, and many others who were to have an important collective influence on
the future of American music.
37

The importance of this period in terms of Black creation in art across all genres cannot be
overstated. So it must be understood that the influence was not localized to only popular or
classical realms of creation. This epoch was indeed the era to which Dawson’s compositional
voice belonged.
Many Black classical composers benefited greatly from the influence of the Harlem
Renaissance. Black poetry had become the newest libretto for Black art song. Jazz harmonies

36
Harris,”Three Schools,” 1974, 13.
37
Floyd, Samuel A. “Towards a Philosophy of Black Music Scholarship,” Black Music Research Journal Vol. 2,
1981-1982, 74.
15
had begun seeping into the foundations of classical and popular compositions alike. This period,
often referred to as the Black Renaissance, coincides with the advent of organizations like the
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) (1909) and The Negro
National Opera Company, which had begun awarding prizes to Black composers and performing
artists. Here, a new light of awareness had begun to shine on the music and the people of the
Black community. Black composers of this time had begun to push the boundaries of harmony,
texture, color, and orchestration in their marriage of classical music and the Negro spiritual.
Dawson’s compositional style was a product of his place in time. As with many Black
artists of the twenties, thirties, and forties, Dawson’s style of artistic expression—composition—
was a confluence of many worlds. In his music, there is a strong influence from the choral music
of the Renaissance and Baroque eras, as evidenced by his use of techniques of sixteenth and
eighteenth century counterpoint. However, Dawson’s music is also heavily saturated with the
influence of gospel music, jazz, blues, and the musical styles common to composers of the
Romantic era. “These Black Nationalists not only used the melodies of their ancestors as a
source of compositional material but began using [B]lack poetry in art songs and employing jazz
rhythms and harmonies in arrangements and original compositions.”
38

Dawson’s compositional approach is primarily Romantic, featuring a wide range of
dynamics, an emphasis on the predominance of the melody with all other existing voices acting
in service to the melody, and a largely tonal, harmonically functional landscape. Hildred Roach
confirms this conclusion, pointing to Dawson's use of tonal centers and various overlapping and
syncopated, and irregularly accented rhythms.
39

38
Harris,”Three Schools,” 1974, 13.
39
Thomas, Andres J. Way Over in Beulah Lan’: Understanding and Performing the Negro Spiritual. Dayton, OH.
Heritage Music Press, 2007, 38.
16
Although Dawson was incredibly adept at marrying Western, “classical” traditions with
the song of the enslaved African, as evidenced perhaps most succinctly in his Negro Folk
Symphony, Dawson never sought to obscure or downplay the importance of his compositional
voice as influenced by the music of the African Diaspora. “When the music successfully
communicates essentials of the African American experience, in spite of its European basis, it
becomes something more than either European or Afro-American. It becomes, to some extent, at
least, [B]lack music.”
40
In the article “Someone Finally Remembered William Dawson’s Negro
Folk Symphony,” Tom Huizenga writes about how, in the construction of his symphony, Dawson
was never trying to “imitate Beethoven or Brahms, but wanted those who heard it to know that it
was ‘unmistakably not the work of a white man.’”
41

Dawson was also no stranger to the extended harmonies that were developing in jazz. In
the article “Unaccompanied Choral Arrangements of African American Spirituals: The
“Signifying Tradition Continues,” Patricia J. Trice writes about many of the musical and stylistic
characteristics of the spiritual as it moves from the field to the stage. In her discussion of
composers’ tendencies towards extended and non-functional harmonies that sonically “smear”
the notes, she explores the inclusion of notes or harmonies that are commonly thought of as blues
progression or jazz progressions. Trice specifically references an excerpt of Dawson’s spiritual
“Ezekiel Saw De Wheel” in this advanced discussion of blue note harmonies.

The first two chords are unresolved dominant seventh chords—V
7
/IV and V
7
/ii. The
deceptive progression that follows V
11
to (flat)VI6/4—is further extended by iv
(borrowed chord) and A
6
(altered chord) before it resolves to a I chord with an added
sixth. The use of an added-sixth tonic chord as a final chord appears to represent a
departure from the late-Romantic harmonic practices in which the arrangers of spirituals

40
Floyd. “Toward a Philosophy…”, 1981-1982, 83.
41
Huizenga, Tom. Someone Finally Remembered William Dawson’ s “Negro Folk Symphony,” Deceptive Cadence
[BLOG]. Washington NPR, 2020, 1.
17
were trained...In the final measures of Ezekiel, a compounding factor in the creation of
the dissonant chords is the use of a tonic pedal point. The tonic pedal (B-flat) appears in
the second alto part in mm. 87–92. Of Particular interest is the use of G-flat as a
chromatic upper neighbor to the dominant in mm. 89–90. It is also the root of the
(flat)VI6/4 chord (in m. 89.), which was used with some frequency in cadential formulas
during the late-Romantic period.
42

In his article “William Levi Dawson (1899–1990) Reexamination of a Legacy,” Huff
juxtaposes the settings of William Dawson’s choral spiritual with the spiritual settings of several
prominent composers who came before him. Huff compares the setting of “Ain’-a That Good
News” by John Wesley Work III (1901–1967)—as can be found in Folk Songs of the American
Negro, one of the earliest books about the spiritual, published by Fisk University in 1915—with
Dawson’s composition of the same name. Dawson keeps the call and response of John Wesley
Work III arrangement, which featured the solo line in the soprano, and the choir responding.
However, Dawson livens up the simple harmonies and creates a lively, up-tempo arrangement
bubbling with short, syncopated fragments of the melodic line spread out in hocket between all
four voices. These constantly overlapping short phrases twist and build a driving tension that
propels the music toward a bombastic homophonic climax on “my lawd” in measure 43. “The
arrangement, like his others, is full of articulation markings, and it seems that each note of the
piece is treated with care.”
43

Huff makes another comparative analysis of the settings of “Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit”
by Nathaniel R. Dett and William Dawson. Dett’s arrangement is found in the book Religious
Folk-Songs of the American Negro As Sung at the Hampton Institute, first published in 1929.
44

42
Trice, Patricia J. “Unaccompanied Choral Arrangements of African-American Spirituals: The ‘Signifyin’
Tradition Continues.” The Choral Journal 34, no. 7, 1994, 18.
43
Ibid, 29-30.
44
Dett, R. Nathaniel Religious Folk-Songs of the Negro as Sung at Hampton Institute. Hampton, Va: Hampton
Institute press, 1927
18
Dett’s setting is relatively straightforward. Each of the three verses is sung by a soloist and is
followed by a short repetition of the refrain by the choir. The tempo is moderate, and the melodic
line, though syncopated similarly to other spirituals, remains incredibly singable.
45

Comparing the two settings, Dawson’s excellent craftsmanship is apparent. Dawson sets
his arrangement at a much quicker tempo…The first two chords of the piece have
fermatas over them—a sure way to grab the attention of the audience…Dawson sets only
two verses of the original text, and those are reserved for a baritone soloist. The choir
hums underneath the solo, which is reminiscent of a church choir or congregation singing
behind a preacher during a worship service. When the chorus returns after the first solo
line, the dynamic level is reduced to an unexpected piano, and Dawson subtly changes
the harmony. The half- and whole-step motion in the bass line should be pointed out to
choirs who attempt this work. As the upper three parts repeat material found earlier in the
piece, the basses sing a rapid eighth-note counter melody that draws the listener’s
attention all the way until the rit. and allargando before the fermata in the penultimate
measure. At the final cadence, the basses enter first on the dominant, and with the
sopranos, sustain the E

while the inner parts sing, “Yes, I will pray” one more time to end
the piece.
46

Dawson’s setting, on the other hand, pulses with excitement from the first note to the last—
harmonically, rhythmically, and texturally—evoking the joy of and exuberance of the Black
gospel church, the hope so commonly found at the heart of the narrative of the slave song, and
the masterful compositional craftsmanship of a skilled composer.
Dawson’s spiritual settings, while always honoring and preserving the original source
material, seemed to represent an exciting step forward in what was possible in terms of the
concerted choral religious folk song. John B. Haberlen points to the unique beauty of Dawson’s
arrangement of “There is a Balm in Gilead” and Dawson’s ability to safeguard the sanctity of the
spiritual while simultaneously pushing the boundaries of how it can be set and performed.

