Harry T. Burleigh

(1866-1949)

Harry T. Burleigh was a singer, composer, arranger and music editor whose work established a precedent of African American singers including spirituals in their concert repertoire. He developed an early interest in singing, and in 1892 he won a scholarship to attend the National Conservatory of Music in New York City, where he studied with the school’s director, Antonín Dvořák. Burleigh provided an essential source of Dvořák’s knowledge about African American musical traditions and influenced the creation of his “New World” Symphony and “American” Quartet.  

Through his work, Burleigh created greater performance and leadership opportunities for African American musicians. From 1894 to 1946, he was the baritone soloist at St. George’s Protestant Episcopal Church. In 1924 began performing an annual concert of spirituals at this venue, which became a longstanding tradition. These performances were well attended and helped popularize African American music among broader audiences. He was also the first Black soloist at the Temple Emanu-El synagogue, a role he maintained from 1900 to 1925. In addition to singing, Burleigh was a staff editor with the Ricordi music publishing company from 1913 to 1941. He later became a charter member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) in 1914 and served on the Board of Directors in 1941. 

Burleigh contributed to an important tradition within African American music by arranging spirituals as art songs for solo voice, beginning with the spiritual “Deep River” in 1916. Not long afterwards, classically trained African American singers initiated the practice of ending their concerts with a spiritual, often drawing from Burleigh’s own catalogue of arrangements. Burleigh’s legacy as a composer who forged the path for honoring spirituals in classical repertoire remains distinguished today.