Margaret Allison Bonds ( – ) was an American

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

arranger In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

, and teacher. One of the first Black composers and performers to gain recognition in the United States, she is best remembered today for her popular arrangements of African-American

spirituals Spirituals (also known as Negro spirituals, African American spirituals, Black spirituals, or spiritual music) is a genre of Christian music that is associated with Black Americans, which merged sub-Saharan African cultural heritage with the e ...

and frequent collaborations with

Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. One of the earliest innovators of the literary art form called jazz poetry, Hug ...

Life

Family background and life

Margaret Jeanette Allison Majors was born on March 3, 1913, in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, Illinois. Her father,

Monroe Alpheus Majors Monroe Alpheus Majors (October 12, 1864 – December 10, 1960)"Majors, Monroe Alpheus"
...

, was an active force in the civil rights movement as a physician and writer. His work included the founding of a medical association for black physicians who were denied membership in the

American Medical Association The American Medical Association (AMA) is a professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. Founded in 1847, it is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was approximately 240,000 in 2016. The AMA's state ...

on the basis of race. As an author, Majors is known for his book, '' Noted Negro Women: Their Triumphs and Activities'' (1893), and for his work as editor of several African-American newspapers. Her mother, Estelle C. Bonds, was a church musician and member of the

National Association of Negro Musicians The National Association of Negro Musicians, Inc. is one of the oldest organizations in the United States dedicated to the preservation, encouragement, and advocacy of all genres of the music of African-Americans. NANM had its beginning on May 3, ...

. She died in 1957. Margaret was close to both of her parents; their influence in her life is undoubtedly clear in her own work as a

musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who wri ...

. In 1940, Margaret Bonds married Lawrence Richardson (1911-1990), a probation officer, after moving to New York City in 1939. The couple later had a daughter, Djane Richardson (1946-2011). When Bonds passed away on April 26, 1972, in Los Angeles, California, she was survived by her husband, daughter, and sister.

Childhood and background info

In 1917, when she was four years old, Margaret's parents divorced. She grew up in her mother's home and was given her mother's maiden name, Bonds. Bonds grew up in a home visited by many of the leading black writers, artists, and musicians of the era; among houseguests were sopranos

Abbie Mitchell __NOTOC__ Abriea "Abbie" Mitchell Cook (25 September 1884 – 16 March 1960), also billed as Abbey Mitchell, was an American soprano opera singer. She performed the role of Clara in the premiere production of George Gershwin's ''Porgy and Bes ...

, and

Lillian Evanti Lillian Evanti (August 12, 1890 – December 6, 1967), was an African American opera singer. Evanti was the first African American to perform with a major European opera company Life She was born in Washington, D.C., and graduated from Armstron ...

, and composers

Florence Price Florence Beatrice Price (née Smith; April 9, 1887 – June 3, 1953) was an American classical music, classical composer, pianist, organist and music teacher. Born in Little Rock, Arkansas, Price was educated at the New England Conservatory of Mus ...

and

Will Marion Cook William Mercer Cook (January 27, 1869 – July 19, 1944), better known as Will Marion Cook, was an American composer, violinist, and choral director.Riis, Thomas (2007–2011)Cook, Will Marion ''Grove Music Online.'' Oxford Music Online. Retrieved ...

, all of whom would become influential to her future musical studies and career. Bonds showed an early aptitude for composition, writing her first work, ''Marquette Street Blues'', at the age of five. Her first musical studies were with her mother, who taught Margaret piano lessons at home. Bonds worked as an accompanist for dances and singers in various shows and supper clubs around Chicago; she also copied music parts for other composers.

Education

During high school, Bonds studied piano and composition with

and William Dawson. In 1929, at the young age of 16, Bonds began her studies at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

, where she earned both her

Bachelor of Music Bachelor of Music (BM or BMus) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree, and the majority of work consists of prescr ...

