Traditional black gospel

===Golden age (1940s&ndash;1950s)===
The new gospel music composed by Dorsey and others proved very important among quartets, who began turning in a new direction. Groups such as [[the Dixie Hummingbirds]], [[Pilgrim Travelers]], [[Soul Stirrers]], [[Swan Silvertones]], [[Sensational Nightingales]] and [[Five Blind Boys of Mississippi]] introduced even more stylistic freedom to the close harmonies of jubilee style, adding [[ad lib]]s and using repeated short phrases in the background to maintain a rhythmic base for the innovations of the lead singers. Melodically, gospel songs from this era were more diatonic and conjunct. As "the spirit leads the vocalist" the melodies would become more chromatic and disjunct, evoking pure spiritual emotion that was congruent with the accompanying body or musicians.<ref>Boyer, H: "Gospel Music", page 35. Music Educators Journal, 1978.</ref>

Individual singers also stood out more as jubilee turned to "hard gospel" and as soloists began to shout more and more, often in falsettos anchored by a prominent bass. Quartet singers combined both individual virtuoso performances and innovative harmonic and rhythmic invention&mdash;what Ira Tucker Sr. and [[Paul Owens (gospel singer)|Paul Owens]] of the Hummingbirds called "trickeration"&mdash;that amplified both the emotional and musical intensity of their songs.

By the 1940s, gospel music had expanded to members of all denominations prompting Black gospel artists to begin tours and becoming full-time musicians. In this venture [[Sister Rosetta Tharpe]] became a pioneer, initially selling millions of records with her ability to drive audiences into hysteria by sliding and bending her pitch as well as accompanying herself on steel guitar.<ref>Boyer, H: "Gospel Music", page 38. Music Educators Journal, 1978.</ref> In contrast, [[Mahalia Jackson]] used her dusky contralto voice to develop her gospel ballads as well as favouring a more joyful approach to singing the [[gospel]]. [[W. Herbert Brewster]] wrote "[[Move on Up a Little Higher]]" Jackson's first hit.

At the same time that quartet groups were reaching their zenith in the 1940s and 1950s, a number of women singers were achieving stardom. Some, such as Mahalia Jackson and [[Bessie Griffin]], were primarily soloists, while others, such as [[Clara Ward]], [[Albertina Walker]], [[The Caravans]], [[The Davis Sisters]] and [[Dorothy Love Coates]], sang in small groups. While some groups, such as The Ward Singers, employed the sort of theatrics and daring group dynamics that male quartet groups used, for the most part women gospel singers relied instead on overpowering technique and dramatic personal witness to establish themselves.

[[Roberta Martin]] in Chicago stood apart from other women gospel singers in many respects. She led groups that featured both men and women singers, employed an understated style that did not stress individual virtuosity, and sponsored a number of individual artists, such as [[James Cleveland]], who went on to change the face of gospel in the decades that followed.