Harlem Gospel Choir Keeps Blacksburg Audience on Their Feet

Religious or not, the Harlem Gospel Choir will send chills from the base of your spine to the top of your head.

As part of VTU’s Lively Arts season, the Harlem Gospel Choir performed Tuesday night in Burruss Hall. By the end of the first song, audience members ranging from little old ladies in their Sunday best to bearded students in skater shoes and hoodies were on their feet dancing.

The choir has over 40 members total, but the group that travels is composed of seven women, two men, a keyboardist and a drummer.

Despite their small number, the Harlem Gospel Choir filled the auditorium and then
some. Each song had at least one soloist who acted as director for that song with subtle gestures to indicate instructions to the others. The choir moved in choreographed high energy, but was subtle enough not to detract from the soloist.

The joy and conviction they found in the music was clearly visible on their faces.

The Harlem Gospel Choir’s performance theme is “bringing people and nations together and giving something back.”

They brought people together alright.

It seemed that the members wanted nothing more than for the audience to get excited. During the first half, after inviting the audience to stand yet again, the soloist proclaimed that the audience might have thought they’d get to sit, but “you got tricked!”

The group invited one woman with particular enthusiasm onto the stage to receive a signed copy of their CD because when you “bless someone, you get blessed back, amen?”

Even without the showmanship, the music itself was breathtaking. According to the group’s website, each singer is a professional gospel singer. It’s no surprise that the group is world famous.

The voices in the group ranged from a dark, rich mezzo in the woman who sang tenor to a sweetly innocent soprano, but the unique timbre of the solo voices blended beautifully when joined with the choir.

A crowd favorite was “Amazing Grace.” Sung to begin the second half of the show, it began with a soloist on stage singing somewhat traditionally with sparse jazz chords in the keyboard. The choir then joined the soloist onstage and took the song to a new level to raucous approval.

I bought a CD. I recommend you do the same.