Spartanburg boasts a rich musical heritage. The rocking Marshall Tucker Band, country music legend Charlie Daniels and Don Reno, considered the greatest banjo player ever, trace their roots to Spartanburg.

None of them, however, surpass the achievements of Spartanburg's "Singin' Billy" Walker. The preacher, songwriter and music teacher was one of the most widely read and celebrated musicians of the 19th century. Today, however, only a few recognize Walker's name, but his contributions have endured.

In 1835, Walker published "Southern Harmony," a 336-page hymnal that included "Amazing Grace," "Rock of Ages" and "I Am Bound for the Promised Land." The oblong-shaped book revolutionized church singing, particularly in the rural South, and sold 600,000 copies. In many parts of the United States, "Southern Harmony" was second only to the Bible in popularity.

"The 'Southern Harmony' and his name, the name of the distinguished author, are as familiar as household duties in the habitations of the South," wrote a music critic. The book generated such publicity that Walker, in an effort to distinguish himself from others with the same name, began to sign his name "W. Walker, A.S.H.," indicating that he was the author of "Southern Harmony."

Walker achieved his greatest fame as a music teacher by developing a system of simple shaped notes that made it easy for rural folks with little formal education to sing songs from a hymnbook. In shape-note music the note heads are shaped in triangles, squares, circles and diamonds. The simple shapes indicate the relative position of a note on the scale.

During the years before the Civil War, Walker crisscrossed the country conducting "singing schools" at churches. His influence was pervasive. Hymn singing became much more a vital part of Sunday worship services. People often sang hymns in their homes, in the fields, at front porch gatherings and on the village green.

Until the publication of "Southern Harmony," most church hymns were simply passed down from generation to generation and performed from memory. Few churches had music directors or choir programs. Walker's arrival in small rural communities was often a major event. His "singing schools" would sometimes last more than a week and involve hundreds of church parishioners. In his wake remained trained choirs and music directors to carry on the tradition of shape-note singing.

A singing-school teacher in French Camp, Mississippi, wrote: "Thousands and thousands have blessed the name of William Walker. He has sent the 'Southern Harmony' into almost every home in our Southern land, breaking the fallow ground and creating at least, if nothing more, an incentive, a desire, a thirsting for sacred music in masses."

Walker, who was born in Union County and later moved to the Cedar Springs community in Spartanburg County with his family, wrote his first hymn, "Solemn Call," when he was 18. Although he penned some of the hymns in "Southern Harmony," many, including "Amazing Grace," were traditional songs that he collected and set to music.

"Southern Harmony" and Walker's subsequent hymnals brought him a fortune, yet he donated much of his income to charity. He lived a simple life with his wife and 10 children in Spartanburg, where he operated a bookstore. He died in 1875 at the age of 67.

Like worship, shape-note singing is an activity, not a performance. Singers gather in a "hollowed square." There is no director. A member simply stands up to set the tone and start the next hymn. No musical instruments are used. The solid rhymes of shape-note singing are unrefined, raw and passionate. The first rule of shape-note singing is to sing as loud as possible. Participants hurl their songs with roof-raising force. The vibrant music is intended to attract a crowd.

An 1866 gathering at Pleasant Hill Church in Paulding County, Georgia, drew 8,000 singers, who drank three wells dry. During the early 1900s the primitive sound of shape-note singing, with its haunting open intervals, gave way to conventional musical notation and modern harmony. Most churches hired organists, and unaccompanied singing died away. Shape-note singing survived only in the rural South, usually in churches too poor to afford organs or pianos.

In recent years, shape-note music has enjoyed a resurgence. Modern day gatherings include fellowship, food and foot-stomping music. For the past several years, shape-note singers have gathered each April at Wofford College to pay tribute to Walker by singing around his grave located at nearby Magnolia Cemetery.

On Saturday, May 10, Furman will host a gathering of shape-note singers from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Herring Music Pavilion, adjacent to McAlister Auditorium. Bring lunch and experience this soul-stirring music. It is a wellspring of our past that will get your blood flowing and make you new friends. In the shape-note community, there are no outsiders.