Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. People also ask, Where did William Grant Still study music? Without contemporary recording tools, they were unable to preserve traditional music. It is located at 1262 Victoria Avenue in Oxford Square, Los Angeles. His private studies in composition were with George Whitefield Chadwick in Boston and Edgard Varse in New York. Encyclopedia.com. OTHER : Band pieces; arrangements of spirituals. He found plenty of work writing arrangements for theater orchestras and performinghe was part of the original orchestra for the all-black musical hit Shuffle Along and worked as musical director for the Black Swan record label. Web. Nor did Still abandon popular forms; he wrote the score for the Bing Crosby film Pennies from Heaven after moving to California in 1935. During the 1930s Still worked as a free-lance arranger and a staff composer for network radio. She took her son, her only child, to Little Rock, Arkansas, after the elder Stills death, and there she married again. In Biographical Dictionary of Afro-American and African Musicians. Still . The first African-American to conduct a major American symphony orchestra, the first to have a symphony (his first symphony) performed by a leading orchestra, the first to have an opera performed by a major opera company, and the first to have an opera performed on . In Addition to the Italian Madrigal What Other Genre Arose From the Union of Poetry and Music? He also wrote Darker America in 1924. https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/still-william-grant-1895-1978, Manheim, James "Still, William Grant 18951978 His widow Verna Arvey wrote and published his biography, In One Lifetime: A Biography of William Grant Still, in 1984. [10]:3, His mother wanted him to go to medical school, so Still pursued a Bachelor of Science degree program at Wilberforce University, a historically black college in Ohio. Q. William Graham Sumner is a more important historical figure than I had realized until recently. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music. [12] Still became a member of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity. William Grant Still)", "STILL, W.S. Stills melody has several key features that make it a classic blues tune, including its use of the standard twelve-bar blues harmonic progression, a swung rhythm, and a use of lowered fifth, third, and seventh scale degrees in the melodythat imitate blue notes. What is the name of the first melody theme in Still's Afro-American Symphony? The blues are represented musically in William Grant Stills Suite for Violin and Piano. Which of the following best characterizes the music at The Godfathers climax? The third movement, Animato (Humor), presents a pair themes and variations. Encyclopedia of World Biography. Still's musical style is perhaps best described as nationalist, successfully blending indigenous American musical elements, African-American folk materials, and the blues idiom into a range of musical genres: symphonic and operatic compositions, chamber music, and art songs. His father died when Still was young, and music came from his stepfather, who encouraged him from a young age. Making things even worse from Stills mothers point of view was that Still now began to make a living by. Still was twice married and fathered six children. . Still, William Grant, eminent black American composer; b. Woodville, Miss., May 11, 1895; d. Los Angeles, Dec. 3, 1978. [1]:1,7 They had a son, William III, and three daughters, Gail, June, and Caroline. S. (N.Y., 1939); R. Simpson, W.G. Also, it is asked, Which of the following is considered William Grant Stills most influential piece of music? 2, 1975, pp. Web. His stepfather encouraged his interest in music. [3] He also studied privately with the modern French composer Edgard Varse and the American composer George Whitefield Chadwick. It was also the first symphony to use the banjo as part of the orchestra. We might now think of blues music as any sort of sad,downcast kind of song, but the blues has a rich African American history, beginning as a folk style that developed in the southern United Statesand becoming a standard genre by the end of the nineteenth century. . Upon his death in 1978, he was well-known for his work in some circles. He conducted the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra. On October 4, 1915,[7] Still married Grace Bundy, whom he had met while they were both at Wilberforce. In 1939 he remarried; his second wife, Verna Arvey (who later wrote a biography of Still), was a Jewish concert pianist, and he wrote the piano collection Seven Traceries and other piano music as a result. Still released the private notes hed written in journals during those years after the Civil War. Bringing together a lifetime of musical experiences, it has earned a place in the canon of the Western classical music tradition not in spite of, but because of its daring and creative integration of African American and European idioms. [14], He recorded with Fletcher Henderson's Dance Orchestra in 1921,[15]:85 and later played in the pit orchestra for Noble Sissle and Eubie Blake's musical, Shuffle Along[1]:4 and in other pit orchestras for Sophie Tucker, Artie Shaw, and Paul Whiteman. The William Grant Still Community Arts Center was dedicated in Los Angeles shortly before his death, and a memorial concert featuring his key compositions was presented at the University of Southern California in May 1979 . Orchestration: flutes (3 = piccolo), 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (bells, bass drum, snare drum, cymbals, gong, triangle, vibraphone), harp, celesta, banjo, & strings, First Los Angeles Philharmonic performance: July 23, 1940, David Broekman conducting. Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for more blog posts this month featuring composers, conductors and musicians in celebration of Black History month, including Marian Anderson, Paul Robeson, Andr Watts, Kathleen Battle and more! "Still, William Grant Lets explore the ways that Still interweaves these three African American idioms jazz, blues, and spirituals into his Afro-American Symphony, with a focus on the first movement. William Grant Still & the Harlem Renaissance | LA Phil [16] Many of his works are believed to be lost. William Grant Still Jr. was married twice. A reawakening of interest in his music was signaled by a Public Broadcasting Service telecast of his opera Bayou Legend in 1981 (another first for a black composer). In One Lifetime. The numerous escaped slaves who traveled through the Philadelphia station were nevertheless meticulously recorded. S.: The Man and His Music (diss., Mich. State Univ., 1964); R. Haas, ed., W.G. CHAMBER : Suite for Violin and Piano (1943); Pastorela for Violin and Piano (1946); 4 Folk Suites for Flute, Clarinet, Oboe, Bassoon, Strings, and Piano (1962); Vignettes for Oboe, Bassoon, and Piano (1962); piano pieces. What films did William Grant Still compose music for? 19171919 Oberlin College Wilberforce University existed from 1911 until 1915. . William Grant Still Jr. (May 11, 1895 - December 3, 1978) was an American composer of nearly two hundred works, including five symphonies, four ballets, nine operas, over thirty choral works, plus art songs, chamber music and works for solo instruments. Then, copy and paste the text into your bibliography or works cited list. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. What role does William Grants music play in the Harlem Renaissance movements ideals? However, as he writes in his sketchbook, his decision to place the tune at the forefront of the piece reflects his fierce defense of blues as a powerful emblem of African American identity: I harbor no delusions as to the triviality of the Blues, the secular folk music of the American Negro, despite their lowly origin and the homely sentiment of their texts. Bakers Biographical Dictionary of Musicians, Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History, Kay, Ulysses 19171995 An outstanding achievement was his handling of melody in his strongly lyrical pieces. Still's accomplishments clearly placed him among the foremost composers of his day. All of these factors give a nod to the seminal influence of jazz as the style that became most associated with America between the two World Wars. Born in Woodville, Mississippi, he grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas, and started studying violin there. William Grant Still William Grant Still (May 11, 1895 - December 3, 1978) was an African-American classical composer who wrote more than 150 compositions. Retrieved February 23, 2023 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/still-william-grant-1895-1978. William Grant Still, the sole son of William Grant Still Sr., was born on in Woodville, Mississippi. [11] At 16 years old, he graduated as class valedictorian from M.W. Gibbs High School in Little Rock in 1911. He mastered several orchestral and band instruments, conducted the schools band, organized a concert of his own compositions, and formed a string quartet featuring himself as cellist. Also of note is Stills unusual instrumental timbres. [7] He composed more than thirty choral works. William Grant Still, (born May 11, 1895, Woodville, Mississippi, U.S.died December 3, 1978, Los Angeles, California), American composer and conductor and the first African American to conduct a professional symphony orchestra in the United States. Also, of note is that he wrote the theme music for the New York Fair for the year of 1939-1940. Taylors. Latshaw, Charles William. William Grant Still. The Black Perspective in Music, vol. Why was he buried in a ship? In 1939 he married, settling in Los Angeles. Is William Grant Still related to William Still? lived a double life as a popular musician and a composer of concert works. Still stated violin lessons at age _____ It was premiered in 1931 by the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. During his fourteen years in the Underground Railroad, he assisted almost 800 former slaves in escaping. William Grant Still In 1943, William Grant Still wrote his Suite for Violin and Piano, which took as its inspiration three sculptures: Richmond Barth's African Dancer, Sargent Johnson's Mother and Child, and Augusta Savage's Gamin. ORCH . Sounds of the Future Composers of post-World War II classical music reimagined the concept of music, frequently using unusual instrumentation and blurring the boundaries between music and sound. 4, Autochthonous (1947; Oklahoma City, March 18, 1951), and No. Southern, Eileen. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/biography/William-Grant-Still, BlackPast - Biography of William Grant Still, AllMusic - Biography of William Grant Still, William Grant Still - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). Southern, Eileen, The Music of Black Americans, 3rd ed., Norton, 1997. http://chevalierdestgeorges.homestead.com, http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/sgo/exhibit/captions/caption1.html (Duke University Library), http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/sgo/texts/borroff2.html. Still died on December 3, 1978 in Los Angeles. (1954). William Grant Stills Afro-American Symphony: A Critical Edition. Indiana University, doctoral dissertation, May 2014. William Grant Still (1895-1978), an American composer of African descent, accomplished this goal in his opera Blue Steel (1934) by changing how blacknessdefined here as characteristics attributed to and intended to indicate the otherness of people of African or African-American descentwas portrayed on the operatic stage. He wrote jazz arrangements for blues masters and bandleaders such as Artie Shaw, Paul Whiteman and W.C. Associate degree. The Afro-American Symphony, however, remains as Stills landmark piece, and remains one of the most frequently performed symphonies by an American composer in the United States. The biography of William Grant Still allows us to situate him chronologically within the framework of the Harlem Renaissance. Accessed 30 Jan 2018. I. Assai Moderato A classic twelve-bar blues progression may be found in the opening movement, moderato assai (extremely mild). Still had a diverse musical training. The tone is at odds with the activity. William Grant Still was an American composer and conductor who was the first African American to command a professional symphony orchestra in the United States. Still was born in 1895 in Woodville, Mississippi, was raised in Little Rock, and came to maturity during the early years of the Harlem Renaissance. Encyclopedia.com. Encyclopedia.com. Supported by a Guggenheim Fellowship and other prestigious awards, Still was able to spend more and more time composing. Your browser is not using Javascript. Similarly, What is William Grant Stills significant contribution to African-American music according to Southern? William Grant Still was born in Woodville, Mississippi on May 11th, _____ teachers. Still worked for Handy in Memphis for a time, toured with his band, and penned arrangements of the Handy standards St. Today, Stills daughter Judith believes that the First Symphony shows him recognizing, with joy, that God had given him a gift that would change the thinking of the public. Douglas Shadle is an assistant professor of musicology at Vanderbilt University. Either way, the melody is a joy to listen to, and in addition to the more fanfare-like second theme the movement echoes the themes of African American emancipation and empowerment in the Dunbar poem attached to the movement. The Harlem Renaissances Musical Influence on Todays Artists During the Harlem Renaissance, musicians produced a style and movement that swept the United States. Web. Since the 1920s, the blues has helped shape jazz, country music, androcknroll, and many other popular musical genres. In 1919, he moved to New York City. Omissions? Columbia Records released a new recording of Still's Afro-American Symphony in 1974. William Grant Still and Verna Arvey Papers, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=William_Grant_Still&oldid=1139326089, African-American male classical composers, Articles with Encyclopdia Britannica links, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2022, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, In 1949, he received a citation for Outstanding Service to American Music from the, In 1976, his home in Los Angeles was designated a. Sewell, George A., and Margaret L. Dwight (1984). Intern: Winter 2018, Meet all of our sponsors All Rights Reserved. Music: History, Composers, and Performers: Biographies. With its sweeping arc and gentle syncopation, the second melody, introduced by the oboe, is reminiscent of a Black spiritual. He attended Wilberforce Coll. Cite this article Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. Who was the first black woman to compose a symphony? Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History. Retrieved February 23, 2023 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/william-grant-still. Volume Three: The Twentieth Century and After. On the line provided, write the plural form of the following item. Retrieved February 23, 2023 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/still-william-grant. Because he was an excellent orchestrator, Still was engaged by such celebrities as Paul Whiteman, Don Voorhees, Sophie Tucker, Willard Robison, and Artie Shaw to prepare orchestral arrangements. He conducted the university band. While there he worked with Pace and Handy Music Publishing Co. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. Since the 1931 premiere of the Afro-American Symphony, Stills multifarious style has gone on to influence even non-classical music. Also, while in college he started to compose and do orchestras. Spark provides very specific information about World War I in the story, especially about the battles, the Western Front, and the countries involved. Despite receiving no formal education in orchestra tion or conducting, Morton Gould became one of the most prominen, Schuman, William 1 in A-flat, "Afro-American" (1930) by William Grant Still was the first symphony written by an African American and performed for a United States audience by a leading orchestra. After graduation, he pursued a medical degree at Wilberforce University. When he was three months old, William Jr., lost his father. 23 Feb. 2023
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