A choir ( KWIRE; also known as a chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words is the music performed by the ensemble. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which spans from the medieval era to the present, or popular music repertoire. Most choirs are led by a conductor, who leads the performances with arm, hand, and facial gestures.
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 varies 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.
Sir John Milford Rutter is an English composer, conductor, editor, arranger, and record producer, mainly of choral music.
"His Eye Is on the Sparrow" is a gospel hymn written in 1905 by lyricist Civilla D. Martin and composer Charles H. Gabriel. It is most associated with actress-singer Ethel Waters who used the title for her autobiography. Tanya Blount & Lauryn Hill recorded the song for the Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit soundtrack in 1993. Jessica Simpson's version was included as the final track on her 2001 album Irresistible. Mahalia Jackson's recording of the song was honored with the Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 2010. Whitney Houston's recording of the song, one of the singer's last to be recorded before her death in 2012, was released off the soundtrack of the film, Sparkle, and became a posthumous number one Billboard single off one of the gospel singles charts.
Ralph Carmichael was an American composer and arranger of both secular pop music and contemporary Christian music. He is regarded as one of the pioneers of contemporary Christian music.
Mervyn Edwin Warren is an American film composer, record producer, conductor, arranger, lyricist, songwriter, pianist, and vocalist. Warren is a five-time Grammy Award winner and a 10-time Grammy Award nominee. Warren has written the underscore and songs for many feature and television films. He has also written arrangements in a variety of musical styles for producers Quincy Jones, David Foster, Arif Mardin, and dozens of popular recording artists, including extensive work on Jones' Back on the Block,Q's Jook Joint, and Q: Soul Bossa Nostra.
Eric Harding Thiman was an English composer, conductor and organist. The surname is pronounced 'tea-man'. By 1939 he was considered one of the leading non-conformist organists in England. His choral and educational music is still performed today.
Kurt Frederic Kaiser was an American contemporary church music composer and arranger.
Robert Houston Bright was a composer of American music, known primarily for his choral works. The best-known of these is an original spiritual "I Hear a Voice A-Prayin'," but he wrote dozens of highly regarded pieces over the course of his career, including a number of instrumental compositions. Bright was, among his peers, well known and respected as a composer, choral director, and professor. He spent his entire academic career in the Music Department of West Texas State College.
Geoffrey Turton Shaw was an English composer and musician specialising in Anglican church music. After Cambridge, where he was an organ scholar, he became a schoolmaster, then a schools inspector, while producing a stream of compositions, arrangements, and published collections of music. He was awarded the Lambeth degree of Doctor of Music.
Luigi Zaninelli is an Italian-American composer of vocal and instrumental music.
Conrad Baden was a Norwegian organist, composer, music educator, and music critic. He had an extensive production of orchestral works, chamber music, vocal works and church music.
Erna Woll was a German composer, church musician and author.
Ken Burton is a British choral and orchestral conductor, composer, performer, producer, presenter, arranger and judge, widely known for his work and appearances on UK television programmes, particularly BBC1 Songs Of Praise, on which he appears regularly as a conductor, musical director, arranger, singer, judge, music producer, and music consultant. He has conducted and directed choirs for major films, including the multi Oscar winning and Grammy winning Marvel film Black Panther,Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever, Candy Cane Lane (Amazon) Holiday Road (Hallmark), is one of the credited choral conductors on the film Jingle Jangle and has also contributed as a conductor, contractor, and singer to a number of other films including Amazing Grace, and Ugly Dolls.
John Prindle Scott was an American author, lecturer, educator and composer of art songs.
Alexander Richard William L'Estrange is an English composer of choral music and music for television and an arranger for vocal ensembles. He is also a jazz musician, choral workshop leader, presenter of children's concerts and was a jazz examiner and trainer for ABRSM.
Garth William Smith is a pianist/composer/musician accomplished in several styles of music including rock, country, classical and jazz. His current endeavor is creating spiritually uplifting piano arrangements of popular LDS Hymns. After living for many years in Oceanside, California, he currently resides in Bella Vista, Arkansas, and is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Emma Louise Ashford was an American organist, composer, and music editor. She wrote over 600 compositions. From 1894 to 1930 she was an editor at Lorenz Publishing Company, and at its periodicals The Choir Leader and The Organist.
"Somebody's Knocking at Your Door", sometimes given as "Somebody's Knocking" and "Somebody's Knockin ' at Yo' Door", is a spiritual. The song's music and text has no known author, but originated among enslaved African-Americans on Plantation complexes in the Southern United States sometime in the early 19th century.
