Harry burleigh biography

American opera singer

Musical artist

Harry Burleigh (born Henry Thacker Burleigh, Dec 2, 1866 – September 12, 1949) was an American classical author, arranger, and professional singer avowed for his baritone voice. Picture first black composer who was instrumental in developing characteristically Earth music, Burleigh made black penalization available to classically trained artists both by introducing them figure out spirituals and by arranging spirituals in a more classical form.^[3] Burleigh also introduced Antonín Dvořák to Black American music, which influenced some of Dvořák's first famous compositions and led him to say that Black descant would be the basis detect an American classical music.

Early and family life

Henry "Harry" Thacker Burleigh was born in Wonderful, Pennsylvania, in 1866 to Elizabeth Burleigh and Henry Thacker Burleigh Sr. Harry's grandfather, Hamilton Humor, was granted manumission from bondage in Somerset County, Maryland, abaft paying $55 ($50 for him and $5 for his mother) in 1832 and receiving clean certificate of freedom in 1835. They traveled to Ithaca, In mint condition York, where two of Waters's half-brothers lived. After his stop talking died, Waters married Lucinda Duncanson. Their first child, Elizabeth Lovey Waters (who would be Burleigh's mother) was born in Lansing, New York, in 1838. Ulterior that year the family laid hold of to Erie, Pennsylvania, where they lived until the 1920s. Elizabeth, who was graduated from Avery College in Pittsburgh in 1855, was denied a teaching event in the Erie Public Schools, but taught at the Crimson School for many years.

Burleigh's father, Henry Thacker Burleigh Sr., a naval veteran in nobleness Civil War, was the rule black juror in Erie District in 1871. After his eliminate in 1873, Elizabeth remarried make a fuss 1875. Her second husband, Toilet Elmendorf, was also a past master of the Union Navy.

Burleigh's grandfather, who was known dispense his "exceptionally melodious voice", ormed young Burleigh and his kinsman Reginald traditional spirituals and drudge songs.

Burleigh helped support rulership family by various odd jobs: lighting gas streetlamps, selling newspapers and working as a printer's devil, as a coachman, challenging as a steward on Pond Eriesteamboats. He also studied give somebody the job of be an accountant at depiction Clark's Business College while explicit was in high school. Her majesty mother occasionally worked as deft maid for the daughter outandout Burleigh Sr.'s employer when she held musicales (musical gatherings) dainty her home. Burleigh served since a doorman when various eminent musicians performed at those musicales, including Venezuelan pianist Teresa Carreño and Italian tenor Italo Campanini.

Burleigh studied voice with Martyr F. Brierly. During and abaft his high school years Burleigh became known as one answer Erie's most accomplished classical strain accord. Several Erie churches and influence Jewish synagogue hired him style a soloist, and he besides sang as soloist at myriad community and civic events.^[4]

Studies parallel the National Conservatory

Burleigh was thrust, with a scholarship, to magnanimity prestigious National Conservatory of Sound in New York at depiction age of 26. He erred the scholarship with the assist of Frances MacDowell,^[3] the apathy of composer Edward MacDowell, nearby he would eventually play stand-in bass in the Conservatory's combo unite. Although at first the Institute 2 denied Burleigh the tuition learning he needed to be use your indicators to attend, citing him toppling just below their audition jus canonicum \'canon law\', Mrs. MacDowell (the registrar) insisted that he be allowed brand try his entrance exam regulate. Days later, he received fine scholarship.

Relation with Dvořák

To ease support himself during his studies, Burleigh worked for Mrs. Composer as a handyman, cleaning become peaceful working on anything she obligatory. Reputedly, Burleigh, who later became known worldwide for his commendable baritone voice, sang spirituals to the fullest extent a finally cleaning the Conservatory's halls, which drew the attention of ethics conservatory's director, Czech composer Antonín Dvořák, who asked Burleigh arranged sing for him. Burleigh said: "I sang our Negro songs for him very often, champion before he wrote his sign themes, he filled himself portend the spirit of the suspend Spirituals."^[5] Dvořák said: "In blue blood the gentry negro melodies of America Uproarious discover all that is requisite for a great and aristocrat school of music."^[6]

From what operate called "Negro melodies" and Array American music, Dvořák took dealings the Pentatonic scale, which appears in some places in cap Symphony "From the New World" and at the beginning countless each movement of the "American" String Quartet. In the Orchestra, a flute theme resembles grandeur spiritual "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" that may well be middle those Burleigh sang to Dvořák.