45
Ibid, 24.
46
Ibid, 24-25.
19
Prior to Dawson’s arrangement of There is a Balm in Gilead, all of the traditional
versions in print were entitled Balm in Gilead and were set in 2/4 meter. There are no
fermatas or changes of meter in the traditional versions. Dawson added the words “There
is a” to the title and changed the meter to 4/4 to accommodate his contrapuntal treatment
of the melody. The verse section, a single solo line, was originally unaccompanied.
Dawson harmonized the solo voice part with chordal harmonies hummed by the choir.
The harmonies feature suspensions, passing tones, and a vi–IV cadence at the close of the
solo verse...Although subtle in character Dawson’s changes add immense musical depth
to the transcribed folk-song source. All the folk-song sources which Dawson selects to
arrange are treated with the same type of detailed and extensive compositional treatment.
He is a master of his craft.
47

Dawson choral offerings would go on to inspire the third school of Black composers,
described by Carl G. Harris as the “Black Innovators.” This school includes Margaret Bonds
(1913-1972) and Undine Smith Moore (1906-1989), to name a few. Bonds is most well-known
for compositions such as her cantata, The Ballad of the Brown King, and her art song The Negro
Speaks of Rivers. Moore, meanwhile, became both a famed teacher and composer.
Some of these composers have combined Afro-American and European traditions to
develop a uniquely international style. Others have followed European practices
exclusively. These third generation [B]lack composers have not started a new school, but
they have made dramatic and effective use of old compositional techniques coupled with
many contemporary ideas. They are eclectic in that they have drawn from divergent
sources and styles for compositional techniques and materials.
48

As access to academic musical study at the highest level became more accessible to
composers of color, the wedding of Western “high art music” and the music of the African
Diaspora became more common. These composers took the next steps in the setting of the choral
spiritual, namely integrating new forms and techniques into their writing that is not necessarily
solely rooted in the traditions from which the spiritual was originally birthed. As the access to

47
Haberlen. “William Dawson…Copyright Act,” 1983, 7.
48
Harris,”Three Schools,” 1974, 15.
20
academic musical study at the highest level became more accessible to composers of color, and
the wedding of Western “high art music” and the music of the African Diaspora became more
common, it has become increasingly difficult to pinpoint precise instances of direct
compositional influence of Dawson’s music on modern composers of the concerted choral
spiritual. That difficulty, however, does not in any way disprove the impact and influence of
Dawson’s spirituals. Instead, it may show just how deeply embedded Dawson’s influence is for
all the subsequent composers in this genre.
Dawson’s extensive history of international performances and lectures during his time at
Tuskegee University and long after, along with the popularity of his music—as evidenced by
sales and performances of his compositions—speaks to his incredible impact during his lifetime.
The author would argue that his music and influence changed how the choral spiritual was
composed. In his article “William Dawson and the Copyright Act,” John B. Haberlen points to
multiple instances of conscious or subconscious theft of Dawson’s musical ideas by other
composers of spirituals.
No twentieth century composer of choral music has experienced more copy-right
infringements than William L. Dawson. In the past three years more than 10 new
publications have appeared on the market in which arrangers have either consciously or
subconsciously “borrowed” compositional and textual ideas invented by Dawson.
Melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic motives from Dawson’s arrangement of There is a
Balm in Gilead have appeared without authorization or permission, as the creation of
other arrangers in no less than 12 hymnals and sacred song collections. One might
consider it a compliment that other arranger/composers find the Dawson works so
fascinating and unique that they incorporate materials from the copyrighted compositions
into their own arrangements.
49

49
Haberlen. “William Dawson…Copyright Act,” 1983, 7.
21
Musical borrowing, especially in classical music, is a practice that long predates Dawson.
Haberlen’s extensive research on copying Dawson’s compositional style by other composers of
the choral spiritual most certainly points to Dawson’s value as a musician and his impact on the
zeitgeist of the concerted choral spiritual.
Dawson’s influence did not conclude with the composers of the 1970s. As one of the
most nationally and internationally performed composers of the concerted choral spiritual,
Dawson’s music is still making an impact to this day.
Folk music, religious music, jazz, blues, popular music, and concert and recital music,
together form a tremendous corpus of related genres, all of which are based on a single
and profound musical aesthetic. Eileen Southern tells us that it is “a music so important
that it has shaken the foundations of Western music to a greater extent than any other
music since the emergence of Gregorian chant” (1981, p. 1). It has shaken those
foundations so emphatically that Henry Pleasants has called the period beginning in the
1940s “The Afro-American Epoch” of music history (1969, p. 90). Cursory examination
proves him to be correct, and to ignore the truth of his claim is to distort history. For the
sake of history and of culture, we must demonstrate these facts so clearly and
unmistakably that their truths will become self-evident.
50

The author finds traces of Dawson in the polyphonic vocal textures of Moses Hogan’s
(1957-2003) “Elijah Rock (1994).” I hear the dramatic, deeply passionate, and nuanced
storytelling of Dawson in Stacey V. Gibbs (1962-) powerful narrative of a slave escaping towards
freedom in “Great God Almighty (2013).” I can even hear Dawson in the exuberant,
polyrhythmic textures of Rosephanye Powell’s (1962-) “The Word was God (1996).”
Admittedly not a spiritual, Powell’s ability to capture the emotionally charged celebratory spirit
of the black gospel church in her composition was at the heart of many of Dawson’s choral

50
Floyd. “Towards a Philosophy…”, 1981-1982, 75. .
22
spirituals. Dawson’s choral spirituals forever changed how the choral spiritual would be set and
performed around the world.

23
Chapter 3
Analysis
With his arrangements for the Tuskegee Institute Choir, William Dawson transformed the
concerted, choral spiritual. His music set a new artistic standard in the genre—a high bar
for all who followed him. In fact, a clear line can be drawn between arrangements that
were crafted before and after Dawson published his works.
51

William Dawson utilized various compositional tools derived from sixteenth and
eighteenth century counterpoint in his setting of the Negro folk songs. Although there are
examples of strict canon and fugal sections, the contrapuntal elements most used by Dawson
would be most accurately defined as “free counterpoint” and “imitative counterpoint,” and not
“species” or “strict counterpoint.” Strict counterpoint is based on a particular set of rules that the
composer must follow for part-writing that dictate how consonance and dissonance function and
resolve when multiple polyphonic lines are present. Strict counterpoint can be divided into two
distinct schools; the horizontally conceived polyphony of the Renaissance period, also known as
sixteenth century counterpoint, or the vertically conceived, figured bass compositional styles of
eighteenth century counterpoint.
Free counterpoint is associated with breaking away from “academic” counterpoint
constraints while embracing chromaticism, dissonance on strong beats, dissonance approached
by leap, and extended tertian or non-triadic harmonies. Imitation is an integral component of all
counterpoint and is especially important in free counterpoint when some of the other structural
supports are less central. In Dawson's music, his approach to free counterpoint often involved
both rhythmic and melodic imitation. The element of imitative counterpoint that appears most
often in Dawson’s work is the canon or canon with a variation. He uses this tool in almost all of
his arrangements of the Negro folk song. (see Example 3.7)

51
Huff, “Reexamination of a Legacy,” 32
24
Beyond exploring contrapuntal technique, it is also important to consider form when
analyzing Dawson’s compositions. Dawson’s settings of the Negro folk song are usually in ABA
form, Verse/Refrain form, or through-composed. Additionally, many of them involve some
version of the following structure:
• Initial statement of the cantus firmus (The spiritual melody)
• Cantus firmus in duet
• Cantus firmus in hocket
• Texture thickens to climax
This formula appears in all ten Negro folk song settings the author will examine in this study and
is also present in many of Dawson’s other works. Dawson utilizes counterpoint to excite, entice,
and enthrall the listener, showcasing this music's brilliance.
Ezekiel Saw de Wheel
Music Press, 1942, “copyright presently held by Neil A. Kjos Music Company, publisher”.
The main feature of “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel” is the compositional image of a train
created by the rhythmic stacking of twelve voices. In measures 70–82 (see Example 3.1),
Dawson combines the melody found in the lower tenor and upper soprano lines (harmonized in
thirds) with four distinct short phrases of “doom-a-loom-a” in the upper tenor and lower alto
lines, set with repeated sixteenth notes. At the same time, Dawson sets “Wheel in-a” with a
repeating sixteenth-note-dotted-eighth note pattern, found in the upper bass line and upper alto
line, with the bass line offset from the alto line by an eighth note. Additionally, Dawson presents
“Wheel in a wheel in a wheel” in the lower alto line, notated with an eighth note and two
sixteenth. He then adds the steady quarter note pulse of “Wheel” in the lowest bass line to create
a polyphonic structure. Although these short phrases have functional independence from the
melody, their primary purpose is to act as a harmonic scaffolding for the melody while
25
simultaneously mimicking the sonic features of a moving train. In this instance, polyphonic
writing is employed as an effect, not a compositional detail, as is most common in contrapuntal
writing. Instead of inventing multiple independent melodic lines, Dawson has utilized four
harmonically conceived ideas to highlight the melody. (Example 3.1)

26
Example 3. 1 William L. Dawson, “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel,” mm. 70-82

27
Example 3.1 William L. Dawson, “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel,” mm. 70-82 (cont.)

28
Example 3.1 William L. Dawson, “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel,” mm. 70-82 (cont.)

29
Example 3.1 William L. Dawson, “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel,” mm. 70-82 (cont.)

30
This is not to say that “Ezekiel” is devoid of counterpoint. One need only look at the
overlapping imitative entrances at the beginning of each chorus and verse to find contrapuntal
fingerprints (see Example 3.2) However, the author begins the analysis with this example to
draw a clear line between polyphony and eighteenth century counterpoint. Both feature
independent moving lines, but polyphony is based on the independent interaction of two vocal
lines, while eighteenth-century counterpoint focuses on harmonizing one voice with the
remaining voices. In polyphony, both lines must have equal presence and function independently
rather than simply serving to harmonize the other line. In “Ezekiel,” Dawson employs eighteenth
century techniques more than the Renaissance polyphonic model.

