Music for the Soul

Black sacred music has been described as the "fuel that ran the engine of the Civil Rights music," uniting people of different backgrounds. Hymns and spirituals long experienced in Black churches earned a national stage amidst marches, sit-ins and moments that forever shaped a nation. As in any visible element of change, their stories permeate culture far beyond those moments in the spotlight—and encourage still new songs of freedom, peace and unity.

Many of these songs and stories, however, were endangered. As old records warped or languished in storage bins, countless individual pieces faced permanent silence. Baylor University’s Black Gospel Music Preservation Project has stepped into that gap to ensure that the music was not only gathered and saved, but amplified.

Stephen Newby, a professor, musician and minister, was called to Baylor to further advance the interdisciplinary research and scholarship in the study and preservation of Black gospel music. His approach, like the music itself, blends numerous notes into harmony: theology, sociology, history and musicology mix together with a heart of community and hospitality. In that spirit, he guides the music toward well-deserved academic study, popular understanding and tools for spiritual insight.

“Black gospel music and worship is an integral part of the American fabric, and we get to take this music everywhere,” Newby says. “We can share it with churches, both Black and non-Black, with symphony halls and museums, or with scholars who study it with academic rigor. 

“I’m convinced that, when we hear each other’s stories from a place of transparency and authenticity, those efforts revolutionize and reform. At Baylor, we can utilize these efforts to be ambassadors for reconciliation, to bring wholeness to places that need it. This is music for the soul, and we get to share it.”