In his Autobiography, penned in his seventies, Benjamin Franklin conceded: “There is perhaps no one of our natural passions so hard to subdue as pride. Disguise it, struggle with it, beat it down, stifle it, mortify it as much as one pleases, it is still alive, and will every now and then peep out and show itself … Even if I could conceive that I had completely overcome it, I should probably be proud of my humility.”
Despite being older than Washington, Jefferson, Adams, and Company by a generation, Ben Franklin is the most modern of America’s founders. He was also one of the few revolutionary leaders from humble roots—Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Paine being the other exceptions. The son of a Bostonian soap maker, Franklin took huge pride in his rise as a printer-journalist, scientist, diplomat, and statesman. What he lacked in humility he made up for in self-awareness. He recalled as a young man making “a little book, in which I allotted a page for each of the virtues.” Ranging from temperance to frugality, from industry to moderation, Franklin kept a running tally of these virtues, marking off, “by a little black spot, every fault I found upon examination to have been committed respecting that virtue upon that day.” Humility revealed itself the most consistent of his failings. This exercise in self-accountability, Franklin wryly called the “bold and arduous project of arriving at moral perfection.” Franklin was infuriating; he was vain—but he was often disarmingly witty. Fixing himself up in the Philadelphia publishing business, young Franklin rose to fame under the pseudonym of Richard Saunders, peppering his Poor Richard’s Almanack with the sort of folksy aphorisms that made these inexpensive volumes runaway bestsellers: “Fish and visitors stink in three days.” “God heals, and the doctor takes the fees.” “The greatest monarch upon the proudest throne, is obliged to sit upon his own arse.” “One of Franklin’s greatest inventions,” opines biographer Walter Isaacson in the new two-part PBS documentary, “is that American style of homespun humor—somebody whose pricking at the pretensions of the elite.” This “cracker barrel sensibility,” Isaacson insists, laid the foundations for subsequent American humorists such as Mark Twain and Will Rogers. Combined with Franklin’s business and political acumen, not to mention his scientific genius, such sensibility made Franklin America’s first modern celebrity—the first cultural hero whose fame spanned the Atlantic. Ken Burns seems destined to tell the story of Benjamin Franklin. Like the Sage of Philadelphia—but behind the lens rather than in the public eye—Burns has blazed his unique sensibility on public understanding of America’s history. All the Burns hallmarks are present: the sonorous narrator (Peter Coyote); the stirring music; the slow panning, zooming camera angles; the constellation of actors, historians, and biographers. Franklin himself is voiced by the Broadway actor Mandy Patinkin with gravelly dignity. Knowing the identity of the actor, however, made me half-expect to hear Franklin break into song at every unexpected turn. Other parts are voiced by Hollywood stars including Liam Neeson and Paul Giamatti, the latter reprising his role as the testy John Adams from the 2008 HBO miniseries of the same name. The gallery of historical talking heads is similarly first-class, featuring such luminaries as Isaacson, Gordon S. Wood, Joseph Ellis, Joyce Chaplin, H.W. Brands, and the late, great Harvard historian Bernard Bailyn in one of his last public appearances. Viewers expecting a home run won’t be too disappointed. In truth, Benjamin Franklin is not the best Ken Burns documentary, but it seems churlish to gripe when the standard is so consistently high. Burns’s masterpieces—from The Civil War to more recent treatments of the Vietnam War and of Country Music—spin familiar strands into a rich tapestry of American history. They work best on an epic scale. Clocking in at four hours, Benjamin Franklin is certainly thorough, but lacks the panoramic qualities of Burn’s longer work, rooted in the experiences of ordinary American men and women. Reportedly, Burns is at work on a new multi-part retelling of the American Revolution, scheduled for release in 2025 and the 250th anniversary of the War of Independence. In this case, Benjamin Franklin may be only a foretaste of this bigger project, but fans of Burns’s unmistakable style will still enjoy this fresh look at an American icon. *** Currently, Benjamin Franklin is free to stream online at pbs.org (no annoying ads; no subscription required): https://www.pbs.org/kenburns/benjamin-franklin/ Grade: A-
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This month The Extraordinary Times caught up with Ray Rechenberg, a 38-year resident of Hamilton and a 2008 retiree of Square D/ Schneider Electric in Oxford, Ohio. Ray’s business expertise was in the sales and marketing as well as the teaching of the company’s electrical products. About the time he retired from business, Ray discovered a community singing tradition known as Sacred Harp (“shape-note”) Singing. He has been immersed in the tradition ever since, singing the music in places as distant as New England, Alabama and Georgia, California, and Washington, and even overseas in Germany; and sings regularly with groups in Dayton, Cincinnati, and Columbus