31
Example 3.2 William L. Dawson, “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel,” mm. 10-29

32
Example 3.2 continued William L. Dawson, “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel,” mm. 10-29 (cont.)

33
Steal Away
Music Press, 1942, “copyright presently held by Neil A. Kjos Music Company, publisher”.
“Steal Away” is one of Dawson’s most well-known and often-performed arrangements.
Dawson treats this haunting melody like a “cantus firmus,” becoming the basis for the
contrapuntal content in this work. The melody slowly unfolds in the first eight measures, with an
initial statement in the tenor and bass lines. However, before the first presentation of the cantus
firmus is completed, the overlapping of phrases begins, first in the alto, then between the tenor
and bass. These first twelve measures act as a precursor to measures 36–45 (see Example 3.3),
the first of two textural peaks in this arrangement (the second taking place in measures 54–60,
see Example 3.4) with the same textural arrangement on a new or different text. This textural
peak begins on the downbeat of measure 36. Here, Dawson begins the fifth repetition of the
cantus firmus in the tenor. He then introduces a countermelody in measure 37, separated by
thirds in the bass and alto voices. These melodies move against the stagnant whole note in the
tenor voice on the word “way.” This oblique motion is refreshing and further asserts the
independence of the countermelodies.

34
Example 3.3 William L. Dawson, “Steal Away,” mm. 29-46

35
Example 3. 3 William L. Dawson, “Steal Away,” mm. 29-46 (cont.)

36
Example 3. 4 William L. Dawson, “Steal Away,” mm. 54-61

37
In measure 39, the tenors are joined by the sopranos after a slight rhythmic variation on
the main theme. In nine short measures, Dawson uses contrary motion, contrasting rhythms,
general overlapping of phrases, and imitative entrances to create a textural whirlwind. Dawson’s
painting of the text expresses the weariness of the soul of the slave, being sure to always bring
them to a homophonic rest on the text “I ain’t got long to stay here.” It is worth noting that
Dawson interrupts the final statement of “I ain’t got long…” and ends the arrangement in a flurry
of overlapping restatements of “Steal away.”
It is here that the author would like to note the deliberate nature of Dawson’s diacritical
markings. Dawson truly put everything on the page that he expects the choir to apply when
performing his compositions. The use of the tenuti markings in measures 54–60 on the cantus
firmus highlight the word stress of the main theme. The decision of Dawson to not use similar
diacritical markings in the countermelody seems to indicate that he intended both phrases to be
heard independently and distinctly (see Example 3.4). Dawson had an aptitude for pairing two
voices in duets against a main theme and then providing additional small variations in the two
additional voices. This provides an, albeit brief, additional layer of independent phrasing that
Dawson would most certainly want to be heard. His markings indicate this fairly clearly, as
demonstrated in measures 54–60 (see Example 3.4).
Hail Mary
Music Press, 1946, “copyright presently held by Neil A. Kjos Music Company, publisher”.
Even in songs where the arrangement is predominantly homophonic, Dawson finds ways
to utilize some of his favorite compositional tools. In “Hail Mary,” the dominant compositional
makeup involves a cantus firmus in one of the chorus' four voices, with the remaining three
38
harmonizing the main theme as can be seen in measures 35–57 (see Example 3.5). However,
Dawson takes the phrase “Hail Mary, Virgin Mary, Oh, hail Chile of God” and creates a trio in
the alto and soprano voices.

39
Example 3.5 William L. Dawson, “Hail Mary,” mm. 35-57

40
Example 3.5 William L. Dawson, “Hail Mary,” mm. 35-57 (cont.)

41
Example 3.5 William L. Dawson, “Hail Mary,” mm. 35-57 (cont.)

42
After nine measures, Dawson sets this theme against the melody of the verse “There were
shepherds abidin’ in the field, keepin’ watch o’er their flock by night…” sung in unison by the
tenors and basses. Dawson provides one more contrapuntal treat with a slight canon in the alto
line at measure 65, which is passed to the tenor line in measure 66 (see Example 3.6).

43
Example 3.6 William L. Dawson, “Hail Mary,” mm. 62-70

44
Ain’-a That Good News
Composed, 1937, Music Press, 1957, “copyright presently held by Neil A. Kjos Music
Company, publisher”.
Along with “Every Time I Feel the Spirit '' and “Soon Ah Will Be Done,” “Ain’-a That
Good News” is one of Dawson's most recognizable works. The distinctive call and response of
“Ain’-a that good news'' travels from one voice to the other is evocative of a lively church
service with “amen” (as reinforced by the plagal cadence on “Ain-a that good news” (see
Example 3.7) being thrown back and forth from one person to another. The constant overlapping
of voices seen in measures 26–28 (see Example 3.7) permeates this entire arrangement. As each
imitative entrance gets closer to the one that came before it, the expectation that the song is
rushing towards a climatic celebration continues to build.

45
Example 3.7 William L. Dawson, “Ain’-a That Good News,” mm. 24-55

46
At measure 36, the first actual canon appears between the tenor and the soprano voice.
The original melody starts on the fifth scale degree. Borrowing from the eighteenth century
contrapuntal technique of the fugue, Dawson provides us with a pseudo-answer at the tonic with
the presentation of a countermelody in the alto beginning on measure 38 (see Example 3.7).
After a prolonged pedal tone that began in measure 36, the bass enters at measure 41 to provide a
third harmonization of the main theme (see Example 3.7). In spite of the addition of the alto and
bass voices the canon between the soprano and tenor continues until measure 48 (see Example
3.7).

47
Example 3.7 William L. Dawson, “Ain’-a That Good News,” mm. 24-55 (cont.)

48
Example 3.7 continued William L. Dawson, “Ain’-a That Good News,” mm. 24-55 (cont.)

49
All of the voices meet for one final restatement of the cantus firmus in the soprano before
the climax of the arrangement is reached at measure 68 on “My Lawd!” This climax is even
more satisfying due to the tension Dawson creates throughout this section as the phrases overlap
with hastening regularity, the intensity builds to a feverish pitch. The first glimmer of rest
appears with the introduction of the appoggiatura in the bass line in measure 58 on the phrase
“lay down.” Dawson then uses the repeated eighth note dotted quarter note pattern of “good
news,” offset by an eighth note in the bass, to propel the listener towards a peaceful rest as
promised by the author of the text.

50
Example 3. 7 continued William L. Dawson, “Ain’-a That Good News,” mm. 24-55 (cont.)

51
Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit
Music Pres, 1946, “copyright presently held by Neil A. Kjos Music Company, publisher”.
After presenting two homophonic statements of the refrain and verse in the first 32
measures of “Every Time I Feel the Spirit,” Dawson utilizes contrapuntal tools. In measure 33,
the tenors and upper basses sing the melody, while the altos and lower basses sing a
countermelody (often in thirds) (see Example 3.8). Contrary motion in the bass line begins in
measure 37, which initiates the separation of these two lines into two independent melodies that
become fully realized in measure 40 (see Example 3.8). This independence is preceded by a
short canon in measures 38–39 between the lower bass and alto voices. In measures 40–44
Dawson composes two countermelodies in the bass and alto vocal lines that move in complete
independence from the melody, which is being carried in the soprano and tenor voices at that
point (see Example 3.8). The countermelody in the bass line in measures 44–47 consists of
running eighth notes set to the text of the refrain (see Example 3.8). The bass line—now the
main rhythmic feature—propels the upper three voices, combined in a homophonic presentation
of the melody, towards the end of the song (see Example 3.8 mm. 41-47).