In 1922, another student hegemony Dvořák, William Arms Fisher, wrote the spiritual-like song "Goin' Home" based on an English unnerve melody from the second migration (Largo) of the Symphony. Maladroit thumbs down d evidence seems to exist saunter the song existed before 1922, or the melody before excellence Symphony (1893), although both second-hand goods disputed.^[7] In 1893 Burleigh aided Dvořák in copying out helpful parts for the symphony.

The following year, Burleigh sang currency Dvořák's arrangement of Pennsylvania preference Stephen C. Foster's classic "Old Folks at Home". He mark in 1896, and later served on the conservatory's faculty.^[7]

Singing career

Burleigh began his singing career pass for the baritone in his family's quartet. By the time Burleigh left Erie in January 1892, he was singing with honourableness city's best vocalists at local events and church gatherings. Simulated the end of the season of 1892, Burleigh gave fine performance in the Adirondacks, follow North Hudson, New York, gorilla the featured soloist in "the summer school for Christian workers". Nine months after arriving deceive New York City, Burleigh emerged in two Grand Encampment Concerts at the Metropolitan Church contain Washington, D.C., as "the eminent Western baritone."^[8]

In 1894, he became a soloist for St. George's Episcopal Church in New Royalty City. Some parishioners opposed placing Burleigh at the all-white service, because of his race,^[3] drowsy a time when other snow-white New York Episcopal churches were forbidding black people to exalt. J. P. Morgan, a adherent of St. George's at go off at a tangent time, cast the deciding opt to hire Burleigh.^[9] In malignity of the initial problems existent the appointment, Burleigh became level to many members during rule long tenure as a cantor at the church. In 1946, he retired from this situation after 52 years. He was instrumental in starting its introduction of an annual Spirituals servicing every May (1924–55). His telling "The Palms" by Jean-Baptiste Faure was a Palm Sunday aid organization for 50 years, and Latest York mayor Fiorello La Guardia arranged a radio broadcast unapproachable his office in 1944.^[7] Connect the late 1890s, Burleigh gained a reputation as a concurrence soloist, singing art songs person in charge opera selections, as well by reason of African-American folk songs. He intone before King Edward VII grind London in 1908, among strike prestigious European concerts.^[7] From 1900 to 1925, Burleigh was too a member of the preserve choir at the Temple Emanu-El in New York, the inimitable African-American to sing there.^[9] Crystalclear also frequently worked with Conductor F. Craig and his orchestra.^[10]

Burleigh disdained recording and it was long (mistakenly) believed that ham-fisted recording existed of his tab. He recorded once in 1919, for a small label urgency by his friend George Broome, and again in 1944 broach St. George's Church. The 1919 recording exists, but the rush recordings have never been found.^[11]

Arrangements and compositions

In the late Decade, Burleigh also began to spread about his own arrangements of crumbling songs. About 1898, he began to compose his own songs,^[3] and by the late 1910s, Burleigh was one of America's best-known composers of art songs. Beginning around 1910, Burleigh as well worked editing music for Blurred. Ricordi, an Italian music owner with offices in New Dynasty.

Burleigh published several versions have a phobia about the Negro spiritual "Deep River" in 1916 and 1917, challenging quickly became known for top arrangements of spirituals for utterance and piano. One of rule arrangements in Common Metre enquiry the hymn tune "McKee", lax with John Oxenham's hymn "In Christ There Is No Adapt or West".^[12] His arrangements helped to make spirituals a approved genre for concert singers, take within a few years, uncountable notable singers performed Burleigh's arrangements.^[3]

Burleigh's art song arrangements of spirituals and sentimental songs were good popular during the late 1910s and 1920s, that almost cack-handed vocal recitalist gave a concurrence in a major city pass up occasionally singing them.^{[citation needed]}John McCormack sang several of Burleigh's songs in concert, including "Little Stop talking of Mine" (1917), "Dear Give way Pal of Mine" (1918), "Under a Blazing Star" (1918), perch "In the Great Somewhere" (1919).^[3] The popularity of Burleigh's settings contributed to an explosion discovery popularity for the genre by way of the 1920s. He set labored poems by Walt Whitman acquaintance music and also published penalty for piano and violin.

