African Americans in popular culture

Scope and Contents Married composers Dorothy and Kermit Moore lectured on 4/24/1984 (2015-0002/RR233). Dorothy Moore is a composer who has studied with Mark Fax at Howard University, Washington, DC (1963), with Nadia Boulanger at the American Conservatory at Fontainebleau (summer 1963), and with Chou Wen-chung in New York (1965). Moore went on to teach at the Harlem School of the Arts (1965–6), New York University (1969) and Bronx Community College, CUNY (1971).In addition to teaching,...

Scope and Contents Musician Eddie Moore lectured on 9/7/1976 (2015-0002/RR234). Moore was a drummer who was active from the 1960s-1990.RR 234 Edward O'Connor makes announcements regarding dance and theatre groups being formed and meeting in the Afro-American Cultural Center, class related issues and then introduces Hale Smith as the instructor for the course. Hale Smith introduces Eddie Moore (percussionist), who is accompanied by reed (saxophone, etc.) player Dewey Redmond and poet Jamel Carma. ...

Scope and Contents Composer, conductor, and cellist Kermit Moore lectured on 3/12/1974 (2015-0002/RR235). Although primarily a cellist, Kermit Moore was also a conductor, composer, and teacher. Having begun his music training as early as six-years-old, Moore began studying with cello faculty at the Cleveland Institute of Music, and went on to spend a summer at the Tanglewood Music festival all before simultaneously attending both Julliard and New York University for three years receiving an MA in Music. ...

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Singer and actress Melba Moore lectured on 11/14/1989 (2015-0002/AC12).

Scope and Contents Painter and professor of art Deborah Muirhead lectured on 2 occasions. Professor Muirhead was a professor at the University of Connecticut in the School of Fine Arts. Deborah Dancy, also known as Deborah Muirhead (born 1949), is an American painter of large-scale abstractions in oil; she is also a printmaker and mixed media artist. Her work is also known to encompass digital photography. In 1981, she began to teach at the University of Connecticut, Storrs, where she taught painting for...

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Saxophonist and flute player Najee lectured on 10/3/1989 (2015-0002/AC13).

Scope and Contents Composer and trumpeter Jalalu Nelson lectured on 9/14/1982 (2015-0002/RR236). Nelson studied composition with John Eaton, Iannis Xenakis, and Gunther Schuller at the Berkshire Center in Tanglewood. Upon moving to New York in 1974, Nelson began working in the field of Creative Music Education and was associated with such institutions as the Lincoln Center Institute, the Guggenheim Museum, and Adelphi University, among others. Having lived in the Netherlands from 1981-1985, where he worked at...

Scope and Contents Composer, conductor, and flutist James Newton lectured on 9/13/1983 (2015-0002/RR237). Newton is primarily known as a classical and jazz flautist. Although being multi-instrumental during his childhood and early adult years, Newton began to focus more directly on the flute and eventually earned a BA in music from California State University, Los Angeles in 1980. Throughout the 1970s, Newton played in various jazz ensembles, recorded, and toured across Europe and the US. Starting...

Scope and Contents Professor Edward O'Connor delivered 2 lectures. 1st was 12/2/1986 (2015-0002/RR238) and the 2nd was 2/2/1988 (2015-0002/RR239). RR 238 Leon Bailey makes several class related announcements before introducing Edward O'Connor who is speaking instead of the scheduled musician Solomon Galory (sp?). O'Connor provides a summation of the speakers over the last seventeen years of this class entitled "Current Issues and Views on the Black Experience in Music." RR 239 Edward O'Connor...

Scope and Contents Master drummer and percussionist Babatunde "Mike" Olatunji delivered his sole course lecture on 3/12/1970 (2015-0002/RR15). Olatunji emigrated to the United States from his native Nigeria in 1950. His lecture is 2 hours long and with the exception of 20 minutes, the vast majority of Olatunji's presentation was him performing music. He played drums and a flute and even sang on some numbers. Olatunji's lecture highlighted how elements of African culture (especially music and...

Scope and Contents Sculptor and art professor Billy Omabegho spoke to the Black Experience in the Arts course 3 times. In his 1971 lecture, the Nigerian-born Omabegho spoke about ancient African art, some work dating back to 60,000-30,000 BCE. He also had a slide show featuring examples of African masks, dances, paintings, and clothing. It is clear he wanted students to see that black individuals have been creating art since the earliest moments of humankind and that black artistic expression...

Scope and Contents Saxophonist and flutist Harold Ousely lectured on 10/28/1975 (2015-0002/RR240). Ousley was an active jazz saxophonist from the 1940s-1990s. Early in his career professional career, Ousley accompanied Billie Holiday and later went on to play in various circus and jazz bands from 1949-1956, where in 1952 he was a member of Sun Ra’s band. Throughout the 1950s, Ousley appeared on numerous records with King Kolax, and Danny Overbea. Throughout the remainder of his long career, Ousley played with...

Scope and Contents Poet and playwright Lindsay Patterson delivered 3 lectures that can be found on 3 reels and 1 audio cassette. Patterson spoke on 10/2/1973 (2015-0002/RR241), 4/19/1977 (2015-0002/RR242 reel 1) (2015-0002/RR243 reel 2), and 12/5/1989 (2015-0002/AC14).Patterson attended Virginia State University, earning a BA in English before serving in the US Army as a reporter for Stars and Stripes. Arriving in New York City in 1962, Patterson began a four decade long writing career...

Scope and Contents Poet and English professor Raymond Patterson delivered 3 lectures. His work appeared in numerous publications and poetry anthologies. He spoke to the course on 11/1/1983 (2015-0002/RR244), 9/16/1986 (2015-0002/RR245), and 9/15/1987 2015-0002/RR246). Patterson was the author of 26 Ways of Looking at a Black Man and Other Poems, Elemental Blues, as well as two librettos written for operas composed by UConn...

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Poet and playwright Lynda Patton lectured on two occasions: 2/10/1987 (2015-0002/RR247) and 3/20/1990 (2015-0002/AC16).

AC 16 Ms. Patton's lecture was on being a playwright, specifically a Black, female playwright.

RR 247 Linda Patton speaks to the Black Experience in the Arts class with performances by James Spruill and Georgette Leslie.

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Ms. Patton spoke about her personal history, education, experiences with discrimination, civil rights all of which impacted her career and introduced the readings and monologues spoken by Spruill and Leslie. Mr. Spruill read a piece he wrote about Ms. Patton's father entitled "And they gave me gas money" and other monologues. Ms. Leslie's monologue began with "I'm what you call a good girl."