52
Example 3.8 continued William L. Dawson, “Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit,” mm. 25-48

Example 3. 8 William L. Dawson, “Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit,” mm. 25-48 (cont.)
53

54
Example 3. 8 William L. Dawson, “Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit,” mm. 25-48 (cont.)

55
Example 3. 8 William L. Dawson, “Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit,” mm. 25-48 (cont.)

56

I Wan’ To Be Ready
Music Pres, 1967, “copyright presently held by Neil A. Kjos Music Company, publisher”.
In “I Wan’ To Be Ready,” Dawson takes no time deploying his contrapuntal acumen.
After the tenors and basses' initial presentation of the cantus firmus in measures 1–12, Dawson
immediately begins with an imitative entrance in the alto on the phrase “I Wan’ to be ready” (see
Example 3.9) This imitation continues through to measure 21 between all the voices.
Throughout this section, the entrances continue to get closer and closer together, building tension
to the inevitable moment of release on the homophonic statement of “just like John!” in measure
21 (see Example 3.9). Dawson adds the contrast of oblique motion as he repeats a similar
compositional pattern in measures 32–40 (see Example 3.10).

57
Example 3.9 William L. Dawson, “I Wan’ To be Ready,” mm. 1-24

58
Example 3.9 William L. Dawson, “I Wan’ To be Ready,” mm. 1-24 (cont.)

59
Example 3.10 William L. Dawson, “I Wan’ To be Ready,” mm. 32-40

60
Soon Ah Will Be Done
Music Press, 1934, “copyright presently held by Neil A. Kjos Music Company, publisher”.
Measures 34–36 of “Soon Ah Will Be Done” features a significant quantity of
counterpoint (see Example 3.11). In two measures, 34–36, Dawson utilizes overlapping voices
on “weepin’ an’ a wailin’' between all voices and oblique motion with long-held notes in duet in
the alto and tenor vocal lines. He sets this against a faster-paced variation on the theme in the
soprano and bass and a short canon beginning in the bass, answered in the soprano, and then
moved to the alto line as a hocket of the original canon. It is possible to categorize the additional
soprano voice in the repeat of measure 56–64 as a countermelody due to the textural dominance,
however, it also may be seen as a quasi-descant that re-outlines the existing harmonic contour
(see Example 3.12).

61
Example 3.11 William L. Dawson, “Soon Ah Will be Done,” mm. 30-36

62
Example 3.12 William L. Dawson, “Soon-ah Will be Done,” mm. 54-68

63
Example 3.12 William L. Dawson, “Soon-ah Will be Done,” mm. 54-68 (cont.)

64
Zion’s Walls
Music press, 1961, “copyright presently held by Neil A. Kjos Music Company, publisher”.
Measure 36 of “Zion’s Walls” begins with the presentation of a canon between the
combined soprano and tenor voices and the combined alto and bass lines (see Example 3.13).
The first three notes of cantus firmus in the soprano voice and the first three notes of the counter
melody found in the alto voice are intervallically inverted, with the soprano line moving up by a
whole step and descending a major sixth. In contrast, the alto line moves down by a whole step
and ascends a major sixth. These two melodic lines function independently and overlap one
another for the duration of their initial presentation.

65
Example 3.13 William L. Dawson, “Zion’s Walls,” mm. 33-40

66
At measure 68, Dawson begins one of the only genuinely fugal moments the author has
found in Dawson’s choral repertoire (see Example 3.14). Dawson begins with a statement of the
fugue subject in the bass, starting on the fifth scale degree. The tonal answer comes in the tenor
at the tonic. In measure 79, he provides a canon with a restatement of the subject material
delivered by the bass nine measures prior (see Example 3.14). The soprano voice completes the
pattern, entering at the tonic in measure 84 and complemented with the same canonic material as
before, though in the tenor line from measure 73 (see Example 3.14). These twenty-one
measures represent the most complete fugal presentation in any of the choral Negro folk
arrangements found by the author. Dawson leaves with a final canon in measure 101–103,
between the bass, tenors, and sopranos respectively (see Example 3.15).

67
Example 3.14 William L. Dawson, “Zion’s Walls,” mm. 63-92

68
Example 3.14 William L. Dawson, “Zion’s Walls”, mm. 63-92 (cont.)

69
Example 3.14 William L. Dawson, “Zion’s Walls”, mm. 63-92 (cont.)

70
Example 3.14 William L. Dawson, “Zion’s Walls”, mm. 63-92 (cont.)

71
Example 3.15 William L. Dawson, “Zion’s Walls”, mm. 100-108

72
There’s a Lit’l’ Wheel A-Turnin’
Music Press, 1949, “copyright presently held by Neil A. Kjos Music Company, publisher”.
In his setting of “There’s a Lit’l’ Wheel A-Turnin” Dawson launches immediately into a
contrapuntal treatment of the text with the overlapping of voices in measure 14 (see Example
3.16). He then utilizes imitative entrances offset by varying rhythmic intervals (see Example
3.17). Dawson does not break new ground in this arrangement, but he truly captures the joy and
dynamism of this Negro folk song. There is a sense of celebration and jubilee in the way the
voices ring out one over the other as the singer exclaims, “Oh I feel so happy in my heart, oh, I
feel so very happy in my heart.”

73
Example 3.16 William L. Dawson, “There’s a Lit’l Wheel A-Turnin,” mm. 12-14

74
Example 3.17 William L. Dawson, “There’s a Lit’l wheel A-Turnin,” mm. 21-33

75
Example 3.17 William L. Dawson, “There’s a Lit’l wheel A-Turnin,” mm. 21-33 (cont.)

76
Example 3.17 William L. Dawson, “There’s a Lit’l wheel A-Turnin,” mm. 21-33 (cont.)

77
In His Care-O
Music Press, 1961, “copyright presently held by Neil A. Kjos Music Company, publisher”.
“In His Care-o” is the final published work of William Levi Dawson’s to be addressed.
This arrangement appears to have been directly influenced by the Black gospel church. It
features call-and-response throughout, with the bass line providing interjections and lead-ins to
the otherwise homophonic arrangement (see Example 3.18). Despite the occasional overlapping
phrase or imitative entrance, “In His Care-O” features very little counterpoint. This setting
(arrangement) is included, however for two reasons. First, it further illustrates how well Dawson
married Western compositional elements with the song of the slave to create something wholly
unique. Second, it points to a theory as to why this arrangement—and others like it—may
feature fewer contrapuntal elements.
First, we will consider the synthesis of authentic spirituals and Western notation.
Dawson’s setting of “In His Care-O” features the strategic use of soloistic interjections by the
bass line, for example, “Hallelujah Lord I’m…” and “Let me tell you that…” among others.
These draw direct parallels to the Black gospel church (see Examples 3.18 and 3.19). In “In His
Care-o,” Dawson has effectively transcribed the frenetic energy of a tent revival onto the page.
This is yet another example of Dawson’s mastery of notating the sound and soul of the music of
the enslaved African (in this instance, as heard through the filter of the black gospel church) in a
way that does not compromise the authenticity of the music.

78
Example 3.18 William L. Dawson, “In His Care-O,” mm. 9-34

79
Example 3.18 continued William L. Dawson, “In His Care-O,” mm. 9-34 (cont.)

80
Example 3.18 continued William L. Dawson, “In His Care-O,” mm. 9-34 (cont.)

81
Example 3.19 William L. Dawson, “In His Care-O,” mm. 43-49

82
Regarding the absence of significant contrapuntal elements in other arrangements, it
would appear to the author that Dawson’s first concern was always to serve the original musical
material. As mentioned above, Dawson’s arrangements followed a formulaic structure that
almost always begins with a clear melody presentation, treated like a cantus firmus. Through
Dawson's careful treatment of the melody he strived to purposefully elevate the original tune. It
becomes apparent when reviewing Dawson’s compositional style that the transparency of the
melodic material is paramount. The longer the melodic line the less likely Dawson was to
crcompositional invention he would utilize. An example of his decisions for how to set a
melody can be seen in a comparison of “Hail Mary”, which has a relatively little counterpoint,
and “Steal Away,” which features a myriad of contrapuntal elements (see Tables 3.1 and 3.2).
Despite the variety and span of his compositional language, evidenced by his compositional
style, Dawson held the melody of the negro folk song in the highest regard and desired that the
original source material remain at the forefront of his compositions and not become obscured.
Table 3.1 “Hail Mary” Text Comparison
“Mary Had lit’l baby born in Bethlehem,
Ev’ry time the lti’l baby cried,
she rock’d him in a weary lan’.
Ain’t that a rockin for the worl’, ain’t that a rockin’ for the worl’,
oh she rock’d and rock’d, she rock’d him in a weary lan.
Refrain
He was born in a lowly manger, cause there was foun’ no room in
the inn
Ever time the lit’l baby cried, she rock’d him in a weary lan’
Verse 1
83
Yes there were shepherds a bidin’ in the field,
keepin watch o’er their flock by night
“unto you a babe is born this day,”
said the angel of the lord to the shephers in the field
Angel called him “Christ the Lord” but
I call my Jesus “King emmanuel”
Ever time the lit’l baby cried, she rock’d him in a weary lan’
Verse 2, variation on
Verse 1
Hail Mary, Virgin Mary.
Hail Chile of God.
She rock’d him in a weary lan
All night Long
Variation on Refrain
Table 3.2 “Steal Away” Text Comparison
Steal away, steal away, steal away to Jesus
Steal away, steal away home, I an’t got
long to stay here.
Refrain
My lord he calls me, he calls me by the
thunder
The trumpet sounds within a my soul.
I ain’t got long to stay here
Verse 1
Green trees are bending poor sinner stands
a trembling
The trumpet sounds within a my soul.
I ain’t got long to stay here
Verse 2, exact melodic restatement of verse 1
with different text

