The Wilderness and Cities Raise Their Voices: Catholic Musical Culture in Early American Life (Catholic Practice in the Americas)

Explores the great diversity of Catholic people and musical styles in the early American Republic from the wilderness of Maine, through the bustling cities of Boston to Baltimore, among immigrants from France and Haiti, to the rolling hills of Kentucky. As the first comprehensive look at Early American Catholic musical culture, The Wilderness and Cities Raise Their Voices provides a broader perspective than earlier studies of specific hymn collections.It thereby opens a new vista into the variety of Catholic music in the young nation. Rather than focusing simply on repertoire, this is the first study of Catholic musical culture between the years of 1783 and 1830. This study focuses on five cities which would become the first dioceses in the United States: Baltimore, Boston, Bardstown, Philadelphia, and New York.In some cities, bishops took a great interest in music: Cheverus in Boston and David in Bardstown, for example.In other cities, it was the laity who took control, notably in Phi