{"id":2619,"date":"2017-11-06T22:12:58","date_gmt":"2017-11-07T04:12:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/?p=2619"},"modified":"2017-11-09T17:51:02","modified_gmt":"2017-11-09T23:51:02","slug":"florence-b-price","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/americanmusic\/2017\/11\/06\/florence-b-price\/","title":{"rendered":"Florence B. Price"},"content":{"rendered":"

On June 15th, 1933, Florence Price made history: the Chicago Symphony premiered her <\/span>Symphony in E minor<\/span><\/i>, making her the first\u00a0<\/span>African-American woman composer to have a work performed by a\u00a0<\/span>major orchestra.<\/span><\/p>\n

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This work, originally subtitled \u201cNegro\u00a0<\/span>Symphony,\u201d draws on\u00a0<\/span>many of the stylistic traits of African-American folk music without ever explicitly quoting folk melodies; \u00a0instead of writing symphonic music around a 12-bar blues or a spiritual tune, as did many of her contemporaries, Price instead incorporates some of the harmonic and melodic elements of blues and spirituals into her own unique voice. \u00a0The resulting composition is strikingly original.<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite the high quality of her music, Price had difficulty attaining performances of her work. \u00a0In a 1943 letter to Sergei Koussevitzky, she explains the manifold struggles she faces as both a female composer and a composer of color:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cUnfortunately the work of a woman composer is preconceived by many to be light, frothy, lacking in depth, logic, and virility. \u00a0Add to that the incident of race \u2013 I have Colored blood in my veins \u2013 and you will understand some of the difficulties that confront one in such a position\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In the remainder of the letter, Price asks Koussevitzky to consider one of her compositions, insisting that he make \u201cno concession\u201d on the basis of race or sex, but rather evaluate the score on its musical merit alone. \u00a0Despite receiving many such letters from Price, Koussevitzky never programmed a single one of her works.<\/span><\/p>\n

The underrepresentation and erasure of Florence Price continues to the present day: after searching several databases, I found that there is only one recording of the <\/span>Symphony in E minor<\/span><\/i> that is readily available to the public. \u00a0Scholarly research on\u00a0Price\u2019s life is also relatively sparse, with the writings of late musicologist Rae Linda Brown existing as some of the only works that honor Price’s life and pay homage to her music. \u00a0The conspicuous silence surrounding Price in scholarly and musical discourses clearly illustrates the racist and sexist systems that ceaselessly oppress female composers of color. \u00a0Performing, researching, and recording the music of these underrepresented composers is essential if we ever hope to dismantle these systems and construct a new musical landscape that truly offers equal opportunities for all people.<\/span><\/p>\n