Beginning in 1564, when Huguenot settlers in Florida shared their psalm tunes with the local Indians, Professor Stevenson traces the history of Protestant church music in the United States through four centuries of development and diversity.

In this thoroughly documented survey, the reader will find the fruits of the most recent researches in into the history of music in America: the Puritans of New England and their psalm books; the Germans in Pennsylvania; Francis Hopkinson, composer and signer of the Declaration of Independence; William Billings and the fuging-tune composers; and developments within the various denominations up to the present day, ranging from gospel hymnody to the works of Roger Sessions and Randall Thompson.

A number of representative musical examples are included, and there is an extensive bibliography for the reader who wishes to examine further any aspect of the vast and fascinating subject that Professor Stevenson has so expertly surveyed.