Editing Gospel music (section)

{{Short description|Genre of music emphasizing Christian lyrics}}
{{Redirect|Gospel (genre)|the literary genre|Gospel|the African–American musical genre|Black Gospel music}}
{{Use American English|date=November 2022}}
{{more citations needed|date=June 2014}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Infobox music genre
| name              = Gospel music
| image             = Dartmouth Gospel Choir at the Gospel Brunch (3232282945).jpg
| image_size        = 
| caption           = The Dartmouth Gospel Choir
| stylistic_origins = {{hlist|[[Hymn#Christian hymnody|Christian hymns]]|[[spirituals]]}}
| cultural_origins  = Early 17th century, [[Scotland]]
| derivatives       = {{hlist|[[Country music|Country]]|[[rhythm and blues]]|[[soul music|soul]]|[[rock and roll]]}}
| subgenres         = [[Black gospel music|Black gospel]]
| fusiongenres      = {{hlist|[[Christian country music]]|[[gospel trap|trap gospel]]}}
| regional_scenes   = [[Southern gospel]]
| other_topics      = 
}}

'''Gospel music''' is a traditional genre of [[Christian music]] and a cornerstone of [[Christian media]]. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music vary according to culture and social context. Gospel music is composed and performed for many purposes, including aesthetic pleasure, religious or ceremonial purposes, and as an entertainment product for the marketplace. Gospel music is characterized by dominant vocals and strong use of harmony with Christian lyrics. Gospel music can be traced to the early 17th century.<ref name="Gospel History Timeline">{{cite web|title=Gospel History Timeline|url=http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/gmha/controller/timeline.htm |publisher=University of Southern California|access-date=January 31, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100921215142/http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/gmha/controller/timeline.htm|archive-date=September 21, 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[Hymn]]s and sacred songs were often performed in a [[call-and-response]] fashion, heavily influenced by ancestral African music. Most of the churches relied on hand–clapping and foot–stomping as rhythmic accompaniment. Most of the singing was done ''[[a cappella]]''.<ref name="Jackson, Joyce Marie 1995">Jackson, Joyce Marie. "The changing nature of gospel music: A southern case study." ''African American Review'' 29.2 (1995): 185. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. October 5, 2010.</ref> The first published use of the term "gospel song" appeared in 1874.

The original gospel songs were written and composed by authors such as [[George Frederick Root|George F. Root]], [[Philip Bliss]], [[Charles H. Gabriel]], [[William Howard Doane]], and [[Fanny Crosby]].<ref name="Malone_520">{{harvp|Malone|1984|p=520}}</ref> Gospel music publishing houses emerged. The advent of radio in the 1920s greatly increased the audience for gospel music. Following [[World War II]], gospel music moved into major auditoriums, and gospel music concerts became quite elaborate.<ref name="Malone_523" />

[[Black Gospel music|Black]] and [[Southern gospel]] music are largely responsible for gospel's continued presence in [[contemporary Christian music]], with [[soul music]] by far the best–known [[popular music]] variant.<ref name="McGuinness 2022">{{cite web | last=McGuinness | first=Paul | title=A Change Is Gonna Come: How Gospel Gave Birth To Soul | website=uDiscover Music | date=August 26, 2022 | url=https://www.udiscovermusic.com/in-depth-features/gospel-influenced-rhythm-n-blues/ | access-date=December 13, 2022}}</ref> The styles emerged from the [[African-American music]] and [[American folk music]] traditions and have evolved in various ways over the years, continuing to form the basis of [[Black church]] worship even today. It has also come to be used in churches of various other cultural traditions (especially within [[Pentecostalism]]), and by the gospel choir phenomenon spearheaded by [[Thomas A. Dorsey|Thomas Dorsey]], has become a form of musical devotion worldwide.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Burnim |first=Mellonee |date=1980 |title=Gospel Music Research |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/779294 |journal=Black Music Research Journal |volume=1 |pages=63–70 |doi=10.2307/779294 |jstor=779294 |issn=0276-3605|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Southern Afroamerican gospel groups used all–male, [[tenor]]–[[lead vocal|lead]]–[[baritone]]–[[bass (voice type)|bass]] quartets. [[Sensational Nightingales]], the Soul Stirrers, Swan Silvertones, and [[the Dixie Hummingbirds]] were famous gospel groups.<ref>[https://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/gospel-ma0000002622 Gospel] allmusic Retrieved 20 November 2024</ref> [[Christian country music]], sometimes referred to as country gospel music, is a subgenre of gospel music with a country flair. Famous [[Christian country music]] performers were [[Grandpa Jones]], [[Webb Pierce]], [[Porter Wagoner]], and [[the Oak Ridge Boys]].<ref>[https://www.countrymusichalloffame.org/hall-of-fame/oak-ridge-boys the Oak Ridge Boys] countrymusichalloffame.org Retrieved 30 November 2024</ref> British black gospel refers to gospel music of the [[African diaspora]] produced in the United Kingdom.