African American Composers, Lyricists, and Performers
Duke University coordinated with Brown University's
Library of Congress/Ameritech
African-American Sheet
Music Digitizing Project
to avoid duplication of titles between the two projects. As a result,
it was sometimes necessary to
identify African American composers/lyricists, performers and publishers.
While there was no systematic attempt made to find all of the
African Americans who contributed to the musical life in the United
States, some people were identified who were or might have been of
African ancestry. Some of the names were checked in the African
American Bibliographic Database (AABD). Quite a few names have
[?]. Those are some we suspect might have been African American,
but were unable to find more information.
Composers | Performers | Publishers
Composers
Bares, Basile -- full name: Basile J. Bares,
fl. 1875
- AABD says b. 1846, 2 January, New Orleans
- Negro musicians and their music, p. 197f
- Nos hommes et notre histoire, p. 119
- Negro year book 1913
Blind Tom (Thomas Greene Bethune)
Bland, James A. (James Allen), 1854-1911
- Pictorial history of the American Negro, p. 204
- Negro Year book 1913
Brown, Harry
Burleigh, H. T. (Harry Thacker), 1866-1949
Clifford, Chauncey [?]
Johnson, George W. (singer, composer)
Jordan, Joe [?]
- The Library of Congress authority file shows him as co-writer with
W.C. Handy but he is not listed in AABD
Lemonier, Tom [?]
Pickett, L. N. D.
Postlewaite, J. W., 1837-1889
- From a sound recording, Black music issued in 1990.
- The booklet indicates that he was a black Amer. composer and
bandleader; lived in St. Louis
Rogers, James H. (James Hotchkiss), 1857-1940
[?]
- Spirituals arranger
Skidmore, Will E.
Stout, Clarence A. [?]
Vaughan, James, ca. 1870-ca. 1935
Walker, Marshall
Williams, Ralph (Nigger)
Performers
Brown, Harry
Carney, William H.
- (Sergt., Civil War. Fort Wagner (S.C.) -- History -- Siege, 1863)
DeLany, Placido R.
Hodges, Mr. M. H.
Larkins & Patterson (John Larkins [?])
White, James (?)
- Part of Richards and Pringles Famous Georgia Minstrels - portrait
published in Vancouver, WA
Williams & Wilkins
Williams & Walker
- Williams, Bert, 1875-1922
- Walker, George, 1873-1911
Publishers
Gotham-Attucks [?]
H.L. Benham & Co. (174 Race Street, Cincinnati)
Pace & Handy
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