February, which is Black History Month, is also a simple opportunity for children of all races to read about interesting events, such as the creation of an important musical group and the everyday life of children in 1864.
Beloved spirituals such as "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" and "This Old Time Religion" are a permanent part of American culture, primarily because of the Jubilee Singers, the most important black singing group of the 19th century. Their triumphant story is told in "A Band of Angels" (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, $16), Deborah Hopkinson's fictional account based on real people and events.
Hopkinson, author of the familiar "Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt" (Knopf, 1993), here writes for readers 5 to 9, but anyone with
an interest in the roots of American music will enjoy the inspirational story, luminously illustrated by Raul Colon.
The action is seen through young Ella Shephard's eyes, as related to Ella's great-great-granddaughter by a modern-day storyteller, in an interesting blend of the oral and written traditions.
" 'Grandma Ella was born into slavery,' Aunt Beth always begins. 'But no one could chain her voice.' "
The Fisk School (now Fisk University) in Nashville, Tenn., opened in 1866 for former slaves and was in financial trouble by the time it began offering college classes in 1871. Music teacher George White--in a desperate attempt to keep the school open--rounded up every cent he could and set out with nine young students on a singing tour.
But that's the beginning, not the end, of the story. Because the group didn't make any money--from white or black audiences--until it changed its repertory to the heartfelt songs of slavery days.
"They called them spirituals, or jubilee songs, because the word 'jubilee' means a time of hope and freedom. And now that time had begun."
Ella was the pianist and one of the voices that introduced those songs of sorrow and hope to the world. The first tour raised $150,000 (they needed $5,000), enough to save Fisk and build Jubilee Hall, the first permanent structure in the South for the education of black students.
The legacy continues: The Fisk Jubilee Singers still tour. The university still stands. Jubilee Hall has a painting of Ella and the other singers. And, in the campus library, you can meet the real great-granddaughter of Ella Shephard Moore.
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