5 Significant African-American Women Composers in
Music History:
Nora Holt (1885- 1974): An accomplished singer, composer, and
music critic, she was the first African-American to receive a master’s degree
in the United States.
Florence Price (1887-1953): The first African-American woman to
be recognized as a symphonic composer, and have a composition played by a major
orchestra. In 1932 she composed Symphony
in E minor and in 1933 it was performed by Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
Shirley Graham Du Bois (1896-1977): The first African American
woman to compose an opera for a major professional opera company. Tom Tom:
An Epic of Music and the Negro was
written and performed by The Stadium Opera Company in
1932.
Margaret Bonds (1913-1972): One of the first African-American
composers and performers to gain national recognition in the United States.
Some of her pieces include The Negro Speaks
of Rivers (1942), and Shakespeare in
Harlem (1959).
Julia Amanda Perry (1924-1979): Composer and teacher known for
her fusion of black spiritual music and a neoclassical compositional style.
Some of her compositions include Stabat
Mater (1951) and The Cask of
Amontillado (1954). Julia Perry’s Short Piece
for Orchestra was recently performed by the Michigan Philharmonic as part
of their Women Composer Series.
The last composer in the series will be Alice
Gomez. Her compositions integrate both ethnic tradition with the universal
language of classical music. Mixing extrinsic ideologies and culture with
classical music is a technique used by many composers in history who helped
reshape what classical music is today. The Michigan Philharmonic will be
performing the World Premier of Alice Gomez’s 112 Degrees on April 1, 2017 as part of their Phil-Palooza Concert
at 7:30 in the Plymouth Arts and Recreation Complex Gym in Plymouth.
And
join us at The Village Theater at Cherry Hill in Canton this upcoming Saturday,
February 11, at 7:30 for Couch Potato Pops (Favorite TV tunes) in celebration
of Valentine’s weekend.
