Questions for Miller 2004

How did you go about dealing with the tension created between the written and oral aspects of Sacred Harp tradition?  I would assume this tension is always present, but it seems that the privileged status and importance of the song book makes it especially important in this context.  Was it difficult to try and represent the performance in a visual medium given the two contrasting facets of the tradition?

What makes one singer higher status than another?  In many singing cultures, skill is an important ranking factor.  However, one of the things Sacred Harp singers pride themselves upon is their openness to singers of all experience levels and natural ability.  While experience can be gained, it seems as though Sacred Harp leadership would be dependent on things important to its culture, rather than other cultures--range, for example, is less important, given that the songs are all transposable.  So what things do make one person a higher ranking singer than another?  

Discussion Question:

This article described how a group of singers revise the book that then becomes the standard for the entire community.  Does this republican form of tradition-editing stifle the natural ability of a culture to progress at its own rate, or is this just the method of this culture progressing naturally?