By Annette Hinkle
On the East End, the best place to hear Gospel music is typically at one of the local Baptist churches in the area during Sunday services. But this Saturday night, another church, the Old Whalers’ Church in Sag Harbor, will be the venue for an evening of singing courtesy of the Howard Gospel Choir. The concert is a benefit for the Bridgehampton Child Care & Recreational Center.
The choir is a student run organization based on the campus of Howard University in Washington DC. It was founded in 1968 by two students, Melanie Russell (Lee) and Rosalind Thompkins (Lynch), and in the 40 plus years since, has grown both in size and reputation. The choir now has an active roster of more than 70 students, alumni and community members, and during President Barack Obama’s inauguration, the choir was booked at several engagements in and around Washington as part of the festivities. The choir has performed around the country and overseas as well, including in Italy, Slovakia, Denmark and Sweden.
Choir member Ray A. Bramble, a senior marketing major who is also the group’s business manager, has found that while audiences are appreciative of the choir’s talents wherever they go, overseas audiences tend to be particularly enamored of the music.
“We take a lot of things for granted that are familiar to us here,” explains Bramble. “If you want to be around the music without learning about Gospel culture you can go to a church and hear a choir sing.”
“But overseas they don’t have that experience or background,” he adds. “The movie ‘Sister Act,’ really helped to put Gospel on the map in a global sense. When we go do those overseas tours, a lot of people come out who are loving the music and really enjoy it.”
“To me what’s been interesting as college students coming to perform, is being looked at as celebrities. It is really humbling,” he says. “A lot of us don’t come from professional singing backgrounds and to be able walk in a room and get that reception is amazing.”
Though the singers travel the world (usually during school breaks so it doesn’t interrupt their studies) Bramble explains that the Howard Gospel Choir was really formed to help make students feel at home on campus.
“A lot of us come from church choirs and performing arts group, and [the choir founders] wanted to recreate that experience at college,” explains Bramble. “Many of us who are Christians come from really strong backgrounds in terms of fellowship. A lot of our members are music students, but there are others who wanted to have that Gospel experience.”
Unlike many college musical groups that are directed by faculty and overseen by the fine arts department, the Howard Gospel Choir is a wholly student run organization and under the auspices of the university’s chapel. The musical director, Clifton Ross III, is, like the singers, a student at Howard University. The choir doesn’t exclude graduates and community members from participating though. Bramble notes that one singer is in her 70s and rejoined the choir a couple years ago. Most of the alumni members are graduates who have left Howard within the last 10 years.
“On the road when we travel for spring break and hit cities over the week, we always have at least a few people come to our concerts who were former members,” explains Bramble. “It’s amazing to see where the choir was and where we are now. In New York on Sunday morning we will perform at an Episcopal church where the reverend is a former choir member.”
Times have indeed changed since 1968, when the Howard Gospel Choir was formed, and Bramble notes that in the years since, many other colleges have made the effort to form their own Gospel choirs and have contacted the Howard University group for advice
“It’s becoming a lot more common at other schools,” says Bramble. “A lot of colleges find out how we operate, our policies and ways we make it work. We give them some pointers. We learned a lot the hard way, and we share it.”
“I recently got a call from Alabama State University in Birmingham,” he adds. “It’s now at the point where membership in choirs can get students college credit. For a lot of colleges, its progressing to that level and under the auspices of the fine arts curriculum. To think this started as a fellowship and then just blossomed is amazing.”
“Gospel at Old Whalers’” featuring the Howard Gospel Choir is Saturday, October 9 at 7 p.m. at the Old Whalers’ Church, 44 Union Street, Sag Harbor. Tickets are $35 and proceeds benefit the Bridgehampton Child Care & Recreational Center. For reservations call 537-0616. Tickets can also be purchased at BookHampton and Romany Kramoris Gallery, both on Main Street in Sag Harbor, or CW Mercantile in Bridgehampton.
