Seaborn M. ("Uncle Seab"), his son Whitt, and (right) Thomas
J. ("Uncle Tom"). Photographed at the Mineral Wells, Texas,
convention of the Interstate Sacred Harp Singing Association in
the summer of 1930.
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| THREE DENSONS Seaborn M. ("Uncle Seab"), his son Whitt, and (right) Thomas J. ("Uncle Tom"). Photographed at the Mineral Wells, Texas, convention of the Interstate Sacred Harp Singing Association in the summer of 1930. |
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The Sacred Harp has always rested in pious hands. While it has never been linked officially with any denomination, its singers have always been devoutly and fundamentally religious. All singings are opened and closed with prayer. The traditional dinner-on-the-grounds is always "graced" likewise. When one singer calls another one "brother" or "sister" and the older ones "uncle" or "aunt" it has a real and deep significance. It means that Sacred Harp singers feel themselves as belonging to one great family or clan. This feeling is without doubt deepened by the consciousness that they stand alone in their undertaking—keeping the old songs resounding in a world which has either gone over to lighter, more "entertaining," and frivolous types of song or has given up all community singing.
The members of this "clan" used to gather, fifty years ago and before, by neighborhoods. With railroads more available, it became possible for those of many neighborhoods to foregather in bigger, more centrally located and longer conventions (up to three days). Gasoline transport has more recently encouraged visits and return visits of singers living long distances apart. Until the present war restrictions came, it was no uncommon thing, for example, to see a group from Georgia and Alabama at a Texas singing and to see Texas singers returning the visit later. Today this neighborliness is practiced especially among singers of Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee.
Musical families, I mean groups of blood kinsfolk, have also been towers of strength in keeping the Sacred Harp going. I have already spoken of some of them. I could not, within the covers of this little book, mention all such families even if I knew them all, which I don't. It may help readers understand the situation if I merely name those families represented by the Manns of Decatur, Georgia, and other descendants of B. F. White; the Drakes and Cagles of Atlanta, the Aikens and the Bishops of Carroll County, Georgia, the McWhorters of Birmingham, the McGraws in three states, the Kitchens family of Jasper, Ala., the Odems and their large and active group of related singers in Lawrence County, Tennessee, the Lovvorns of Carrollton, Georgia, the Parris family in Winston County, Alabama, the Laminacks of Cullman County, Alabama, and the Densons who now spread over northern Alabama and other parts of the south. There is hardly a Sacred Harp family, moreover, which has not married into one or more of the others.
I wish to single out the Denson family because of its uniform faithfulness, its unusually long-lasting devotion and its valuable contributions to the Sacred Harp—for special mention.
The first edition of the Sacred Harp contained the "Christmas Anthem" composed by James Denson of Walton County, Georgia. L. P. Denson, a Methodist minister, brother of James and, we presume, also a good singer, moved to Cleburne County, Alabama, around Civil War times and established that branch of the family which included two sons, Seaborn M. (b. 1854) and Thomas J. (b. 1863). It was just seventy years ago, when the Sacred Harp was only thirty years old and when its author, B. F. White, was still active,—that young Seaborn Denson taught his first singing school from that book. His much younger brother Thomas also began to teach as soon as he was old enough. This activity alone, carried along to the very end of their lives, might well have earned for the two brothers the title some observers have given them: "deans of the Sacred Harp."
But their life accomplishments were much wider. In addition to the hundreds of singing schools they conducted and the thousands of singers they educated in southern states from Georgia to Texas, they were ever active in composing music of the Sacred Harp types. We see signs of this latter activity first in the 1911 edition of the Sacred Harp of which Seaborn was musical editor. There we find one piece signed by both brothers, three pieces composed by Thomas, and ten by Seaborn. Thomas caught up with his big brother in the matter of published compositions twenty-five years later. In the 1936 Denson Revision eight more of his songs appeared. They were largely fuguing tunes. He named three of them for prominent Sacred Harp friends: "Coston" (the late W. T. Coston of Dallas, Texas), "Ackers" (the family of Tom Denson's second wife), and "Odem" (Lonnie P. Odem, Sacred Harp patriarch of St. Joseph, Tennessee). In the 1911 edition there is also one composition by Amanda Denson, Tom's first wife. And three hundred twenty-seven songs which had had three-part settings were made into four-part harmonizations by the addition of alto parts composed by Seaborn. These then were some of the accomplishments of the second generation of Sacred Harp Densons.
The third generation has been more numerous, equally gifted and just as devoted to the old songs and their propagation, Seaborn's eight children have all been enthusiastic singers and/or composers. They are Ida (Denson) McCoy, Iva (Denson) Blake, Seaborn I. ("Shell"), James T., S. Whitt, Robert E., Evan E., and William Philpot ("Phil"). Two of Whitt's compositions are in the 1911 edition. Among Tom's eight musical children, Paine (a Birmingham attorney), Howard (in business in Tuscaloosa, Alabama), and Ruth (Denson) Edwards (a teacher in the public schools of Cullman), have been the most outstanding in Sacred Harp work. In producing the 1936 revision, Paine was, as we have already stated, the general music editor; and seven of his compositions appear on its pages. Howard's contributions were two songs. Other third-generation Denson contributors to this volume were Maggie (Denson) Cagle, Ruth (Denson) Edwards and Annie (Denson) Aaron with one composition each. Three other daughters of Tom Denson, all active singers, were Vera (Denson) Nunn, Violet (Denson) Hinton and Tommie (Denson) Maulden.
(I think it would be proper to call attention here to other notable contributors of songs to this last Sacred Harp, people outside the Denson family. Among these were the three McGraw brothers, H. N. [two songs], L. A. [three], and T. B. [four], L. P. Odem, O. A. Parris, A. M. Cagle, O. H. Frederick, John M. Dye, J. B. Wall, Lee Wells, B. E. Cunningham, W. T. Mitchell, W. A. Yates, and Elmer Kitchens.)
The fourth generation of the musical Denson Dynasty is now maturing with a number of excellent singers and composers. Those already treading worthily in the steps of their forebears are three of Seaborn's grandchildren, Owel Denson, Dalila (Denson) Posey, and Otis L. McCoy.
The fifth generation is coming on fast, prolifically and promisingly.
