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Monday, June 19, 2006

How to sing -- Ephraim Rotewell

In early America, the "New Way" of singing -- by reading music and following "rules" -- was a threat many a New Englander feared.

"The new Singers will bring in Popery upon us before we are aware of it. Truly, I have a great jealousy, that if we once begin to sing by Rule, the next thing will be to pray by Rule, and preach by Rule; we must have Common Prayer, Forsooth, and then comes Popery."

-- Ephraim Rotewell, New England Courant, March 20, 1722

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