(1933) and Master of Music (1934) degrees in

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

and composition. Bonds was one of the few Black students at Northwestern University; the environment was hostile, racist, and nearly unbearable. Although she was permitted to study there, she was not permitted to reside on campus. Margaret recalls, in an interview with James Hatch:

''I was in this prejudiced university, this terribly prejudiced place…. I was looking in the basement of the Evanston Public Library where they had the poetry. I came in contact with this wonderful poem, “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” and I’m sure it helped my feelings of security. Because in that poem he tells how great the black man is. And if I had any misgivings, which I would have to have – here you are in a setup where the restaurants won’t serve you and you’re going to college, you’re sacrificing, trying to get through school – and I know that poem helped save me.''

Bonds moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

after graduating from Northwestern University. There she attended the prestigious

Juilliard School of Music 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 ...

and studied composition with

Roy Harris Roy Ellsworth Harris (February 12, 1898 – October 1, 1979) was an American composer. He wrote music on American subjects, and is best known for his Symphony No. 3. Life Harris was born in Chandler, Oklahoma on February 12, 1898. His ancestry ...

Robert Starer Robert Starer (8 January 1924 in Vienna – 22 April 2001 in Kingston, New York) was an Austrian-born American composer, pianist and educator. Robert Starer began studying the piano at age 4 and continued his studies at the Vienna State Academy ...

, and Emerson Harper, and piano with Djane Herz. She also studied with Walter Gossett. She pursued lessons with

Nadia Boulanger Juliette Nadia Boulanger (; 16 September 188722 October 1979) was a French music teacher and conductor. She taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the 20th century, and also performed occasionally as a pianist and organist. From a ...

, who upon looking at her work said that she needed no further study and refused to teach her. However, it is inconclusive whether Boulanger truly thought Bonds had no need of further instruction or was acting from a position of racial prejudice. The work Boulanger refers to is ''

The Negro Speaks of Rivers "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" is a poem by American writer Langston Hughes. Hughes wrote the poem when he was 17 and crossing the Mississippi River on the way to visit his father in Mexico. It was first published the following year in ''The Crisi ...

'', a setting for voice and piano of

' poem by the same title—the very poem which brought Bonds such comfort during her years at Northwestern University.

Langston Hughes

Langston Hughes (1901-1967) was a prolific African-American poet and writer. Hughes and Bonds became great friends after meeting in person in 1936, and she set much of his work to music. On May 22, 1952, Langston (poet), Bonds (pianist), and Daniel Andrews (baritone) collaborated on a project, "An Evening of Music and Poetry in Negro Life," performing at Community Church. This project took place just months after Bond's debut solo performance at Town Hall in New York City, February 7, 1952. Ever a good friend, Hughes sent Bonds a Western Union telegram the afternoon of her performance, telling her how much he desired to be present and sending his best wishes. Bonds wrote several music-theater works. In 1959, she set music to ''Shakespeare in Harlem'', a

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

by Hughes. It premiered in 1960 at the 41st Street Theater. Other collaborations include "The Negro Speaks of Rivers," "Songs of the Seasons," and "Three Dream Portraits." Another work based on a text by Langston Hughes was first performed in February 2018 in

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

, by the

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

Concert Choir under Frederick Binkholder. Entitled "Simon Bore the Cross", it is a cantata for piano and voice, and is based on the spiritual "

He Never Said a Mumblin' Word "He Never Said a Mumblin' Word" (also known as "They Hung Him on a Cross", "Mumblin' Word", "Crucifixion", and "Easter") is an American Negro Spiritual folk song. The song narrates the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, detailing how he was nailed to th ...

". The death of Langston Hughes in 1967 was difficult for Bonds. Afterward, she left her husband and daughter to move from New York to Los Angeles where she remained until her death on April 26, 1972.

Career

Bonds was active in her career throughout her studies at Northwestern University. In 1932, Bond's composition ''Sea Ghost'' won the prestigious national Wanamaker Foundation Prize, bringing her to the public's attention. On June 15, 1933, Bonds performed with the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) was founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891. The ensemble makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival. The music director is Riccardo Muti, who began his tenure ...

