William Levi Dawson's “Negro Folk Symphony” at NPR Website

[The Spirituals of William L. Dawson; The St. Olaf Choir; Anton Armstron, conductor; Marvis Martin, soprano; St. Olaf Records 2159 (1997)]

National Public Radio's “Performance Today” presented the African American composer William Levi Dawson's “Negro Folk Symphony” as part of “A Musical Black History Month”, Feb. 24, 2006. The complete work can still be heard online:

Listen: Hear Dawson's Negro Folk Symphony of 1934 (33:37)

Performance Today, February 24, 2006 · Spirituals in the 19th century were a symbol of sadness. William Levi Dawson understood that sadness when he wrote his Negro Folk Symphony of 1934. Robert Spano conducts the Atlanta Symphony in this concert performance.

[William Levi Dawson is profiled at AfriClassical.com]

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