A Tribute to Miss Marian Anderson

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WILL-FM’s Roger Cooper celebrates the life and career of the contralto Marian Anderson (1897-1993) in Classically Black: A Tribute to Miss Marian Anderson. 

The program features singer and former University of Illinois Professor William Warfield talking about his impressions of, and experiences with, Anderson. Music presented includes the Alto Rhapsody by Brahms and an aria from Verdi’s A Masked Ball. Anderson made her historic debut in this role at the Metropolitan Opera, where she was the first African-American artist on their permanent roster. Also included are her famous recordings of spirituals, as well as narration.

Classically Black, produced by Cooper, features classically trained African-American musicians. This is the 11th year the program has aired during February to observe Black History Month. It has been distributed nationally to radio stations around the country. Other programs have focused on jazz legend Duke Ellington, singer Paul Robeson, pianist Andre Watts, composer William Grant Still, and Warfield.

Cooper says he sees the programs as a kind of long-term outreach project. "We hope to make everyone more aware of blacks as composers and conductors as well s sopranos and pianists," he says. Even people in the music field sometimes aren’t aware of the contributions of African-American composers. "I have degrees in music and I didn’t hear about them. Students of my generation were not taught about black composers," says Cooper, who has completed coursework for a doctorate in music at the U of I.

In the past, little radio programming was available about classical music of black composers and musicians, says Cooper. "There was a need for it that wasn’t being met. More is available now, and maybe we’ve had something to do with that."

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