—the first black person in history to do so—during its ''Century of Progress'' series (''Concertino for Piano and Orchestra'' by

John Alden Carpenter John Alden Carpenter (February 28, 1876 – April 26, 1951) was an American composer. Carpenter's compositional style was considered to be mainly "mildly modernistic and impressionistic"; many of his works strive to encompass the spirit of America ...

). She would return in 1934 to perform ''Piano Concerto in D Minor'' composed by former teacher, Florence Price. After graduation, Bonds continued to teach, compose, and perform in Chicago. Two of her notable students were

Ned Rorem Ned Rorem (October 23, 1923 – November 18, 2022) was an American composer of contemporary classical music and writer. Best known for his art songs, which number over 500, Rorem was the leading American of his time writing in the genre. Althou ...

and Gerald Cook, with whom she performed piano duos in later years. In 1936, she opened the Allied Arts Academy where she taught art, music, and

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

. That same year, an adaptation of "Peach Tree Street" appeared in ''

Gone With the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Win ...

''. In 1939, she moved to

where she edited music for a living and collaborated on several popular songs. She made her solo performing debut at Town Hall on February 7, 1952. Around this same time, she formed the Margaret Bonds Chamber Society, a group of black musicians which performed mainly the work of black classical composers. Bonds lived in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

, and worked on many music projects in the neighborhood. She helped to establish a Cultural Community Center, and served as the minister of music at a church in the area. Among Bonds' works from the 1950s is '' The Ballad of the Brown King'', a large-scale work which was first performed in December 1954 in New York. It tells the story of the

Three Wise Men 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * ''Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 1901 n ...

, focusing primarily on Balthazar, the so-called "brown king". It was originally written for voice and piano, but later revised for chorus, soloists, and orchestra, and eventually televised by CBS in 1960. A large work in nine movements, the piece combines elements of various black musical traditions, such as

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

, calypso, and

. Bonds was writing other works during this period of her career: ''Three Dream Portraits'' for voice and piano, again setting Hughes' poetry, were published in 1959. D Minor Mass for chorus and organ was first performed in the same year. As an outgrowth of her compositions for voice, Bonds later became active in the theater, serving as music director for numerous productions and writing two

s. In 1964, Bonds wrote ''Montgomery Variations'' for orchestra, a set of seven programmatic variations on the spiritual "I Want Jesus to Walk with Me." Bonds penned a program for the work which explains that it centered on Southern Blacks' decision no longer to accept the segregationist policies of the

Jim Crow The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States. Other areas of the United States were affected by formal and informal policies of segregation as well, but many states outside the Sout ...

South, focusing on the Montgomery Bus Boycotts and the 1963 bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham. Bonds shared the completed work with Ned Rorem, a close friend and former student, in 1964. She eventually dedicated the work to

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

Two years later, she moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, teaching music at the Los Angeles Inner City Institute and at the Inner City Cultural Center.

Zubin Mehta Zubin Mehta (born 29 April 1936) is an Indian conductor of Western classical music. He is music director emeritus of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO) and conductor emeritus of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Mehta's father was the foun ...

and the

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic, commonly referred to as the LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at th ...

premiered her ''Credo'' for chorus and orchestra in 1972. Bonds died unexpectedly a few months later, shortly after her 59th birthday.

Memberships

*National Association of Negro Musicians' Junior Music Association (High School) *Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated *National Guild of Piano Teachers (1951) *American Musicians' Welfare Association (1951) *National Association of Colored Women's Clubs (1962)

Legacy

Margaret Bonds did much to promote the music of black musicians. Her own compositions and lyrics addressed racial issues of the time. The performance with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra was an historical moment, marking the first occasion a black performer had performed with them as soloist. Bonds connected her father's political activism with her mother's sense of musicianship. In addition, many well-known arrangements of African-American spirituals (''

He's Got the Whole World In His Hands "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands" is a traditional African-American spiritual, first published in 1927. It became an international pop hit in 1957–58 in a recording by English singer Laurie London, and has been recorded by many other si ...

