Collections
These songs were preserved through the efforts of scholars, singers, and institutions who understood what was at stake. Each collection reflects a moment in the history of how Black music has been heard, documented, and valued.
Du Bois Sorrow Songs
3 songsThe ten spirituals W.E.B. Du Bois identified in The Souls of Black Folk (1903) as the singular spiritual heritage of the nation.
Fisk Jubilee Repertoire
5 songsSongs documented by the Fisk Jubilee Singers, founded in 1871, who brought Negro spirituals to national and international audiences.
Hampton Collection
7 songsSpirituals preserved at Hampton University beginning in 1867, with particular attention to Sea Islands and Virginia Tidewater traditions.
Lomax Collection
1 songSpirituals and work songs recorded in the field by John and Alan Lomax for the Library of Congress, beginning in the 1930s.