A conversation on the subject of Black and brown composers, musicians, and conductors in classical music doesn't usually spark a lively exchange about the latest concerts, published books, or recorded works. More often than not, the reaction is silence or a brief reply, which is not to say that conductors and artists around the world are not performing orchestral commissions and compositions. If the topic of Black and brown musicians comes up, some people will probably think of Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, or maybe James Brown or Public Enemy. But few will think of Francis (Frank) Johnson or William Grant Still or a host of other Black American classical composers. However, several semesters would not be enough to cover the wealth of material produced by classical musicians of the African diaspora. So, what happened to these African American composers, musicians, and conductors who contributed to the classical music traditions of America?

• Identify the lives of notable Black classical composers, conductors, and musical performers.
• Demonstrate the concept of the linkage between the music of the “old guard”—musicians of yesteryear—and their impact on the contemporary Black classical musicians and compositions.
• Describe the importance of Slave Songs of the United States and Music and Some Highly Musical People to the development of the survey of American music history.
• List a few important African American classical singers who were strategic to the early development of establishing the bar for singers of the twentieth century.
• Identify classical singers who were influential upon concert life in Black America during the first half of the twentieth century.