Lulah McEwen Hedgeman (1938–1997) was an American musician and educator in Tennessee who taught at Memphis' Overton High School for Creative and Performing Arts. Hedgeman built a concert choir, a chamber group, and a jazz show choir and took her singers to the level of international competition. Her background included a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

in Music at

Fisk University Fisk University is a private historically black liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus is a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1930, Fisk was the first Africa ...

and a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

from the

University of Memphis } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering ...

. She won multiple "teacher of the year" awards at the local and state level, but gained national recognition in 1991 after being chosen as one of

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"Outstanding Performing Arts Teachers in America". For this she received a cash award and a paid trip to Hollywood for her 31-member chamber singers, whom she conducted in a

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program called "American Teacher Awards". In 1994 she was given an "Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts" degree by

Rhodes College Rhodes College is a private liberal arts college in Memphis, Tennessee. Historically affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA), it is a member of the Associated Colleges of the South and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges a ...

. She was subsequently called "Dr. Hedgeman" even though the title was an honorary one. She taught future music professionals

Wendy Moten Wendy Moten (born November 22, 1964) is an American jazz singer from Tennessee. Born in Memphis and based in Nashville, Moten has had a successful career in music, including several major-label solo records, some international hit songs, and a ...

, K.Michelle, O'Landa Draper, and bass-baritone Charles Billings. In 2021, when Moten appeared as a contestant on NBC's "''

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'' " she acknowledged Hedgeman and dedicated the performance to her. Hedgeman died suddenly on December 8, 1997, after an apparent

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

at age 59. It occurred in her home about two hours after she conducted a choir rehearsal. The City of Memphis named a street for her, "Dr. Lulah M. Hedgeman Lane".

References

{{Authority control 1938 births 1997 deaths American women music educators