'') were created by Bonds.

Major works

*''Sea Ghost'', voice and piano (1932) *''Don't You Want to Be Free,'' music-theater work (1938), Text: Langston Hughes *''Wings over Broadway,'' orchestra (1940) *''Tropics After Dark'', musical-theater work (1940) *''

,'' voice and piano (1942) *''Troubled Water'', piano *'' The Ballad of the Brown King,'' chorus, soloists, and orchestra (1954) *''Songs of the Seasons,'' voice and piano (1955) *''Three Dream Portraits,'' voice and piano (1959) *Mass in D-Minor, chorus and organ (1959) *''Shakespeare in Harlem'', music-theater work (1959), Text: Langston Hughes *''U.S.A.,'' music-theater work, Text:

John Dos Passos John Roderigo Dos Passos (; January 14, 1896 – September 28, 1970) was an American novelist, most notable for his ''U.S.A.'' trilogy. Born in Chicago, Dos Passos graduated from Harvard College in 1916. He traveled widely as a young man, visit ...

*''Joshua Fit De Battle of Jericho'', voice and orchestra (1959) *''Ballad of the Brown King'', chorus and orchestra (1960) *''Fields of Wonder,'' men's voices (1963) *''Montgomery Variations,'' orchestra (1964) *''Credo,'' S solo, Bar solo, chorus and orchestra (1965)

Pieces for stage

* ''Shakespeare in Harlem'', music-theater work (1959), Text: Langston Hughes * ''Romey and Julie'', Text: R. Dunmore * ''U.S.A.'', music-theater work, Text: R. Dunmore * ''The Migration'', ballet * ''Wings over Broadway'', ballet

Pieces for solo voice

*''Be a little savage with me'', Text: Langston Hughes *''Chocolate Carmencita'', Text: Langston Hughes *''Cowboy from South Parkway'', Text: Langston Hughes *''Didn't it rain!'', Spiritual *''Empty Interlude'', Text: Roger Chaney and Andy Razaf *''Ezekiel saw de wheel'' *''Five Creek-Freedmen spirituals'' (1946) # "Dry Bones" # "Sit down servant" # "Lord, I just can't keep from crying" # "You can tell the world" # "I'll reach to heaven" *''Georgia'' (1939), in collaboration with A. Razaf, and J. Davis *''Go tell it on the mountain'' *''He's got the whole world in His hands'' *''Hold on'' *''I got a home in that rock'' *''I shall pass through the world'' *''I'll make you savvy'' *''Joshua fit da battle of Jericho'', Spiritual *''Just a no good man'', Text: Langston Hughes *''Let's make a dream come true'' *''Lonely little maiden by the sea'', Text: Langston Hughes *''Market day in Martinique'', Text: Langston Hughes *''Mary had a little baby'' *''The Negro speaks of rivers'' (1942), Text: Langston Hughes *''No good man'' *''Peachtree street'' *''Pretty flower of the tropics'', Text: Langston Hughes and

Arna Bontemps Arna Wendell Bontemps ( ) (October 13, 1902 – June 4, 1973) was an American poet, novelist and librarian, and a noted member of the Harlem Renaissance. Early life Bontemps was born in Alexandria, Louisiana, into a Louisiana Creole family. His a ...

*''Rainbow gold'', Text: Roger Cheney *''Sing aho'', Spiritual *''Six Songs on Poems by

Edna St. Vincent Millay Edna St. Vincent Millay (February 22, 1892 – October 19, 1950) was an American lyrical poet and playwright. Millay was a renowned social figure and noted feminist in New York City during the Roaring Twenties and beyond. She wrote much of he ...

