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AGENCIES OF PRESERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT. '. 97 |
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of Fisk University; Miss Mary E. Spence, his daughter; Mrs. Ella Sheppard Moore, of the Original Fisk Jubilee Singers; Fred J. Work, of Kansas City, Missouri; Harry T. Burleigh; Dr. C. J. Eyder; Dr. W. E. B. DuBois; Miss Kitty Cheatham; Dr. Henry E. Krehbiel; Antonin Dvorak; and Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. There are others who are spoken of elsewhere in this book. Mr. George L. White might well be called the miracle man of Negro Folk Song. It was he who really faced an opposing world in his purpose to send out those first Jubilee Singers, who, through these strange melodies, overcame mountainous prejudice, and won the hearts of the world. Professor Adam K. Spence always had an intense interest in this music. He was a poet and philosopher and from the very first saw the real worth of these songs. He resurrected them for the rellgioii^ worship in Fisk University, and it was he alone who taught the later generation of students to love and respect them. Miss Mary E. Spence is of one and the same spirit with her father. She has always been a helpful force in this work. Mrs. Ella Sheppard Moore might properly be calleda "folk song; of the American Negro." She has been so closely connected with the presentation of them to the world, so intimately associated with their preservation that it is impossible to think of the one separate and apart from the other. Frederick J. Work has collected, harmonized, and published more Negro folk songs and probably has a better technical knowledge of this music than any other individual. The work of that cantata, "Out of the Depths," mentioned before, is largely his original work. He has contributed some helpful articles upon the subject to different Journals and has edited a book of songs for a prominent publishing company. Harry T. Burleigh is doubtless the foremost musician of our race, and has applied his splendid powers to the development of our music. His voice and his mind make an admirable combination for the work. He has transcribed and harmonized several of the best known of these songs which are being used in large choruses. His accurate and sympathetic interpretations are among the brightest accomplish�ments in this field of endeavor. 7 |
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