#FlorenceBPrice was a #mixedrace #American classical composer, pianist, organist & music teacher. Shes the first African-American woman to be recognized as a symphonic composer & first to have a composition played by a major orchestra. Florence Smith was born in Arkansas in 1887, one of 3 children in a mixed-race family who were #AfricanAmerican, #European & #NativeAmerican. Despite rampant racism, the Smith's were well respected. Her father was the only #Black dentist in the city, her mother was a music teacher who helped hone her gifts. Her first performance was at age 4 & she had her first composition published at 11. At 14, she was valedictorian & was accepted into the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. She majored in piano & organ. She began to explore more African American music in her compositions, embracing her African American heritage. Her mom worried that could preclude her success. She encouraged her to pass as #Mexican from "Pueblo, Mexico." She was soon found out but it shielded her from some of the racism that might have beset her otherwise. She graduated with honors with a organ diploma & a teaching certificate. By then she wrote her first string trio & symphony. After teaching at Clark Atlanta, she moved back to Arkansas with her husband but when a local Black man was lynched, they moved to Chicago. She wasnt allowed to perform in Arkansas but the Black musician community in Chicago accepted her. In 1932 she placed first twice at the prestigious Rodman Wanamaker Music Awards winning $750. The Chicago Symphony Orchestra premiered her symphony a year later. She was inducted into the American Society of Composers, Authors & Publishers in 1940. Sadly, she still continued to face racism & sexism. But #LangstonHughes & Marian Anderson had her songs performed on the world stage. She died in 1953 but Black & female composers still performed her music especially after many of her works were recovered in Arkansas. In 1964, the Florence B. Price Elementary School was made in her honor. An annual International Florence Price Festival formed & recently in January 2021 she was the BBC Radio 3 Composer of the Week. 🏴🏳️🇺🇸 #whm #ff https://www.instagram.com/p/CM5ZEEMF6Nq/?igshid=29wcl7a9g8su
