Composers
Lettie Beckon Alston
1953 - 2014About
Lettie Beckon Alston (1953-2014) is the first African-American, woman composer to obtain a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1983. As a teenager, she studied piano with Pearl Roberts McCullom. She received bachelor and master’s degrees in music composition at Wayne State University, studying with James Hartway and piano instructors Mischa Kottler and Frank Murch. When Alston was accepted at Michigan, her principle teachers were Dr. Leslie Bassett and Dr. William Bolcom. Dr. Alston is Associate Professor of Music at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan. She was the artistic director of Lettie Alston and Friends Professional Artists Concerts from 1995-2008 featuring music by living composers. Dr. Alston was the artistic director of the Composers at Oakland concert programs, featuring faculty, alumni and student works. The collection includes scores, dated 1974-2007 and undated, with one CD of the composer’s work, and a promotional brochure. Collection also includes published and unpublished music.
Related Information
http://bmrcsurvey.uchicago.edu/collections/2559-1, http://oxfordindex.oup.com/view/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.A2227010
Works by Lettie Beckon Alston
Title | Published | Size | Solo with Ensemble | Duration Range | Level | Orchestration |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Anxiety | No | Full Orchestra | Solo voices | Professional | ||
Conquest of Jericho | No | String Orchestra and Chorus | Narrator | Professional |
Composer | Title | Work | Instrumentation | Level | Number of Movements | Accompanied | Size | Duration Range |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Lettie Beckon Alston | Moods for Piano | Piano | 4 | No | Solo | |||
Lettie Beckon Alston | Piano Maniac | Piano | 1 | No | Solo | |||
Lettie Beckon Alston | Rhapsody No. 4 (Toccata) | Piano | Advanced | 1 | No | Solo |