Elder Joseph Brackett and Shaker song, Simple Gifts

New England Song Series No. 4:

Joseph Brackett's "Simple Gifts"

Portrait of Elder Joseph Brackett Jr., 1797-1882

Source:
The Aletheia:Spirit of Truth
by Aurelia G. Mace.
Farmington, Maine:
Press of the Knowlton & McLeary Co., 1907

Did you know that "Simple Gifts" is not a hymn?

Read about this popular Shaker song by clicking on these links:

The Story Behind "Simple Gifts" (multimedia DVD)
Simple Words for a Simple Song
Simple Gifts Music
Joseph Brackett Day
New Arrangement For A New U.S. President
Simple Gifts On Film
Simple Gifts CD Arrangements (Recommended & Not Recommended)
Related Links

Message to Internet Readers:

Should you use any of the information on this page on your web site, in a research paper, publication, or a performance, kindly give proper credit to the author,
Roger Lee Hall, who is the foremost authority on this Shaker song and has written about it for over 30 years.

Thank you.

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THE STORY BEHIND "SIMPLE GIFTS"

Now available as a multimedia DVD

Now you can find out about this beautiful Shaker song in an illustrated multimedia publication on a DVD disc, written by Roger L. Hall, a composer and ethnomusicologist who is one of the foremost authorities on Shaker music.

He has researched and written about this Shaker song for over thirty years. He first wrote about the song in an article published in 1980, which was included in a small booklet in 1987. Later, it was expanded into a more extensive monograph. Now it has been revised and further expanded in the book on DVD titled,

THE STORY OF 'SIMPLE GIFTS':
Joseph Brackett's Shaker Dance Song
(PineTree Press, 2010)

Here are the contents of this book available as a Microsoft Word document and pdf:

Introduction: A World of "Simple Gifts"

Part One: 18th Century

1. From England to America
2. Early Song Types

Part Two: 19th Century

3. The Dance Song
4. The Gift Song
5. Biography of Elder Joseph Brackett
6. “Simple Gifts” and “The True Vine” (with edited music examples)

Part Three: 20th Century

7. Timeline and Chronological Survey
8. An Interview with Aaron Copland
9. Aaron Copland’s “Simple Gifts”
10. Sydney Carter’s “Lord of the Dance”

Bibliography
Recordings
About the Author

This revised multimedia edition of the book also contains these bonus features:

Audio: several different recordings of "Simple Gifts" from a radio program with guest, Roger Hall; interviews with composer, Aaron Copland, and Sister Mildred Barker from the last Shaker community in Sabbathday Lake, Maine.
Video: "Simple Gifts" performed in the Meeting House of Shaker Village, Pleasant Hill, Kentucky, with harpist, Diane Schneider, and singer, Roger Hall.

To order the multimedia DVD-R disc, readable on your computer but not on a DVD player, go to the Store.

Read the interview by David Crumm speaking
with author Roger Hall about his "Simple Gifts" book
at

Read the Spirit.com

Simple Words for a Simple Song

By Roger Lee Hall

"Simple Gifts" has become one of America's most popular religious folk songs. It has been performed in schools, churches, concert halls and homes all across the USA and in other countries. Yet, unfortunately there have been so many errors associated with "Simple Gifts" that it is time "we come round right."

Here are six questions and answers about this popular Shaker song:

First - What are the correct lyrics?

Many books continue to distribute the wrong lyrics. It needs to be emphasized that the beginning of the original song is NOT -- "Tis a gift to be simple, tis a gift to be free." That one word has been changed by singers and arrangers over the years.

It should be: "Tis the gift to be simple, tis the gift to be free."

To the Shakers, that one word makes a big difference! They are talking about the gift of their faith, not just any gift.

These are the complete words to "Simple Gifts":

'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free,
'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.
When true simplicity is gain'd,
To bow and to bend we shan't be asham'd,
To turn, turn will be our delight
'Till by turning, turning we come round right.

Second - How should it be classified?

"Simple Gifts" is usually identified incorrectly, identifying it as a "Shaker hymn" or as a "work-song-hymn" as at I Hear America Singing.

Actually, it's neither a hymn nor a work song.

Shaker hymns usually have two or more verses of text, and Shaker songs have only one verse. Since "Simple Gifts" has only one verse, it should be classified as a song. Also the extra verses are NOT original Shaker words but added later by non-Shaker versifiers, as in this version of Simple Gifts.

Now notice the last two lines...

To turn, turn will be our delight
'Till by turning, turning we come round right.

These words are dance instructions. Several Shaker manuscripts identify this tune as
a "Dancing Song" or a "Quick Dance."

Third - Doesn't it sound like another tune?

The tune for "Simple Gifts" has been compared to many other pieces, such as the second movement ("Friss") of Bela Bartok's First Rhapsody for violin and orchestra in 1928. Though there are similarities in the opening theme of the Bartok work and the Shaker tune, there are no connections between the two. "Simple Gifts" has also been compared to various non-Shaker folk tunes. As with many simple tunes, it is merely a musical coincidence and there is no connection.

The only direct connections are the many arrangements of the song for voice and instruments, including folk arrangements by George and Gerry Armstrong and Judy Collins.

But the Shaker song is known worldwide because of Aaron Copland, whose arrangements have been performed all over the world. Probably the best known example is the orchestral variations of "Simple Gifts" in his ballet score, Appalachian Spring, one of the greatest classical works of the 20th century. Copland also arranged the song for solo voice and piano (later orchestrated) in his First Set of Old American Songs.

