Morton Gould's Spirituals for string choir and orchestra was the first of his orchestral works to enter the repertory. While the piece does not make use of actual spiritual melodies, the idea of the spiritual seems to have given Gould the impetus to compose an open, energetic, communicative, and above all, spirited work. The individual sections of the work evoke aspects of African American life and history. Gould preferred the designation "for string choir and orchestra" in describing the work's medium because he planned to use the strings like a vocal choir in an orchestral context. This technique is obvious from the very opening of the work's first section, "Proclamation," as the strings make a wordless, resolute declamation in between harsh snaps of the snare drum. While the music becomes somewhat more introspective later, moving into a beautiful, quiet section where cellos alternate with violins, the mood—somewhere between anguish and rage—stays the same. This mood dissipates only with the coming of the "Sermon" section, written for strings alone; this section is simple, lyrical, and consoling, speaking of a peace yet to come. There are occasional hints of blue notes in the long-breathed melodies, but the following section, "A Little Bit of Sin," provides the first recognizable orchestral blues (and with a reference to an actual African American folk melody, "Shortnin' Bread"). As the title hints, this section is humorous; Gould uses quirky percussion and throws the melody to various instruments for extra comic effect. The next section, "Protest," begins with sharp brass dissonances and eventually works up to a relentless march rhythm that is juxtaposed with a sorrowful but defiant melody in the violins. (It is worth investigating how American audiences reacted to this work at a time when African American men were being conscripted to fight for a country that denied them basic civil rights.) This section ends on a chilling dissonance, but the mood is immediately dispelled by the following "Jubilee" and the joyous village dance that opens it. The string choir takes up a contemplative melody which is made exuberant with rhythm and brass, and eventually the music speeds up to an almost orgiastic rhythm before closing on a huge coda. Gould was at his best when working with American materials; his open-hearted temperament and love of African American music are both apparent in this work.

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