Richard DeLong

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Richard DeLong is a leading figure in contemporary Sacred Harp singing. He has taught frequently in singing schools and served as the youngest member of the editorial board that created the 1991 Revision of The Sacred Harp, the most widely used book for Sacred Harp singing.

DeLong is a "traditional" Sacred Harp singer, meaning that he became a singer by participating as a child, learning from other singers in the rural Southern singing community in which Sacred Harp music is rooted. He relates that he was carried to his first singing by his grandmother, Dollie DeLong Hudgins, at the age of six months.^[1]

According to the web site of the 2004 Garden State Sacred Harp Singing Convention,^[2] DeLong "has taught more than 60 singing schools throughout the U.S. and was invited to teach Sacred Harp singing in England in 2000. He has also written articles on the history of Sacred Harp and its singers as well as producing several CDs. He participated in the recording session for the recent Civil War movie Cold Mountain."

DeLong serves as First Vice President of the Sacred Harp Publishing Company, the publishers of the 1991 Edition.^[3] He is the composer of two songs in this volume, "Big Creek" (p. 494, 1986) and "Corley" (p. 510, 1988; with John Wilson).^[4]

DeLong is frequently seen at singing conventions^[5], including those outside the traditional Southern territory of Sacred Harp. His own singing voice, familiar to many singers, is a robust and powerful tenor.

In his work life DeLong is a high school economics teacher in Carrollton, Georgia.^[6]