84
William Dawson’s use of counterpoint throughout his choral music changed the
landscape of the concerted choral spiritual. Although he was not the first composer of the
spiritual to utilize counterpoint, his methodical approach to constructing his compositions and
the overt influence of sixteenth and eighteenth century contrapuntal techniques set his
compositions apart from his predecessors and contemporaries. As a studied composer, Dawson’s
ability to utilize free and imitative counterpoint (overlapping voices, imitative entrances, oblique
motion, contrary motion, canon, and fugue) never feels stilted. Dawson was able to master the
combination of the compositional elements of Western classical music, music of the African
Diaspora, namely gospel, jazz, and blues, and the religious folk song of the enslaved African, the
Negro spiritual, setting himself apart from other composers and arrangers of his time.

85
Chapter 4
Application and Performance Practice

Many arrangers insist that their music be performed exactly as written. One such arranger
was William Dawson.
52

The influence of the music of the African Diaspora has permeated the fabric of all
popular and many classical forms of musical expression. Genres like blues, jazz, rhythm and
blues, and gospel share so many common musical elements (e.g., syncopated rhythms, call-and-
response, blue notes, similar compositional structure, shared harmonic language) that the waters
of performance practice—as it concerns the spiritual— have become muddied with stylistic
decisions. Tonya Hilton references this very point in a paraphrase of André Thomas. Thomas
recommends that choral conductors not make assumptions based on popular entertainment
forms.
Some conductors will impose rhythm and blues, gospel, and jazz techniques on all
performances of spirituals in an effort to create a “[B]lack sound…All of this may be full
of good intention; the result, however, is often an experience fraught with stylistic abuse
and, ultimately, a mockery of the intentions of the arranger.
53

Frequently a melding of genres is present in many modern performances of the concerted
choral spiritual. Dr. André Thomas writes of a specific experience with a high school chorus
misinterpretation of a spiritual. “Some conductors will impose rhythm and blues, gospel and jazz
techniques on all performances of spirituals in an effort to create a ‘[B]lack’ sound.”
54
In this
example, Thomas notes that the conductor invited the ensemble's input when making
performance practice decisions. This author imagines that the decision to allow the ensemble’s

52
Thomas, Andre J. “Way Over in Beulah Lan’: Understanding and Performing the Negro Spiritual.” (Dayton,
Ohio:Heritage Music Press, 2007), 94.
53
Thomas, “Way Over in Beulah Lan’,” 89.
54
Ibid, 88.
86
input would not have been allowed if it were the music of Brahms or Monteverdi. The misguided
nature of this attempt at inclusion made by some conductors to acquiesce to the assumed
knowledge of students who are descendants from the culture in question demonstrates that there
is often an unspoken supposition on the similitude of Black music.

As noted in Chapter One, there are many writings on the importance of authentic
performance practice concerning the spiritual. These writings most often address the issues of
dialect, rhythm, tone, intention, and understanding of the narrative of the slave. As choral
conductors, it is also incumbent upon us, in our performances, to realize the intent of the
arrangers/composers to the best of our abilities. The purposeful and intricate setting of the Negro
folk song by William Dawson demands as much reverence as any of his compositional forebears.
“Just as when we conduct the Hungarian folk music arrangements of Bartók or Kodály, or the
American folk music arrangements of Copland, we are interpreting the work of the arranger,
when we conduct a spiritual arrangement, we are interpreting the work of its arranger.”
55

The power of Dawson’s arrangements comes from the marriage of “high art,” “traditional
Western” compositional techniques, and the elements of the spiritual as born out of the hearts
and voices of the slave. “When preparing a concert spiritual, it is important to remember that
these works were arranged by musicians trained in Western art music. Each arranger has a
distinctive style along with specific musical intentions.”
56
Dawson steps beyond the mostly
homophonic, four-part presentations of the choral spiritual by arrangers who preceded him and
elevates the choral spiritual to new heights, finding a balance between classical components
(contrapuntal elements, advanced harmonic progressions, overlapping phrases, multiple

55
Ibid, 94.
56
Ibid, 94.
87
independent voices, hocket, canon, polyphonic structures composed of multiple short phrases
similar to symphonic orchestration) and elements of authentic performance practice most
familiar to the black progenitors of the spiritual (e.g., call and response, blue notes, syncopated
rhythms, tone quality, dialect).
Thankfully, the intent of William Dawson is much easier to assess than earlier arrangers
since there are recordings of him conducting his arrangements with the Tuskegee Institute Choir.
Even in recordings from nearly seventy years ago, one can hear how much importance Dawson
placed on rhythmic precision, especially in the execution of short phrases and overlapping
imitative entrances. The emphasis on rhythmic precision can also help highlight the essential
themes, balancing the complex textures to emphasize the overarching compositional structure of
his significant polyphonic creations (see Examples 3.1 and 3.2 in the preceding chapter) with his
incredible compositional attention to always frame the melody and set all the other elements to
be in service of the melody.
The question of authentic performance practice leads the conductor back to addressing
the relationship between different African Diaspora music genres. How should they be
appreciated and performed? The author is reminded again of that statement from a colleague
concerning the performance of the concerted choral spiritual, mentioned in Chapter One: “We
can just sing it loud and put a lot of vibrato in it, right?” The answer, as it pertains to the choral
setting of the Negro folk song by William Dawson, as well as the compositional settings by his
forebears, contemporaries, and compositional heirs in the realm of the spiritual, would be a
resounding “No!”

I am now satisfied that the future music of this country must be founded upon what are
called the Negro melodies... They are the songs of America, and your composers must
turn to them. In the Negro melodies… I discovered all that is needed for a great and noble
88
school of music. They are heartbreaking, tender, passionate, melancholy, solemn,
religious, bold, merry, gay, gracious or what you will. It is music that suits itself to any
mood or purpose. There is nothing in the whole range of composition that cannot find a
thematic source here.
57

So, how can a chorus emphasize the contrapuntal elements of Dawson’s writings in a manner
that would be sonically satisfying and in keeping with Dawson’s original intent as displayed by
this recording? This author suggests that special attention be made to the following musical
elements:
• rhythmic precision
• balanced presentation of all polyphonic textures
• maintaining a sensitivity to dynamic—specifically as it pertains to contrasting
dynamics
• performing all articulation markings as provided by the composer

Rhythm
In all authentic American Negro music, the rhythms may be divided roughly into two
classes—rhythms based on the swinging of head and body and rhythms based on the
patting of hands and feet. Again, speaking roughly, the rhythms of the Spirituals fall in
the first class and the rhythms of secular music in the second class. The “swing” of the
Spirituals is an altogether subtle and elusive thing. It is subtle and elusive because it is in
perfect union with the religious ecstasy that manifests itself in the swaying bodies of a
whole congregation, swaying as if responding to the baton of some extremely sensitive
conductor.
58

Rhythmic precision should be the priority when singing any of Dawson’s choral
spirituals. “The connection between spirituals and its rhythmic characteristics is deeply rooted—
symbiotic even. In the discussion of spirituals, it is impossible to separate the music from its
rhythmic characteristic.”
59
Many scholars of the Negro spiritual would argue that rhythm, and
more importantly, syncopated rhythms are at the heart of properly executing a performance of