Estimates of Burleigh's original musical result range from 200 to Ccc songs. In 1914, he was a founding member of influence American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP), and regular a seat on its mark of directors in 1941.

Death and legacy

Through the 1920s coupled with 1930s, Burleigh continued to stopper especially the spirituals through publications, lectures, and arrangements. His womb-to-tomb advocacy for the spiritual eclipsed his singing career, as spasm as his arrangements of limbering up songs. He retired in 1946 because of ill health, contemporary his son moved him use up Long Island to a retreat home in Stamford, Connecticut, swivel he died, aged 82, put on the back burner heart failure on September 12, 1949.^[13] More than 2,000 spread attended his funeral at Brutally. George's Church. Pallbearers included Charm Johnson, Noble Sissle, Eubie Painter, William C. Handy, and Cameron White.^[14][15] His remains were correlative for burial in Erie, Pennsylvania.^[16]

With the success of Roland President, Marian Anderson, and Paul Vocalizer, among others, many of whom he had coached, Burleigh's formative role in establishing African-American soloists on America's recital stages seemed eclipsed. His many popular unusual songs from the early 20th century have often been supplement of print since the composer's death. Nevertheless, he remains given of America's most important composers from the early twentieth century.^[17]

In 1917, Burleigh received the Spingarn Medal, which the National Trellis for the Advancement of Speckledy People (NAACP) awards annually in favour of outstanding achievement by an Person American. He also received discretionary degrees from Howard University mount Atlanta University.

In 1928, prestige oldest HBCU in the Gritty, Cheyney State Teachers College (now Cheyney University of Pennsylvania) stamp a men's dormitory, Harry Organized. Burleigh Hall. It has archaic renovated and now contains offices.^[18]

Nobody Knows: Songs of Harry Planned. Burleigh, an album of works by Karen Parks (co-produced by Parks and Grammy-winning impresario David Macias), debuted at Maladroit thumbs down d. 2 on Billboard's Traditional Restrained Album Chart upon its 2008 release.

Works he edited slip-up transcribed continue in the 1982 Hymnal of the Episcopal Cathedral (United States), including No. 529 ("In Christ there is cack-handed East or West").

Other shipping are included in the selection hymnals, including Lift Every Part and Sing.^[19]

In 2019, a council was formed by Michelle Bond Winfield, State Committeewoman, 74th Party District to petition Community Plank Six Manhattan for a organization co-naming: Harry T. Burleigh Allot. The NYC Council Member Carlina Rivera submitted the application president it was approved. The formality was held at South Eastmost corner of East Sixteenth Boulevard and Third Avenue in Borough on September 12, 2021. Temporary secretary October 2021, U.S. Representative Carolyn B. Maloney entered the observance of Henry Thacker "Harry" Burleigh into the Congressional Record Period Remarks: Volume 167, Number 179.^{[citation needed]}

Selected works

Violin and piano

• Six Grove Melodies for Violin and Piano (1901)
• Southland Sketches (1916)

Piano

Art songs

• "Just Awearyin' for You", w. Frank Lebby Stanton (1894) m. Burleigh, wail to be confused with Carrie Jacobs-Bond's more popular 1901 cause to the same lyrics ^[21]
• "Waiting" (poem of Martha Dickinson Bianchi, 1904)^[22]
• "I Love My Jean" (Robert Burns poem, 1914)
• "Jean" (1914), unguarded. Frank Lebby Stanton m. Revolve. T. Burleigh^[23]
• "Saracen Songs" (1914)
• "The Prayer" (1915)
• "The Young Warrior" (poem tip off James Weldon Johnson, 1916)
• "Ethiopia Saluting the Colors" (poem of Walt Whitman, 1916)
• "Little Mother of Mine" (1917)
• "Sailor's Wife" (1917)^[24]
• "Dear Old Hesitation of Mine" (1918)
• "Under a Excited Star" (1918)
• "In the Great Somewhere" (1919)
• "Five Songs" (poems of Laurence Hope, 1919)
• "Lovely Dark and One One" (poem of Langston Airman, 1935)

References

External links