Billie Lynn Daniel (1932–2002) was an American

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

tic soprano and composer. A winner of several notable vocal competitions, she was best known for her portrayal of Clara in ''

Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play '' Porgy'', it ...

'' and for her work as an exponent of American art song. She performed the world premieres of works by composers Richard Hundley,

William Flanagan William Flanagan may refer to: * William Flanagan (composer) (1923–1969), American composer * William Flanagan (American football) (1901–1975), professional football player * William Flanagan (politician) (1871–1944), British Member of Parli ...

, and Claude Debussy among other composers.

Career

Daniel was born on May 21, 1932, in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, where she was raised. She made her Broadway debut as one of the Female Saints in the revival of

Virgil Thomson Virgil Thomson (November 25, 1896 – September 30, 1989) was an American composer and critic. He was instrumental in the development of the "American Sound" in classical music. He has been described as a modernist, a neoromantic, a neoclass ...

's ''

Four Saints in Three Acts ''Four Saints in Three Acts'' is an opera composed in 1928 by Virgil Thomson, setting a libretto written in 1927 by Gertrude Stein. It contains about 20 saints and is in at least four acts. It was groundbreaking in form, content, and for its all-b ...

'' with

Leontyne Price Mary Violet Leontyne Price (born February 10, 1927) is an American soprano who was the first African American soprano to receive international acclaim. From 1961 she began a long association with the Metropolitan Opera, where she was the first Af ...

. She made her professional recital debut at Carnegie Hall in 1959 with ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' stating " aniel isa vocalist who has something to say in song repertory, and the voice and the technique with which to say it". She performed in recital at Carnegie Hall again in 1970. A graduate of the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

, in 1961 Daniel won both the

Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions The Metropolitan Opera Eric and Dominique Laffont Competition (formerly the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions) is an annual singing competition sponsored by the Metropolitan Opera. Established in 1954, its purpose is to discover, assist ...

and the Town Hall Recital Award . That same year she portrayed Clara in the

New York City Center New York City Center (previously known as the Mecca Temple, City Center of Music and Drama,. The name "City Center for Music and Drama Inc." is the organizational parent of the New York City Ballet and, until 2011, the New York City Opera. and t ...

revival of

George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned popular, jazz and classical genres. Among his best-known works are the orchestral compositions ' ...

's ''

'' with

William Warfield William Caesar Warfield (January 22, 1920 – August 25, 2002) was an American concert bass-baritone singer and actor, known for his appearances in stage productions, Hollywood films, and television programs. A prominent African American artist ...

and Martha Flowers in the title roles. In 1962 she performed the world premieres of Claude Debussy's ''Les Papillons'' and

's ''Moss'' with pianist Lowell Farr at Town Hall in New York City. In 1963 she won the Marian Anderson Award in Philadelphia. In 1972 Composer Richard Hundley wrote his

song cycle A song cycle (german: Liederkreis or Liederzyklus) is a group, or cycle (music), cycle, of individually complete Art song, songs designed to be performed in a sequence as a unit.Susan Youens, ''Grove online'' The songs are either for solo voice ...

''Birds, U.S.A.'' with text by

James Purdy James Otis Purdy (July 17, 1914 March 13, 2009) was an American novelist, short-story writer, poet, and playwright who, from his debut in 1956, published over a dozen novels, and many collections of poetry, short stories, and plays. His work ha ...

for Daniel. In 1975 she appeared jointly with her husband, baritone

Andrew Frierson Andrew Benny Frierson (March 29, 1924 – December 6, 2018) was an American operatic baritone and music educator. He was part of the first generation of black opera singers to achieve success and is viewed as part of an instrumental group of per ...

, in recital at

Alice Tully Hall Alice Tully Hall is a concert hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in the Upper West Side neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. The hall is named for Alice Tully, a New York performer and philanthropist whose donations assist ...

. In 1981 she sang Clara in concert with Thomas Carey as Porgy, Cab Calloway as Sport'n Life, and the Oklahoma City Philharmonic. She composed music for Margaret Yuen and the Red Silk Dancers adaptation of J. E. Franklin's ''

Black Girl Black women are women of sub-Saharan African and Afro-diasporic descent, as well as women of Australian Aboriginal and Melanesian descent. The term 'Black' is a racial classification of people, the definition of which has shifted over time and a ...

'' in 1993. Daniel and Frierson's daughter, actress Andrea Frierson, married actor Jesse D. Goins in 1977. Andrea later married actor David Toney. Daniel died in 2002.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daniel, Billie Lynn 1932 births 2002 deaths American operatic sopranos Juilliard School alumni Winners of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions Musicians from Queens, New York 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American women opera singers African-American classical composers American classical composers African-American women classical composers American women classical composers African-American women opera singers Classical musicians from New York (state) 20th-century women composers