Edmund Jenkins (April 9, 1894 – 1926) was an American composer during the

Harlem Renaissance The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and cultural revival of African American music, dance, art, fashion, literature, theater, politics and scholarship centered in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, spanning the 1920s and 1930s. At the t ...

. He spent the most of his life abroad. Jenkins studied music at

Morehouse College , mottoeng = And there was light (literal translation of Latin itself translated from Hebrew: "And light was made") , type = Private historically black men's liberal arts college , academic_affiliations ...

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

with Kemper Herrald, and played and directed the bands of his father's

Jenkins Orphanage The Jenkins Orphanage, now officially known as the Jenkins Institute For Children, was established in 1891 by Rev. Daniel Joseph Jenkins in Charleston, South Carolina. Jenkins was a businessman and Baptist minister who encountered street children ...

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

. He went to England with the band in 1914 and remained there studying at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke of ...

from 1914 to 1921. In 1925, Jenkins was awarded 1st place in the Holstein Prizes donated by

Casper Holstein Casper Holstein (December 7, 1876 – April 5, 1944) was a prominent New York mobster involved in the Harlem " numbers rackets" during the Harlem Renaissance. Early life His birth name was Egbert Joseph and changed his name in honor of his ma ...

via ''Opportunity'' magazine for his piece, ''African War Dance'' and also 2nd place for his ''Sonata in A minor'' for

violoncello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G2, D ...

. In 1925 in Belgium, his work ''Carlestonia'', a

rhapsody Rhapsody may refer to: * A work of epic poetry, or part of one, that is suitable for recitation at one time ** Rhapsode, a classical Greek professional performer of epic poetry Computer software * Rhapsody (online music service), an online m ...

for orchestra—noted for its "Negro" themes—was performed. In London, ''Charlestonia: Negro Symphony'' was performed in 1919. His career which included jazz/dance band recordings (London: 1921) and in Europe was ended by an early death in Paris where he had settled in 1924.

References

*''The Music of Black Americans: A History''.

Eileen Southern Eileen Jackson Southern (February 19, 1920 – October 13, 2002) was an American musicologist, researcher, author, and teacher. Southern's research focused on black American musical styles, musicians, and composers; she also published on ea ...

. W. W. Norton & Company; 3rd edition. *

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jenkins, Edmund 1894 births 1926 deaths 20th-century classical composers 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians American classical composers American male classical composers Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music 20th-century African-American musicians Morehouse College alumni