“Carden, Allen D. The Missouri Harmony or A Collection of Psalm and Hymn Tunes, and Anthems: An Introduction to the Grounds and Rudiments of Music to Which Is Added a Supplement. University of Nebraska Press, 1994.
This is a fine reprint of this famous collection. From an already established practice around the country at the time it was originally published (early 1820s), this book was intended for itinerant music teachers to offer local areas music instruction. A “frontier tune book” (Introduction). Scholarly republication of this book comes with stunning scholarly commentary by Shirley Bean.
The importance of a book like this, along with the “tradition” of singing schools in early pre-United States and U.S. settling of the country, to the subject of music as used in war is that it shows how important music was to the psychological well-being of settlers. These same settlers were drawn upon to fight the British in the Revolutionary War, while they and their descendants in subsequent wars. The importance of music in the life of settlers helps to understand that no matter how hard-scrabble their lives were, eking out livings in the most challenging of situations, music still held importance. These challenging situations – ala Plumb’s descriptions – and the pursuit of music despite those challenges, may afford clues as to the psychology of being in military situations, both in training and in combat. Those military situations also being physically, mentally, and spiritually challenging. What does the pursuit of music do for those in such situations? Provide relief? Inspiration? And what forms does that relief and inspiration take?
From Maia’s Books and Misc. website (MaiasBooks.com):
Shirley Bean points out in her introduction the importance of tunebooks and frontier singing schools in teaching Americans to read music. “The Missouri Harmony,” continuing the European tradition of shaped notes, contained the largest collection of compositions for congregations and choirs. Carden included thirty-seven fuguing tunes, among them “Lenox” and “Sherburne.” The Supplement, added in the seventh edition in 1835, contains twenty-three hymn tunes, four choral numbers, a sacred song, and a duet; Isaac Watts was the author of most of the texts.
“This Bison Book edition duplicates the 1846 reprint of the popular ninth edition, which first came out in 1840. Shirley Bean’s introduction provides a historical framework that will be welcomed not only by scholars but also by the modern shape-note singing community (Maia’s Books & Misc.).
Works Cited
“The Missouri Harmony: or a Collection of Psalm and Hymn Tunes, and Anthems.” Maia’s Books & Misc, 2020, https://www.maiasbooks.com/product/14222/The-Missouri-Harmony-or-a-Collection-of-Psalm-and-Hymn-Tunes-and-Anthems-Allen-D-Carden-Introduction-by-Shirley-Bean.
Music and War 
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