My name is Michaela Natal, I’m a 29-year-old shapenote singer in New Haven, Connecticut!  When Kerry came to me with the opportunity to sing some old music that has no recordings and is not on the internet, I jumped at the opportunity!  That’s the kind of thing I love doing - multitrack recording, amateur archiving, making connections between music and history.  And the Bay Psalm Book is important to shapenote history indeed - specifically the ninth edition from 1698, which contained the first music printed in the Colonies.  The thirteen printed tunes are in two-part harmony; the noteheads resemble diamonds; each tune is paired with a Psalm.  Throughout the 1700s, these tunes were sung in churches, where the Deacon or other leader would give a key (no pitchpipe allowed).  Few people at this time could read music, much less sing accurately in parts.  The resulting sound was a “drawling, quavering discord” according to Founding Father John Adams.  I hope that my two-track recordings are slightly better than that!