William Levi Dawson

Born: 26 September 1898, Anniston, Alabama (USA)
Died: 4 May 1990

(this composer submitted by Philip Edwards <songoftheforestsyahoo.co.uk>)

→ FREE Classical MP3! Download 25 tracks from eMusic
— Vast collection — No Restrictions — Own Your Music!

Reactions

[Be the first to write a reaction.]

Add your reaction

Title:
Comments:

Note: HTML code will be filtered out. Comments will appear on the website immediately after submission, but will be moderated. Reactions should be between 50 and 2000 characters long.

[Phonetic spelling (mp3)]
Please copy the above security text:

Music

• Negro folk symphony
• Out in the fields, for chorus
• Break, break, break, for chorus
• Piano trio
• Violin sonata

Biography

[Date of birth also given as 25th September, and 1899.]

William Levi Dawson was an African American composer, professor and choir director. He was born on September 26, 1899 in Anniston, Alabama and died on Feb. 5, 1990 in Montgomery, Alabama. At the age of 13 he ran away from home and entered the Tuskegee Institute. Dawson was 16 when he started composing. He graduated from Tuskegee Institute in 1921, and in 1925 received a Bachelor of Music degree from the Horner Institute of Fine Arts in Kansas City Missouri. Dawson earned his Master of Music degree at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago, in 1927. He continued his education at the Eastman School of Music, and studied privately with several professors of Music.

Dawson returned to Tuskegee Institute to teach in 1931, and ran the Music Department for 25 years. During that time he brought world renown to the Tuskegee Institute Choir. Best known for his many fine arrangements of spirituals, Dawson also produced the Negro Folk Symphony, a 3-movement work which was first performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra in 1934. A visit to West Africa in 1952 led Dawson to revise the rhythmic patterns in the same year, to make them more authentic. The revised version was recorded in 1963 by the American Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leopold Stokowski, and was released as a Decca LP. The recording has been reissued as Deutsche Grammophon

477 6502 (2007). In 1993 the Negro Folk Symphony was recorded by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Neem Järvi. The recording was first released on Chandos 9226 (1993); it was reissued on Chandos 9909 (2001). Prof. Dominique-René de Lerma has compiled an extensive Works List and a detailed bibliography for Dawson, both of which are found on the William Levi Dawson page of www.AfriClassical.com

(Contribution by wzick <wzickameritech.net>.)

• CDs
• MP3
• DVDs
• Books

In association with Amazon.com

BooksClassical MusicDVDMP3 Downloads

Alphabetical: A to ZAlphabetical: Z to AFeatured ItemsPrice: High to LowPrice: Low to HighRel Date: New to OldRel Date: New to Old

Classical Music : Search

Pleasures of Their Company
from: EMI Digital

List Price: $16.98

Amazon.com's Price: $9.97

You Save: $7.01 (41%)
Prices subject to change.

Deep River
by: Adam Reinwald, Alan Dunbar, Kelvin Chan, Timothy Takach, Harry T. (Henry) Burleigh, William Levi Dawson, Jester Hairston, John W. II Work, Albert Jordan, Brad Erbes, Brian Arreola, Michael Hanawalt, Peter Zvanovec, Cantus Male Ensemble

Amazon.com's Price: $19.99

Prices subject to change.

Negro Spirituals - Derek Lee Ragin, Moses Hogan, Moses Hogan
from: Virgin Classics

List Price: $11.98

Amazon.com's Price: $7.97

You Save: $4.01 (33%)
Prices subject to change.

Still/Dawson/Ellington: Symphony No. 2/Negro Folk Symphony/Harlem
from: Chandos

Amazon.com's Price: $18.98

Prices subject to change.

Dawson: Negro Folk Symphony; Ellington: Suite From the "River," "Solitude"
by: Neeme Jarvi

Amazon.com's Price: $18.98

Prices subject to change.

The Spirituals Of William L. Dawson (#2159)
from: St Olaf Records

Amazon.com's Price: $16.99

Prices subject to change.

page 1 of  3
 1  2  3 

 

Concerts

[You can submit announcements for concerts with music from William Levi Dawson.]

Events

[If you know of an event (date and year) for William Levi Dawson, then let me know, and I will add it.]

Links

• http://chevalierdesaintgeorges.homestead.com/Dawson.html
• http://www.alamhof.org/dawsonwl.htm
• http://www.aaregistry.com/african_american_history/2202/William_Dawson_an_Alabama_musician