Composers

Henry Thacker Burleigh

1866 - 1949

About

H.T. Burleigh (1866-1949) is arguably the first prominent Black composer in America. Born in Erie, Pennsylvania, on 2 December 1866, Burleigh received his first music training from his mother. After discovering Burleigh's musical talent, Elizabeth Russell, a bank messenger who was his mother's employer, gave the youth a job as a doorman at the musicales she hosted in her home. This afforded Burleigh the opportunity to hear guest performers such as Teresa Carreño and Italo Campanini. Although he had no formal training, his talent as a singer led to employment as a soloist in several Erie churches and synagogues. In 1892, at the age of twenty-six, Burleigh received a scholarship (with some intervention in his behalf from Mrs. Frances MacDowell, mother of famed American composer Edward MacDowell) to the National Conservatory of Music in New York where he studied with Christian Fritsch, Rubin Goldmark, John White, and Max Spicker. The years Burleigh spent at the Conservatory greatly influenced his career, mostly due to his association and friendship with Antonín Dvorák, the Conservatory's director. After spending countless hours recalling and performing the African-American spirituals and plantation songs he had learned from his maternal grandfather for Dvorák, Burleigh was encouraged by the elder composer to preserve these melodies in his own compositions. In turn, Dvorák's use of the spirituals "Goin' Home" and "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" in his Symphony no. 9 in E minor ("From the New World") was probably influenced by his sessions with Burleigh. In addition, Burleigh served as copyist for Dvorák, a task that prepared him for his future responsibilities as a music editor. In 1900, Burleigh was the first African-American chosen as soloist at Temple Emanu-El, a New York synagogue, and by 1911 he was working as an editor for music publisher G. Ricordi. His success was enhanced through the publication of several of his compositions, including "Ethiopia Saluting the Colors", a collection entitled Jubilee Songs of the USA, and his arrangement of "Deep River", for which he is best remembered. The widespread success of his setting of Deep River inspired the publication of nearly a dozen more spirituals the same year, his spiritual arrangements became increasingly popular with concert soloists, and a tradition of concluding concerts with a set of spirituals was established. Burleigh's achievement in solo vocal writing is best represented by his original song cycles, Saracen Songs , Passionale, and Five Songs of Laurence Hope, considered by many to be his finest work. His instrumental output includes the unpublished Six Plantation Melodies for violin and piano, From the Southland for piano, and Southland Sketches for violin and piano. test.

Related Information

http://memory.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/loc.natlib.ihas.200035730/default.html

Works by Henry Thacker Burleigh

Title Collection Voice Type Range Poet
A Birthday Song Three Songs Medium C#4 - F#5 Christina Rossetti
A Birthday Song copy Three Songs Medium C#4 - F#5 Christina Rossetti
A Corn Song Medium Bb3 - Eb5 Paul Laurence Dunbar
Achievement Medium C4 - Db5 Frances Bacon Paine
Adoration Medium F4 - F5 Dora Lawrence Houston
Ahmed's Song of Farewell The Saracen Songs High E4 - A5 Fred G. Bowles
Ain't Goin' To Study War No Mo' The Spirituals of Burleigh High Eb4 - Db5 | F4 - Eb5 Biblical
Almona (Song of Hassan) The Saracen Songs High E4 - A5 Fred G. Bowles
Among the Fuchsias Five Songs of Lawrence Hope Voice Eb4 - G5 Lawrence Hope
An Ante-bellum Sermon The Plantation Melodies Old and New Voice D#4 - E5 Paul Laurence Dunbar
And As The Gulls Soar! Voice C4 - D5 Frances Bacon Paine
Apart Medium Bb3 - Eb5 Frances Bacon Paine
Balm in Gilead The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low Bb4 - F5 | G4 - D5 Jeremiah 8:22
Before Meeting Voice D4 - Eb5 Arthur Symons
Behold That Star The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low F4 - F5, Optional C6 | B4 - E5, Optional A5 Biblical
Bring Her Again to Me Voice Ab4 - F5 W. E. Henley
By An' By The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low Eb4 - F5 | C4 - D5 Biblical
By Pool at the Third Rosses Voice F4 - Bb5 Arthur Symons
Come with me Medium F4 - G5 Lura Kelsey Clen Dening
Couldn't Hear Nobody Pray The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low E4 - D5 | Bb34 - Db5 Biblical
Dar's A Meeting Here Tonight Medium C4 - C5 spiritual
De black-bird an' de Crow The Plantation Melodies Old and New Medium C4 - Eb5 /F5 R. E. Phillips
De Blin' Man Stood on De Road An' Cried The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low F4 - F5 | Db4 - Db5 Mark 10:46, 52
De Gospel Train (Git on Bo'd Li't Children) The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low F4 - F5 | Eb4 - C5 Biblical
De Ha'nt Negro Folk Songs (Not Spirituals) Medium D4 - F5 James W. Pryor
Dear old pal of Mine Medium Eb4 - Db5 Harold Robe
Deep River The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low F4 - A5 | G4 - E5 Biblical
Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel The Spirituals of Burleigh Voice F4 - D5 Daniel 6
Don't Be Weary Traveler The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low C#4 - F5 | A#3 - D5 Biblical
Don't Yo' Dream of Turnin' Back Negro Folk Songs (Not Spirituals) Medium C4 - F5
Don't You Weep When I'm Gone The Spirituals of Burleigh Voice Db4 - Eb5 Jeremiah 22:10
Down by the Sea Voice F4 - Ab5 George O'Connell
Dreamland (Cradle Song) Voice Eb4 - Eb5 Louise Alston Burleigh
Dreams tell me Truly High F#4 - A5 Fred G. Bowles
Dry Bones Medium G4 - Eb5
Elysium Voice D4 - E5 James Weldon Johnson
Ethiopia Saluting The Color Medium C#4 - F5 Walt Whitman
Ev'rytime I Feel De Spirit The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low D4 - F5 | B3 - D5 Biblical
Exile Medium D4 - Eb5 Inez Marie Richardson
Folk Song Medium Bb3 - Eb5 Robert Burns
Framents Medium F4 - Gb5 Jessie Fauset
Give Me Jesus The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low E4 - G5 | C4 - Eb5 Biblical
Go Down In The Lonesome Valley The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low D4 - F5 | G3 - C5 Biblical
Go Down, Moses The Spirituals of Burleigh High | Low F4 - F5 | D4 - D5 Exodus 8
Go Tell It On De Mountains The Spirituals of Burleigh Voice D4 - E5 Biblical
Hail to the King Medium C4 - Eb5 E.H. Sears
Hard Trials The Spirituals of Burleigh Voice Eb4 - Eb5 Matthew 24:21, Matthew 8:20
Have You Been to Lons Medium E4 - F5 Gordon Johnstone
He Met Her in the Meadow Voice G4 - Ab5 Harry T. Burleigh
He Sent Me You Medium Ab4 - Eb5 Frederick H. Martens
Title Published Size Solo with Ensemble Duration Range Level Orchestration
The Grey Wolf No Full Orchestra
Composer Title Work Instrumentation Level Number of Movements Accompanied Size Duration Range
Henry Thacker Burleigh A Jubilee Piano 6 No Solo
Henry Thacker Burleigh A New Hidin' Place Piano 6 No Solo
Henry Thacker Burleigh Frolic Piano 6 No Solo
Henry Thacker Burleigh In De Col' Moonlight Piano 6 No Solo
Henry Thacker Burleigh On Bended Knees Piano 6 No Solo
Henry Thacker Burleigh Through Moanin' Pines Piano 6 No Solo