* For readers who may be unfamiliar, what is the Sacred Harp tradition? “Sacred Harp” is actually the name of the book that we sing from. The true (“generic”) name of the tradition is actually “shape note” singing. It is a method of acapella singing with no instruments involved at all; the only “harp” is your voice, the harp given to you by God. The basic method was developed in 11th century Italy when a music theorist used different shape noteheads to distinguish the notes of a scale on a page of music. The method came to America from Europe in the late 1700s and was prominent in New England to teach congregants to sing better in church. The tradition fell out of favor in New England but spread to the southern states where it was kept alive (but under wraps) for 150 years. From 1800-1950, there were many “singing school masters” who conducted 1–2-week instructional classes throughout the south on how to sing the music using a 4-shape system. It had a re-awakening in the folk revival and festivals of the 1960s and has now spread nationally and globally via the internet. It is not like a Civil War re-enactment or a hobby, but rather a vibrant, modern, and continually maintained method of gathering people together for pleasant interaction around a shared passion. The tradition today uses a 4-shape system where a triangle represents a “FA,” an oval represents a “SO,” a rectangle represents a “LA,” and a diamond represents a “MI.” Rather than the “do-re-mi” scale we are accustomed to (with all round noteheads), the shape note 8-note musical scale would be sung FA-SO-LA-FA-SO-LA-MI-FA as we read those shapes on the sheet of music. * What is the root of your own enthusiasm for shape note singing? I sang in choirs for nearly 50 years; High School, US Navy, and church choirs … but had never learned to read music, always relying on the person next to me to hit the right notes! As I retired from business, I also had retired from my church choir, because as age had taken over, I could no longer hit the high notes and I could no longer sing softly when the music called for it. Then I discovered shape note/ Sacred Harp Singing where learning to read music with 4 simple shapes is MUCH easier. Also, the tradition is very democratic, warm, and welcoming. There are no auditions or rehearsals, and we do not “perform” as a choir. Our gatherings are informal, and for the singing itself, we sit in a “square” with the four voice parts facing inward to a person standing in the center, leading a song of their choice from our Sacred Harp songbook. The tradition is very respectful of its elderly long-time singers and the way that those elderly have brought the tradition along, maintaining it though some hard times. Although the text of most songs is religious in nature, our gatherings are not religious at all. The powerful, soaring 4-part harmonies are what bring most people to the Singings and keeps me coming back. * How has the Sacred Harp/ shape note tradition influenced subsequent bluegrass, gospel, and country music? Mention ‘shape note’ to a performer in any of those genres and you will get at least a head nod. It was seemingly present in all of their youth as so many of those performers were exposed to it at the same time, they found their first interest in the pickin’ on the family front porch. Shape note singing was one of the earliest musical influences on Bill Monroe, the father of bluegrass music. It was a prime learning tool for The Cathedrals, one of gospel music’s most prominent groups of the last 50 years. Country music stars The Delmore Brothers and the Louvin Brothers both allude to their upbringing with shape note music. The intricate 2-3-4 part harmonies of many stars today were founded on their exposure to shape note/ Sacred Harp Singing. * How can readers get involved with this music, or find out more information? Go to a “Singing.” This is not music to be consumed like listening to a rock concert or even a symphony. It is participative music, where yes, you can listen for a while, but then you’ll find yourself joining right in! The tradition is practiced in most states of the USA and in many cities within any of the states. Just Google “Sacred Harp (city/state)” and find an event nearby. The best resource for all aspects of Sacred Harp singing is fasola.org, where you can find various essays, links, and Q&A on this marvelous experience. *** Note: among many representations, here is a good YouTube video explain the workings of one Singing in North Carolina. |
AuthorMatthew Smith, PhD (History). Public Programs at Miami University Regionals. Historian of Appalachia, the Ohio Valley, & the early American republic. Archives
February 2024
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