William
Grant Still
b. 1895-1978
b. 1895-1978
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William
Grant Still
b. 1895-1978 |
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Popularly referred to as "the Dean of African-American Composers", William Grant Still has been almost universally recognized for his contributions to American music regardless of his race. He is known to have been enamored of the voice, having written some nine operas and several remarkable songs. Jazz influences are to be found in the richness of his harmonic vocabulary. Individual songs like "Citadel," "Grief," and "Winter's Approach" bear out this finding. Little known is his song cycle From the Hearts of Women, from poetry of his wife and oft-times collaborator, Verna Arvey. Still's career as a composer extended from the late 1920s through the early 1970s. Perhaps his most influential compositions stem from his involvement in the Black Nationalist era (c. 1920 - 1940). During this period, he wrote his Afro-American Symphony, which is probably his best known work. From this same period comes the song cycle Songs of Separation. This setting of five songs by various Black poets (Bontemps, Philippe Thoby Marcelin, Dunbar, Cullen, and Hughes; all are African-American with the exception of Marcelin, who is Haitian) was published in 1949 by Leeds Music Corporation. It is now available through William Grant Still Music, Flagstaff, Arizona. It can be performed by medium high voices; a male voice may be preferable. Singing
these songs requires a fecundity of emotion. They convey a story "in which
a protagonist moves through irony, bitterness, and despair to a restorative
search for a new love" (Friedberg 1981, 105). The singer and pianist must
work in perfect ensemble in order to project the different atmospheres
required of the poetry and music. At times, the writing for the voice
"shows some operatic influence, as befits its dramatic orientation, but
nevertheless retains the compression and intimacy of the art song" (Friedberg
1981, 105). The construction of the cycle is palindromic. Songs I and
V are written in a quasi-arioso style, with melodic vocal lines which
range from expansive contours to recitative. Songs II and IV are similar
in their chordal treatment of the accompaniment. Both evoke a hushed atmosphere.
Song III is unlike any of the others. The poetry is a limerick by Dunbar
and the musical treatment is that of a joke. The cycle is fulfilling for
all parties concerned. The singer and pianist are presented with beautiful,
challenging music, and the audience is treated to some of William Grant
Still¹s best writing in the art song genre. Click
here for Entire Essay
WILLIAM GRANT STILL: SONGS OF SEPARATION Idolatry Poéme Parted If You Should Go A Black Pierrot William
Grant Still is recognized as one of the great American composers. His
compostional output encompasses all forms, including twenty-five or more
works for large orchestra, five symphonies, four ballets, nine operas,
eight larger works for voice and orchestra, more than a dozen chamber
compositions, many pieces for keyboard and accordion, art songs, music
for radio groups and soundtracks of films and television. Among his best
known works: Afro-American Symphony, Songs of Separation,
Plainchant for America, Seven Traceries, The Little Song that
wanted to be a Symphony, and three ballets - La Guiablesse, Sahdji,
and Lenox Avenue. Operas making their way into the repertoire
include Costaso, A Bayou Legend, and Highway 1, USA.
Source:
Perkins Holly, Ellistine. Biographies of Black Composers and Songwriters; Click here for more information on William Grant Still or Still Going On To link
to
The University of Arkansas Library, with further information on
Still, click
here
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