Saloni Jain 01089805

CONCERT PAPER 2

The Gospel Explosion concert took place on November 16th 2018 at Batten Arts and Letters in

Room 1012. The concert was from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM and featured four choirs which each

sang three songs. The four main choirs were: The Ebony Impact Gospel Choir of ODU, the

Longwood Choir, the Children’s Choir, and the Old’s Group. The Choir leader’s name for the

Ebony Impact Gospel Choir of ODU was Michael Smith, however, he didn’t play the role of a

traditional conductor. His primary role was to direct the choir with his voice and energize the

crowd.

The instruments that were used were: drum kit, keyboard, guitar, and bass. There was a wide

variety of voices from soprano, alto, tenor, and bass. The purpose of this concert was to celebrate

Jesus. The general reaction to this concert was very positive because everyone was visibly

excited. It was an informal environment which was why the concert was a success, since anyone

who knew the song could join in. The performances were new to me as I have never heard

Gospel music before. I personally found them quite spiritual and energetic. The musicians where

rhythmically together and everyone was in tune. There was no voice that stuck out except for the

choir director’s.

The musician’s technical ability was great, they sang in tune and their energy energized the

audience. They were well prepared for the concert as they had been preparing for the last month.

My favorite composition was “When All God’s Children”, which was sung by the Ebony Impact

Gospel Choir of ODU. I felt that song was the most powerful and got the crowd together and

involved. By the end of the concert, there was a lot of positive energy in the room, and I felt

more connected to God. This was my first experience with Gospel music and it was empowering.
Saloni Jain 01089805

I was not expecting so much energy from both the crowd and the choir. The entire audience was

standing and clapping throughout the performance.

The genre of this concert was Choral Gospel Music. The overall mood was uplifting and

positive. Throughout the concert, the pitch of the music had a high timbre, and the higher the

pitch went, the more enthusiastic the audience got. Each piece had a consistent dynamic level,

which allowed the composition to maintain it’s energy. All the songs had a fast tempo which

would range under “presto”, and the tone color for the overall concert was bright. Each song had

consonant harmonies and melodies.

The main theme was to appreciate God and how he helped in times of need. The texture of the

song was mainly homophonic. I had noticed that despite the homophonic nature of the piece, it

still maintained the attention of the audience. Typically, pieces become more interesting the

more complex they are, but Gospel music approaches this differently. It utilized clapping as a

way to make the audience a part of the music.

This concert was completely different from the Wind Ensemble which I attended in September.

The Wind Ensemble was more formal, which didn’t allow for audience interaction. This concert

was completely the opposite. Everyone in the audience was informal. They were standing and

cheering for their peers and singing along. There was no formal conductor for this concert.

People just went with the music. There was a really good relationship between the audience and

the performers mainly because the people went to the same church and knew each other. The

performers were always encouraging the audience to clap and sing along if they knew the song

and wanted them to be involved and “feel the presence of God around them”.
Saloni Jain 01089805