57
Bolin, Gaius C. “Antonin Dvorak on Negro Melodies.” New York Herald, Sunday, May 28, 1893
58
Johnson, James Weldon, The book of American Negro Spirituals, New York, Viking Press, 1925, 28.
59
Stone, Jeffrey Carrol. “A Legacy of Hope in the Concert Spirituals of Robert Nathaniel Dett (1882-1943) and
William Levi Dawson (1899-1990).” ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2017, 41.
89
the spiritual. Patricia J. Trice points to three culturally rooted musical “tropes,” or elements, that
make rhythm so crucial in the spiritual: (1) the strong influence of dance and the resulting
movements of different body parts (for example, the head, hips, shoulders,) and their
simultaneous interaction, creating unique “often uneven, always diverse rhythms” when imposed
over a steady pulse; (2) the florid nature of African languages and the resulting phonetic decay
when spoken/sung by the enslaved Africans; (3) the often miss-accented syllables of European
English by Africans.
60

The textures of Dawson’s compositions frequently feature four or more simultaneous
moving voices (most often broken down into multiple duet pairings, harmonized at the third or
the fifth). The presence of small rhythmic figures within a larger polyphonic texture is pervasive.
These miniature figures are an essential component of the overall texture and must be apparent in
the texture. They often serve a larger structural purpose as the beginning of a coming phrase
idea, a harmonic bridge from one progression to the next, or the rhythmic impetus for a new idea.
The following notes written by Dawson were found tucked away in one of his scores in
the William Dawson archives at Emory University. On rehearsing “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel,”
Dawson lists the following steps.
(3) At first, rehearse at a slow tempo; then gradually increase the tempo. This procedure
will be carried out in rehearsals. (4) Give attention to the “short” notes on the weak part
of each [sic] beat! This matter should receive especial attention in “Ev’ry Time I Feel the
Spirit,” “Ain’-A That Good News!,” and “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel.”
61

Here, Dawson points to the critical function of the short notes on “weak” or syncopated
beats. These syncopated rhythms act as a motoric thread interwoven between the melody and—
frequently—the corresponding counter melodies to propel the song forward actively. (More will

60
Trice, Patricia J. “Unaccompanied Choral Arrangements of African-American Spirituals: The ‘Signifying’
Tradition Continues.” The Choral Journal 34, no. 7, 1994, 17.
61
Huff, Vernon. “William Dawson’s Life in Speeches, Letters, and Writings.” Choral Journal 55, no. 1, 2014, 69.
90
be said below on the supportive function of the motoric bass line in “Ev’ry Time I Feel the
Spirit.”) These smaller figures must not be overlooked but instead emphasized as an important
contribution to the texture of the arrangements. Patricia J. Trice writes about another instance of
syncopation and its role in constructing the polyphonic sonic train in Dawson’s “Ezekiel Saw de
Wheel.” Trice details how the overlapping syncopated rhythms in the multiple voices function
together to mimic African polyrhythms. (see Example 4.1)

The quarter notes on “wheel” in the second bass; the (sixteenth dotted eighth) rhythm on
“wheel in a” in the first bass; the (eighth note/two sixteenth note grouping) on “wheel in-
a wheel in-a” in the second alto; and the “doom-a-loom-a” on (four sixteenth notes) sung
by altos, tenors, and baritones. Superimposed upon these riffs that accentuate the pulse, is
a riff in the first alto – which is a variation of the first bass rhythm…When the Ezekiel
melody is added by the divided sopranos and tenors, the result is a texture that reflects the
combination of polyrhythm and unflagging pulse. This combination is a powerful trope in
both the African-American spiritual and the arrangements of those spirituals.
62
)

62
Trice, Unaccompanied, 19. The present author owes a great debt to Trice’s analysis of “Ezekiel…” in the
composition of this dissertation.
91
Example 4.1 William L. Dawson, “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel,” mm. 83 - 85

92
The steadiness of tempo should also be considered of premium importance when
performing Dawson’s music. For example, Dawson’s use of metric manipulation to create and
shape a musical phrase.
Changing meters are occasionally employed to allow for a stretching-like rendition of
certain melodic phrases within the song, e.g., the use of 6/4, 5/4 and 2/4 meters in the
predominantly 4/4 meter arrangement, There Is a Balm in Gilead and the 2/4, ¾, 6/4/, and
4/4/ meters in Steal Away. One may note that the quarter note remains constant. As of
fundamental principle in the singing of Negro folk music Dawson exhorts performers to
“keep the tempo; do not upset it with spasmodic r(i)tardandi and accelerandi…The
singer or conductor should strive for a regular, even tempo with elastic rhythms coming
forth in large flowing waves; otherwise, the singing will be rigid and out of character.
63

Balance

The idea of balance, in this instance, is not referring to the number of voices in the
ensemble nor the need to achieve absolute equality of voice parts in order to achieve a high-level
performance. In this case, balance should be perceived as a product of a clear musical
presentation of the polyphonic texture found in the music. The parallels between the
compositional masters of sixteenth century polyphonic choral music and the music of William
Dawson become most apparent when considering the emphasis he placed on balance in his
music. The influence of Renaissance polyphony can be seen in many of the musical
characteristics associated with the middle and late periods of the Renaissance (early sixteenth
century to about 1620), namely “pervasive imitation” often represented by “short imitative
phrases,” “alternating passages of homophony and polyphony,” and “varied rhythms.”
64
These
musical elements appear in Dawson’s writings regularly and speak to an evident influence of this
music on his compositions. It is not the author’s intention to suggest that, when considering the
proper performance practice of Dawson’s choral spirituals, one should approach “Soon Ah Will

63
Haberlen, John B. “William Dawson and The Copyright Act.” The Choral Journal 23, no. 7, 1983, 6.
64
Shrock, Dennis. Choral Repertoire. Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2009, 18.
93
be Done” in the same manner one might prepare “Sicut Cervus” by Palestrina; however, in
researching the performance practice of the polyphonic choral music of the Renaissance one
cannot help but see the benefits of applying the pedagogy of one (polyphonic choral music of the
sixteenth century) to the other (the choral music of Dawson). In his discussion of performing
music of the Renaissance, conductor Paul Salamunovich points to the following as elements to
consider in a performance. “The music of the Renaissance needs to show restraint of tempo,
dynamics, and expressiveness, but it still needs to communicate its message.”
65
Dawson’s music
should be approached in the same manner.
As a conductor, all of the musical elements we plan to address with our choir will
somehow tie into achieving a texturally clear, balanced, and precise sonic presentation in the
performance of Dawson's choral spirituals. Clarity of texture, especially when more than four
voices are present, is imperative. Dawson clearly valued this ideal, as evidenced in his recordings
and writings on his performances.
Even when the maximum volume is achieved there is no hint of strain or harshness. Nor
does it lose resonance when reduced to the utmost softness. Between those extremes of
power, the choir commands every expressive inflection. The balance between parts is
flawlessly adjusted so that its flexibility permits the emphasis of any choral division.
66

The relationship between melody and counter melody is extremely significant in Dawson’s
compositions. In Dawson’s choral compositions, all other voices in the polyphonic texture are in
service to the melody. The only exception to this rule is for two- or four-voice paired duets, with
a single melodic presentation against an independent countermelody. In this case, the melody and
countermelody should be equally important. (see Example 4.2)

65
Breden, Mary, and Robert Summer. “Paul Salamunovich: A Beacon of the Choral Art.” The Choral Journal 55,
no. 3, 2014, 51.
66
Malone, Mark Hugh. “William Dawson and the Tuskegee Choir,” Choral Journal 30, no. 8, 1990, 22.
94
Example 4.2 William L. Dawson, “Hail Mary,” mm. 35-57

95

Example 4.2 continued William L. Dawson, “Hail Mary,” mm. 35-57

96

Example 4.2 continued William L. Dawson, “Hail Mary,” mm. 35-57

97
In “Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit,” the climax occurs between measures 32 – 47. The
melody is presented in the tenor and bass 1 line from measures 32 – 39 and then moves to the
soprano voice. The tenors keep the melody until measure 43, where they begin a slight variation.
In these fifteen measures, at least two counter melodies are constantly present, moving in
contrary motion, oblique motion, entering in overlapping imitative phrases, and presenting new
rhythmic ideas, all in service to and never obscuring the melodic line. Dawson's desire to keep
the melody at the forefront of the sonic palette is further evidenced by his specific use of accents
to outline the most crucial texture at any given moment.
Even when the bass line begins its riptide of spinning eighth notes, first at measure 41
and then again at 44 – 46, the use of accents in the text points the listener's ear to the melody, not
just the bass line. In measure 41, the bass 2 line has accents on beat three on the word “feel,” and
in measure 42 on beat three on the word “heart.” These accents highlight the entrance of the
same words in the main melody an eighth note later. Dawson's accentuation of these words on
the down beats in the bass 2 line further emphasizes their importance on the melody's syncopated
beats (and of three, respectively). Two measures later, Dawson uses accents differently, resulting
in an equally impressive result by accenting every syllable of the phrase “moving in my heart,
Oh yes.” The bass line does not take over the texture but instead acts as a driving force to the
climax of the melodic line in the soprano, alto, and tenor voices as they sing “Yes, Ev’ry!.” If the
choristers singing these countermelodies are too loud, they will obfuscate the melodic lines.
Conversely, if they are not present enough in the texture, the polyphonic scaffolding Dawson has
created will not connect. Instead, the listener is presented with a mass of sonic material lacking
clarity and purpose. (see Example 4.3)

