 The African-American spiritual There is a Balm in Gilead offers another musical reminder of the power of God to heal the brokenness in our lives. We hear an arrangement now by William L. Dawson, a prominent 20th century African-American composer and arranger whose settings of spirituals have become mainstays of the genre. Dawson is the conductor who helped to bring the Tuskegee Institute Choir to international prominence as an ensemble.