A growing collection of videos documenting singings from Raymond C. Hamrick’s Georgian Harmony is now available online:
https://www.youtube.com/@georgianharmony/videos
The material falls broadly into two categories: multi-hour singings and recordings of individual tunes. Both are valuable. The former preserves the lived context of the music, while the latter allows closer engagement with specific compositions.
Hamrick (1915–2014) was one of the most significant modern contributors to the Sacred Harp tradition, composing across decades with a distinctive harmonic voice and an ear for singability. The Georgian Harmony gathers a substantial body of his work—eventually expanding to nearly 180 songs—and reflects not only his output but the collaborative, iterative process by which singers helped shape and refine the music.
What makes this video effort particularly meaningful is that it goes beyond preservation. Recordings of this repertoire have existed in scattered locations, but bringing them together in a structured, accessible way lowers the barrier to entry for singers who may not have regular access to Georgian Harmony singings, which are rare and tend to be regional.
We are grateful to those who are taking the time and care not only to document this material, but to make it widely available.
Further Reading & Resources
- Georgian Harmony YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/@georgianharmony/videos - The Making of The Georgian Harmony
https://sacredharp.com/2016/12/31/the-making-of-the-georgian-harmony/ - Raymond C. Hamrick’s Contributions to Sacred Harp Singing and Scholarship
https://sacredharp.com/2016/12/31/raymond-c-hamricks-contributions-to-sacred-harp-singing-and-scholarship/ - Raymond C. Hamrick Obituary (The Guardian)
https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2015/jan/25/raymond-c-hamrick-obituary
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