Composers

Nathaniel Dett

1882 - 1943

About

Nathaniel Dett (1882 -1943), one of history’s greatest musicians of African descent, was multi-talented, not only as a composer, but also as a choir leader, pianist, teacher, poet, and writer. During his lifetime, he was lauded as the first American composer to fuse Negro folk music with the European art music tradition in a sophisticated way. As a seminal figure in the preservation and study of spirituals, both as a writer and choral leader, and as a great teacher and inspirer of African-American musicians in later generations, he is acknowledged to be one of the most important musicians in American history. He grew up in Niagara Falls, Ontario and later on the New York side, and was exposed to the piano at a very young age. His early musical experiences were mostly with the light salon music of the day, now mostly forgotten, mixed with a scattering of classics. Dett was the first person of African descent to graduate from Oberlin College, with a double degree in piano and composition in 1908. It was there, after hearing a movement by Antonín Dvorak, he was compelled to compose music that used Negro folk idioms in a new way, striving for the highest goals of musical art.  After being awarded honorary doctorates in music from Howard University in 1924 and Oberlin in 1926, he chose to enroll at the Eastman School of Music in 1931 to obtain a Masters Degree. During his education, Dett studied with Oliver Willis, Arthur Foote, and Nadia Boulanger. Dett's most important work began in 1913 at the Hampton Institute in Hampton, Virginia. He trained the choir at that traditionally African-American school to a new level of musical excellence. His 40-voice Hampton Singers performed at Carnegie Hall in January 1914. Dett rose to the position of director of the Music Department at Hampton in 1926, the first black to hold that job. That same year, Oberlin Conservatory awarded Dett an honorary Doctor of Music degree, another first for an African American. On December 17, 1926, the 80-voice Hampton Choir assumed national prominence as it performed by invitation at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. After earning his master's degree in 1932, Dett resigned from Hampton and moved to Rochester, New York. In 1973 his piano works were collected and published as a volume. Dett’s writings include The Emancipation of Negro Music, which won an important literary prize at Harvard University in 1920, and Album of the Heart, a volume of poems. He published some 100 compositions, principally piano, vocal, and choral works. His major works for chorus include Chariot Jubilee, an extended motet, and The Ordering of Moses, an oratorio.

Related Information

http://nathanieldett.org/biography/ ; http://memory.loc.gov/diglib/ihas/loc.natlib.ihas.200038840/default.html

Works by Nathaniel Dett

Title Collection Voice Type Range Poet
Follow Me Voice C4 -F5 | Optional Ab5 Biblical
Go On, Brother Voice C4 - A5 Biblical
God Understands Voice D4 - G5 Trina Task
Hymn To Parnassus Voice C4 - F5 Verse I Anonymous; Verse 2 Nathaniel Dett
Iorana Voice D4 - G5 J. Henry Quine
Now We Take This Feeble Body: Negro Funeral Hymn Voice Eb4 - Bb5 Negro Funeral Hymn
Oh Lord, The Hard-One Miles Voice C#4 - G5 Paul Laurence Dunbar
Open Yo' Eyes Voice D4 - G5 Nathaniel Dett
Ride on Jesus Voice C4 - Bb5 Biblical
Ride on Jesus Voice Bb3 - Ab5 Biblical
Sit Down Servant Voice C4 - Db5 Biblical
Somebody's Knocking at Your Door Voice Bb3 - Eb5 Biblical
The Winding Road Voice D4 - F5 Tertius Van Dyke
Title Published Size Solo with Ensemble Duration Range Level Orchestration
A song No Full Orchestra Professional
American sampler, S. 13 Yes Full Orchestra 20+ Professional
Chariot Jubilee No Full with Chorus Tenor 10-20 Professional Tenor, SATB, piano or organ or orchestra
Enchantment No Full Orchestra Professional
Juba No Full Orchestra Under 5 Professional 3[1.2.3/pic] 222-4331-tb, tmp, prc,
Music in the mine Yes Full with Chorus Tenor Professional Tenor, SATB, orchestra
Parade of the years No Full Orchestra Professional
Pathways of progress No Full Orchestra Professional 222[1.2/bcl] 2-2-sx (2-asx, tsx opt.)-4231-tmp, prc (incl. xy), pn, 1-hp, str
The Ordering of Moses Yes Full Orchestra with Chorus SATB 20+ Professional SATB soli, SSAATTBB, 2222 p, 4321, timp, harp, organ, strings
Composer Title Work Instrumentation Level Number of Movements Accompanied Size Duration Range
Nathaniel Dett Barcarolle Piano 4 No Solo
Nathaniel Dett His Song Piano 4 No Solo
Nathaniel Dett Honey Piano Intermediate 4 No Solo
Nathaniel Dett Juba Piano Advanced 4 No Solo
Nathaniel Dett Mammy Piano 1 No Solo