Fourth - Who wrote it and in what year?

Many authors have failed to identify Elder Joseph Brackett Jr. as the composer of "Simple Gifts" and also give the wrong date when it was written.

The Shakers have long believed that Elder Joseph wrote the song. Some authors have written he wrote the song in 1875, including in Eminent Mainers, by Arthur Douglas Stover, and also in the best-selling CD by the Boston Camerata, Simple Gifts: Shaker Chants and Spirituals. That date of 1875 is incorrect.

In an article by Sister R. Mildred Barker in 1967, she mentions Elder Joseph as the composer of this dance song. She had lived her youth at the Alfred Shaker community, and learned that Elder Joseph's song was written there. There is also evidence in Shaker manuscripts [included in THE STORY OF SIMPLE GIFTS].

This is the correct information:

Elder Joseph Brackett's "Simple Gifts" is a dance song written in 1848
at the Shaker community in Alfred, Maine.

Fifth - Wasn't it based on "Lord of the Dance"?

Some have claimed that the Shaker song was based on another song, "Lord of the Dance." It was actually the other way round.

"Lord of the Dance" was based on the Shaker melody, with new words and arranged tune by British songwriter, Sydney Carter, and first published in 1963. This song has become enormously popular as well. Yet, as with"Simple Gifts," it is often incorrectly identified.

Pass the word along (especially to musicians and journalists) that "Simple Gifts" was a dance song written by Elder Joseph Brackett and "Lord of the Dance" was a folk song written by Sydney Carter. Both are wonderful songs and deserve to be credited properly.

Sixth - Since it is in public domain, does it still need to be credited?

It is often assumed that because "Simple Gifts" is in public domain, it can be copied from any book or collection without giving any credit. NOT TRUE!

Any published version of this Shaker song should be credited to the author, editor or arranger whose name usually appears at the top of the page or on the title page of the book.

This has become a disturbing practice with "Simple Gifts" being uncredited or listed as a "traditional Shaker hymn," instead of indicating who wrote it, who edited it, and who arranged it.

When in doubt, it is best to credit whatever source you use for your performance, publication, or recording.

An attractive broadside (8 1/2 X 11)
with the words and music to the Shaker song
on heavy cover stock
is available for display or gift-giving.

To order this colorful broadside, go to the

Store

Read the interview by David Crumm speaking
with author Roger Hall about "Simple Gifts" at

Read the Spirit.com

For a very good description about "Simple Gifts" and later arrangements
by Aaron Copland, Judy Collins and even a few recent music groups,
see John Simpson's blog:

What's in a Song: Simple Gifts

Simple Gifts Music

The following CDs and music collections are available from this web site:

"Simple Gifts" song and an exclusive interview with Aaron Copland
are included on this CD,

Gentle Words: A Shaker Music Sampler

An arrangement of "Simple Gifts" for voice and piano by Roger Hall
is included in the Music Supplement of this book with accompanying CD...

A GUIDE TO SHAKER MUSIC - With Music Supplement

This CD contains 38 Shaker spirituals, including a variant version of "Simple Gifts," and is the only one devoted to music for Christmas and the New Year, many of them recorded for the first time anywhere. The featured performers are: Randy Folger, Colleen Liggett, Kathy Leigh Johnson, Mitzie Collins, The Eastman Bach Children's Chorus, and The Sampler Chorus. There is also an accompanying songbook with all the music and extensive notes about the music and Shaker Christmas rituals by Shaker music scholar, Roger Hall, plus a list of recordings of Aaron Copland's arrrangements of "Simple Gifts."

Read more at CD and DVD Releases

Joseph Brackett Day

May 6 is Elder Joseph Brackett Day,
as listed in...

Chase's Calendar of Events 2011

Sponsored by The Tune Lovers Society, each year there is a birthday commemoration of the Shaker religious leader who wrote the words and music to "Simple Gifts."

Elder Joseph Brackett Jr. was born on May 6, 1797 in Cumberland, Maine. He died on July 4, 1882 in New Gloucester, Maine.

Listeners and musicians are urged to play or perform "Simple Gifts" on that day to honor Elder Joseph Brackett's popular song.

There are a few recommended recordings listed at CD and DVD Releases.

For more information about Joseph Brackett Day,
look under "May 6" in this well-respected annual directory:

Chase's Calendar of Events 2011

New Arrangement For A New U.S. President

A new piece by film composer John Williams titled, "Air and Simple Gifts," was premiered during the Inauguration Day ceremonies for U.S. President Barack Obama on January 20, 2009.

Watch the performance of "Air and Simple Gifts" by John Williams
at the 2009 Inauguration ceremony by violinist Itzhak Perlman,
cellist Yo-Yo Ma, clarinetist Anthony McGill, and pianist Gabriela Montero,
here on

YouTube

For two reviews of this John Williams piece,
click on these links:

Anthony Tommasini, New York Times

Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times

"Air and Simple Gifts" is now available on this 3 CD set:

The Music of America: John Williams

"Simple Gifts" On Film

Did you know the "Simple Gifts" melody was used
in a British comedy starring Peter Sellars?
The Shaker melody was arranged for this comedy
by film composer Richard Rodney Bennett.

The movie is available from Amazon.com...

Heavens Above!