98
Example 4.3 William L. Dawson, “Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit,” mm. 33-48

99
Example 4.3 William L. Dawson, “Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit,” mm. 33-48 (cont.)

100
Example 4.3 William L. Dawson, “Ev’ry Time I Feel the Spirit,” mm. 33-48 (cont.)

101
Dawson's twelve-voice polyphonic structure in "Ezekiel Saw de Wheel," which sonically
mimics a moving train, is another example of the importance of textural clarity. The use of
diacritical markings to denote specific articulation and a wide range of dynamic variety bringing
this picture into focus for the listener. It is essential to discuss the importance of these two
musical elements and their presence in Dawson’s compositions before discussing how they are
effectively utilized in “Ezekiel Saw de Wheel.”
Articulation

The importance of following the diacritical markings provided when performing
Dawson’s music cannot be overstated.
The folk-song rhythms, many syncopated, were further emphasized by a wide variety of
articulation marks added by Dawson to infuse great vitality in the song. Unfortunately,
the marks are often disregarded by conductors who do not know how or do not take care
to interpret them.
67

The singers and conductor must clearly understand how the accents, staccati, and tenuto are to
be differentiated when singing “Ain't-A That Good News," for example (see Example 4.4). This
differentiation of diacritical markings is of the utmost importance because they can quickly
become too similar when a lack of attention is given to how they are to be articulated. There
should be a significant distinction in the performance of the accent marking (see “I’m a goin’ to
lay” in measure 25) versus the marcato marking (see “down” in measure 25). Notes marked
with an accent marking should be strongly punctuated. This marking indicates the importance of
the accent on this specific beat. The marcato accent, however, should indicate that the marked
word should be stressed, but the marcato serves as a springboard to the word or phrase that
follows the marked word. For example, the marcato marking on the word “down” should not be

67
Haberlen, “William Dawson and The Copyright Act,” 1938, 6.
102
sung as a shortened note or with a stop in the sound, as often happens with inexperienced
singers. Instead, the accent on down should propel the singer forward into the portion of the
most crucial phrase, "this worl'." These distinctions are important and must not be overlooked.

103
Example 4.4 William L. Dawson, “Ain’-a that Good News,” mm. 24-27

104
In the 1955 recording of the Tuskegee Institute Choir conducted by Dawson, he
demanded that his singers employ all his diacritical markings. “Observe well the accent!” is a
note every choral conductor should convey to their choir. The 1955 recording shows Dawson’s
attention to the accents he includes in the arrangement.
68

In his article “William Dawson (1899–1990) Reexamination of a Legacy,” Vernon Huff
discusses Dawson’s careful use of articulation in his choral settings. In comparing Dawsons
arrangement of “Soon Ah Will Be Done” with Nathaniel Dett’s version of the same spiritual,
Huff states the following.
Unlike a congregational hymn, the (Dawson’s) piece is full of crescendos and
decrescendos and markings from mezzo piano to forte. These dynamic markings are a
departure from the other early arrangements examined…. In “Soon Ah Will Be Done” as
in Dawson’s other arrangements, he takes great care in giving the choir and director an
abundance of dynamic and articulation markings.
69

In other words, just as with any composer from the “Western Canon,” it is essential to
perform the notation as written. Dawson and many of his contemporaries who have set the choral
spiritual have done so in a very specific way. In theory, it should preserve the authenticity of the
source material as it moves further away (through Western notation, advanced harmony, and
other Western compositional tools) from the voices of the slaves who created it. Notation,
specifically the application of diacritical markings in the music, should be seen as a tool for
preserving the authentic performance practice as designated by the composer. Carl G. Harris
writes on this very point in his article “Three Schools of Black Composers: 1900–1970.” When
discussing composer Hall Johnson (1888–1970), Harris says that “To (e)nsure authenticity in the

68
Huff, “William Levi Dawson’s Life…,” 2014, 68.
69
Huff, Vernon. “William Levi Dawson (1899-1990) Reexamination of a Legacy.” Choral Jornal 59, no. 10, 2019,
28-29
105
performance of his arrangements, Johnson included specific directions concerning text
pronunciations, tempi, and rhythmic patterns.”
70

Dynamics

Dawson’s desire for sensitivity to dynamic contrast is evidenced in the specificity and
wide range of dynamics he utilizes throughout his music. In his article on the 1946 performance
of Tuskegee’s Choir at Constitution Hall, Glenn Dillard Gunn echoed these sentiments. “If the
Tuskegee Choir Prides itself most on any one thing, I imagine it would be its pianissimo. By last
night’s showing, it can spin out a whispery phrase like a barely audible sigh and hold it longer
than any group I know.”
71
Therefore, the dynamics in Dawson's compositions are just as
important as the other musical elements involved in constructing his works.
In “There is a Balm in Gilead,” Dawson draws the ear of the listener to the most
important musical material, the melody, despite the ever-thickening vocal texture occurring while
the cantus firmus is still in its first presentation. (see Example 4.5) Dawson gives us only the first
four notes of the melody, “There is a Balm,” sung by the tenors, before adding the pedal tone in
the soprano and a counter melody/harmonization in the alto line. Dawson has marked the tenor
line as forte to ensure the prominence of the melodic line while presenting the pedal tone at a
piano dynamic and the counter melody in the alto at a mezzo piano. As seen throughout
Dawson’s settings, the accompanying voices highlight and support the main melody but never
obscure it.
After the first presentation of the melody is completed in measure 9, Dawson
immediately increases the dynamics of the soprano, alto, and bass voices to forte to draw

70
Harris, Carl G. “Three Schools of Black Choral Composers and Arrangers 1900-1970,” Choral Journal 14, no. 8,
1974, 13.
71
Malone, “William Dawson and the Tuskegee Choir,” 1990, 22.
106
attention to the contrapuntal imitative entrances. Suddenly, the equality of voices is made
apparent. The overlapping voices now share dominance in the texture, which continues to
measure 17. Here, all four choral voices drop to a pianissimo homophonic harmonization of the
verse, sung by a prominent solo voice marked as mezzo forte. These dynamic shifts are vital to
the clear presentation and execution of Dawson’s setting.
For choirs able to sing a cappella music well, this is an accessible and dramatic piece.
The staggered entrances of the choir sections tenor, alto, soprano hum, and bass are
effective at pulling the audience in. The solo is haunting, supported by the underlying
humming of the choir.
72

72
Huff, “William Dawson Reexaminiation…,”2019, 24.
107
Example 4.5 William L. Dawson, “There is a Balm in Gilead,” mm. 1-8

108
Let us take note of Dawson’s use of dynamics in the presentation of the refrain and verse
in “Soon Ah Will Be Done.” Dawson utilizes two extreme ends of the dynamic spectrum, piano
or pianissimo and forte or fortissimo, in this setting with little ambiguity. The refrain, “Soon ah
will be done with the troubles of the world, going home to live with God’ is always presented in
a quiet, prayer-like dynamic. The contrasting forte and fortissimo are used as a significant effect
as the slave narrative switches from prayerful and introspective to hopeful and bombastic with
the verses “I want to meet my mother,” “No more weepin’ and wailin,” and “I’m going to meet
my Jesus.” Dawson uses these forte proclamations to characterize the duality of the slave's song
as their ambitions were dually tied to the trauma and tragedy of their earthly state and their hope
for escape to freedom in either this world or the next.
“An extreme dynamic range and many expression marks are also characteristic of
Dawson’s desire to capture the deep spiritual experience and religious fervor of the folk songs. In
Steal Away the opening phrase is marked ppp molto sostenuto and moves to risoluto fff
climax.”
73
Dawson embeds his dynamics into crucial conjunctions of harmony, text, texture, and
phrase, using them as a scaffolding for the overarching structure of the music. The dynamics are
not just a “throw-away” indication of when to sing loud and soft. Instead, they are vital to the
very foundation of the compositions. Without special attention paid to the dynamics and the
articulation of the diacritical markings, the twelve-voice presentation of the train in “Ezekiel Saw
De Wheel,” for instance, can quickly become a polyphonic soup (see Example 4.1).
Dawson knew the deep emotional content and mood of the folk song intimately since he
grew up with them. The songs were a part of his consciousness through his childhood
experiences. As he recalled the melodies and words from the oral tradition Dawson wrote
the melodies down from memory, freely improvising, as naturally as any good singer
would have interpreted the songs. Dawson made subtle and occasionally radical melodic

