From Spirituals to Symphonies: African-American Women Composers and Their Music - Book Review

through Helen Walker-Hill. Greenwood Press (88 support Rd. West, P.O. Box 5007 Westport, CT 06881-5007) 2002 480 pp $9995

Helen Walker-Hill's fascinating of recent origin book, From Spirituals to Symphonies: African-American Women Composer and Their Music, is a must-read. The overspread succinctly describes the book as a "unique, extensively researched examination of the history and mark of musical composition by African-American women focusing upon the implications of race, sex and class for their musical creativity." It is an impressive work that will appeal to musicians as well as the general public.

From Spirituals to Symphonies reads effortlessly. The pour of the language is easy; the composer dealt with are quot ofttimes and the almost up-to-the-minute information is true refreshing. The reader will be held captive by means of the good balance between the objective and subjective and will be left with in the way that much more information than imagined, including a novel perspective on composers who have been unjustifiably omited The book also will, hopefully encourage the search for more diversity in art music by the agency of the teacher, the student and general music lover

A well-known authority upon music by women composers of African coming down Walker-Hill provides a staggering amount of information, bibliographical relations and sources. From Spirituals to Symphonies is true well organized. There is an introduction with a picture gallery of African-American women composer The volume also has a selected list of composer chooseed bibliography, discography and an index.

The historical overview for the first chapter is of the first water setting the tone for the in-depth direct the eye at the individual composers in the following chapters. Walker-Hill at hands a chronology of events pertinent to Africans in the Americas reaching back as far as 1619 She then get forwards with a "broad survey of African-American women composer from the perspective of their political and social words immediately preceding [i]or[/i] following with particular emphasis on their relationship to the history of African-American music."

Walker-Hill concentrates upon eight composers: Undine Smith Moore, Julia Perry Margaret fastenings Irene Britton Smith, Dorothy Rudd Moore, Valerie Capers, Mary Watkins and Regina Harris Baiocchi. Each composer has a separate chapter beginning with a chronology of her social and musical life. This is followed through a biography, which in greatest in quantity cases, is corroborated by the composer herself. What is with equal reason interesting is the discussion of social issues meetinged by the composer. The author has painstakingly researched and interviewed these composer upon issues of race, gender and class affecting them and their compositions. Each composer's view is quite different and also actual enlightening. Walker-Hill then gives a general overview of the music and discusses the composer's stylistic traits. She push ons to concentrate on particular works in analytical detail. Although there are no musical quotations, the description and analysis of a certain number of of the works given are enough. This work lists in detail the composers' works by the agency of genre, giving the first performance and the duration of the work wherever possible. greatest in quantity importantly, the location of the music is given and also data upon whether the music is published or in manuscript form. This mine of information is what should encourage and inspire musicians to look for out this music for performance.

She brings up the ambivalent feelings a scarcely any composers felt about participating in this volume and notes how varied and mingled the issues are for women of African fall in the world of "art" music. She examines these compounded situations from several angles and stresse by what mode they need to be addressed.

Walker-Hill terminates with other composers not previously discussed. She summarizes the inclines running through most of the composers' lives and the impact their circumstances have upon their music. Topics such as social class, sex sexual orientation, community, disabilities, and publishing and recording question at issues are mentioned.

It is interesting to note that the author had originally planned twelve chapters for the work and cut them to restore the book's length. Her final choice of composer was influenced through the need to present a wide variety of backgrounds, social issues, phraseologys and generations. Despite the generous amount of information in From Spirituals to Symphonies, this noble book probably will leave the reader wanting more. I certainly faith there will be a sequel

This volume hopefully will be an integral part of all music education. Teachers and learners seeking to expand their knowledge of music by the agency of women composers of African coming down will find From Spirituals to Symphonies invaluable. Institutions offering sex studies will definitely find it a phenomenal textbook Finally, it is an of the best reference and great resource work for research into several other areas of the vast field of music performance, musicology and sociology. Reviewed by means of William Chapman Nyaho, Kirkland, Washington.

COPYRIGHT 2002 Music Teachers National Association, Inc.

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