73
Haberlen, “William Dawson…Copyright Act,” 1983, 7.
109
and rhythmic changes in the melodies, always innately aware of the boundaries of the
authentic style.
74

In his writings on the subject of desired vocal qualities in the performance of Renaissance choral
music, Alexander Blachly points to several key musical characteristics.
Loud, heavy singing not only violates the spirit of good ensemble music-making, it
would also seem to contradict the very essence of the proportion, balance, and
“naturalness” that are so clearly idealized in the other arts of the time. This is not to say
that Renaissance singing should be consistently soft. Far from it. It should be intense
and shapely in both loud and soft passages. Renaissance artists shunned coarseness and
aspired to eloquence, but these predispositions in no way imply a taste for weakness of
any kind.
75

The same can be said of the performance of Dawson’s spirituals and the importance of dynamic
sensitivity, clarity, balance, and “naturalness.” Again, the recommendation is to do something
other than equate the two styles in totality. Instead, it is hoped that in providing deeper context to
the influence behind Dawson’s compositional style and pointing to their many shared qualities,
that one might consider the delicacy and thoughtfulness that could and should be applied to
performing Dawson’s music.
If the author were to summarize the pedagogical approach for performing Dawson’s
music into one phrase, the author would say that a conductor should approach this music with
sensitivity at the forefront of your mind and a dedication to doing what is on the page. The
composer has already done so much of the work for us, in terms of guiding expressiveness in
performance. Instead of adding what might be expected from “the performance of a spiritual,” let
us begin with what the arranger has given us. Dawson’s goal was to compose in a way that
allowed every note of the source material to shine through and every additional element to serve

74
Ibid, 6.
75
Blachly, Alexander. “On Singing and the Vocal Ensemble I,” A Performer’ s Guide to Renaissance Music 2
nd

edition. Ed. Jeffrey Kite-Powell, Indiana University Press, 2007, 17.
110
the Negro folk song itself. It is only fitting that choral musicians perform Dawson’s music with
clarity, purpose, passion, and reverence to his original vision.

Conclusion
Why should one perform the choral spirituals of William Dawson? His setting honors the
Negro folk song by preserving the integrity of the original tune and capturing the spirit of the
progenitors of the spiritual. His use of counterpoint provides the singer and listener an insight
into the contrapuntal techniques of the sixteenth and eighteenth century. The variety in moods
and styles in his settings are incredibly diverse, exciting, and emotionally and historically rich.
Dawson’s choral spirituals signaled a seismic shift in the way the concerted choral spiritual was
composed. His legacy, much like the spiritual itself, is one of duality. William Levi Dawson is
the master of westernized high art classical composition and the music of the enslaved African
and he combines them to great success in his choral compositions. Dawson crafted his music
with a meticulous hand and had great respect and regard for the Negro folk song. It is the
author's intent to highlight the music and impact of William Dawson with specific attention paid
to the skilled construction of the counterpoint in his choral spirituals in the hopes that the reader
might be more inclined to perform his music. Not only are Dawson’s compositions historically
rich and mark an important step forward in terms of the setting of the choral spiritual, but the
music is also complex, nuanced, and incredibly engaging for both the singer and the listener.
The performance of his music should be approached with the same care and reverence one would
approach Bach and the other contrapuntal masters. Dawson’s compositional style represents a
confluence of Africa and the enslaved African, the many arms of the music of the African
Diaspora, and the compositional masters of the West. His work reflects the best of many musical
worlds and deserves to be sung and heard as Dawson intended.
111

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Abstract (if available)

Abstract The contrapuntal structures of William Levi Dawson’s choral spirituals are one of the most important compositional contributions to the concerted choral negro folk song. In a departure from the primarily homophonic techniques most often applied to the choral spiritual during the first half of the twentieth century, Dawson’s use of counterpoint helped to reshape the setting of the concerted spiritual. Through a careful study, the author intends to highlight the approach to the contrapuntal textures of Dawson’s choral writings will help highlight the complexity and care with which these lines were conceived. The application of counterpoint should be viewed in a similar vein as Bach, Mendelssohn, and other champions of contrapuntal composition which should guide the conductor in their performance preparation.
Through a careful study, the author intends to highlight the approach to the contrapuntal textures of Dawson’s choral writings will help highlight the complexity and care with which these lines were conceived. The application of counterpoint should be viewed similarly to Bach, Mendelssohn, and other champions of contrapuntal composition, which should guide the conductor in their performance preparation.
In this study the author will address how Dawson’s approach to setting the choral spiritual—namely, his use of the elements of sixteenth century and eighteenth century counterpoint—sets him apart from his compositional forebears in the arena of the concerted choral spiritual. Through analysis of ten of his choral compositions, the author will highlight specific instances of Dawson’s use of free and imitative counterpoint. Much of my research will focus on the primary resources of Dawson’s music and secondary sources, including dissertations, articles, and books on Dawson. This study will be divided into four sections. Chapter 1 will encompass biographical information pertaining to Dawson’s life. In Chapter 2, the author has written about Dawson’s musical style. The author will also include a discussion of the influence of the composers of the negro spiritual who preceded Dawson as well as make brief reference to Dawson’s impact on the composers who followed him. Chapter 3 will feature an analysis of Dawson’s use of counterpoint, and Chapter 4 will contain a section on the performance practice of Dawson’s music with specific focus to the intricate nature of his compositional style. Many composers and conductors have researched and created resources that address many elements of performance practice as it pertains to the concerted choral spiritual. These books and articles address issues of dialect, phonetic decay, tone (see Dr. Andre Thomas’ Way Over in Beulah Lan’ , James Weldon Johnson and J. Rosamon Johnson’s The Books of American Negro Spirituals , Rosephanye Powell’s The African-American Spiritual: Preparation and Performance Considerations , and Felicia Barber’s A New Perspective for the Use of Dialect in African American Spirituals: History, Context, and Linguistics ), but there has not yet been a significant study on the influence of sixteenth and eighteenth century counterpoint on Dawson’s compositional style and how a theoretical analysis and application of the techniques and approaches most commonly associated with these influences can be applied in both the analysis and performance of Dawson’s spirituals. Dawson spent much of his career navigating the space between Western, “high art” compositional techniques and the vocal, stylistic, and expressive musical characteristics most commonly linked to the “negro spiritual.” The author believes that a study based upon the marriage of the "high art" and "negro spiritual" should be applied to the performance practice of Dawson's concert spiritual to ensure and honor his legacy of settings of the concert spirituals.
William Dawson preferred the terminology “negro folk song” rather than “spiritual.” “He found inspiration for the piece in traditional spirituals, which he preferred to call ‘Negro folk-music.’” The term spiritual has become an acceptable parlance for describing the music of the slave, as evidenced by its almost constant use by many of the authors this author has studied and cited. For that reason, the author will use the terms “negro folk song” and “spiritual” interchangeably. The author would like to thank Neil A. Kjos Music Company and Mark Kjos for the licensed use of these musical examples.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Harrison, Ernest Henry, II (author)

Core Title Wheel in a wheel: an analysis of the use of counterpoint in the choral spirituals of William Dawson

School Thornton School of Music

Degree Doctor of Musical Arts

Degree Program Choral Music

Degree Conferral Date 2023-05

Publication Date 05/17/2023

Defense Date 05/17/2023

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag Ain'-a that good news,analysis,choral spirituals,counterpoint,Ev'ry time I feel the spirit,Ezekiel saw de wheel,Hail Mary,I wan' to
be ready,In His care-o,Negro folk songs,OAI-PMH Harvest,Soon ah will be done,Steal away,There's a lit'l wheel a-turnin',Tuskegee Choir,Tuskegee University,Tuskegee University Choir,William Dawson,William L. Dawson,William Levi Dawson,Zion's walls

Format theses (aat)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Sparks, Tram (committee chair), Desby, Neal (committee member), Scheibe, Jo-Michael (committee member)

Creator Email ehharris@usc.edu,ernest@gmcla.org

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC113131596

Unique identifier UC113131596

Identifier etd-HarrisonEr-11867.pdf (filename)

Legacy Identifier etd-HarrisonEr-11867

Document Type Dissertation

Format theses (aat)

Rights Harrison, Ernest Henry, II

Internet Media Type application/pdf

Type texts

Source 20230518-usctheses-batch-1046 (batch), University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

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Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

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Repository Email cisadmin@lib.usc.edu