'' #"Women Have Loved Before as I Love Now" #"Hyacinth" #"Even in the Moment" #"Feast" #"I Know My Mind" #"What Lips My Lips Have Kissed" *''Songs of the Seasons'', Text: Langston Hughes # "Poem d'automne" # "Winter-moon" # "Young love in spring" # "Summer storm" *''Spring will be so sad when she comes this year'' (1940), in collaboration with H. Dickinson *''Sweet nothings in Spanish'', Text: Langston Hughes and Arna Bontemps *''Three Sacred Songs'' #"No Man Has Seen His Face" #"Touch the Hem of His Garment" #"Faith in Thee" *''Tain't no need'', Text: Roger Cheney *''Three dream portraits'' (1959) *''To a brown girl dead'', Text:

Countee Cullen Countee Cullen (born Countee LeRoy Porter; May 30, 1903 – January 9, 1946) was an American poet, novelist, children's writer, and playwright, particularly well known during the Harlem Renaissance. Early life Childhood Countee LeRoy Porter ...

*''The way we dance in Chicago/Harlem'', Text: Langston Hughes *''When the dove enters in'', Text: Langston Hughes *''When the sun goes down in rhumba land'', Text: Langston Hughes and Arna Bontemps *The Pasture (1959), Text: R. Frost *Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening (1963), Text: R. Frost

Pieces for piano

*''Lillian M. Bowles: For the piano'' *''Troubled water''(1967) *''Two Piano Pieces'' #"Tangamerican" #"Fugal Dance * ''Spiritual Suite''

Choral pieces

*''Ballad of the brown king'' (SATB, tenor solo), Text: Langston Hughes *''Children's sleep'' (SATB), Text: Vernon Glasser *''Credo'' (soprano solo, baritone solo, SATB chorus, piano) (1966), Text: W.E.B. Du Bois *''Credo'' (soprano solo, baritone solo, SATB chorus, orchestra) (1967), text: W.E.B. Du Bois * ''Touch the Hem of His Garment'' (S solo, SATB chorus, piano) (1968). Text: Janice Lovoos. (see also under 'Pieces for Solo Voice) * ''No Man Has Seen His Face'' (S or T solo, SATB chorus, piano) (1968). Text: Janice Lovoos. (see also under 'Pieces for Solo Voice) *''Ezek'el saw de wheel'' *''Go tell it on the mountain'' *''Hold on'' *''I shall pass through this world'' (a capella) *''Mary had a little baby'' (SSAA) *''The Negro speaks of rivers'' (1962), Text: Langston Hughes *''You can tell the world'' (SSA) *''You can tell the world'' (TTBB) *Fields of Wonder, song cycle, male chorus, Text: Langston Hughes *Mass in D minor (only Kyrie is extant) *''This Little light of mine'', spiritual, for soprano, chorus, and orchestra *''Touch the Hem of His Garment'' (Lovoos), for soprano, chorus, and piano *''Standin' in the need of prayer,'' spiritual, for soprano and chorus *''I wish I knew how it would feel to be free,'' spiritual, for soprano, chorus, and orchestra *''Sinner, please don't let this harvest pass,'' spiritual, for soprano and mixed chorus List includes works compiled in a monograph published by the Center for Black Music Research at

Columbia College Chicago Columbia College Chicago is a Private college, private art college in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1890, it has 5,928https://about.colum.edu/effectiveness/pdf/spring-2021-student-profile.pdf students pursuing degrees in more than 60 undergra ...

Recordings

In the 1960s, Leontyne Price, the first African American opera singer to become internationally famous, commissioned and recorded some of Bonds' arrangements of spirituals. Some of Bonds' music, mainly piano pieces and

art song An art song is a Western vocal music composition, usually written for one voice with piano accompaniment, and usually in the classical art music tradition. By extension, the term "art song" is used to refer to the collective genre of such songs ...

s, has been recorded on various labels, mostly on compilation albums of music by black composers. In 2019 the premiere recording of ''The Ballad of the Brown King'' (performed by The Dessoff Choirs and Orchestra) was released on the Avie label.

References

External links

*
Margaret Bonds American National Biography of the Day
* Margaret Bonds Papers. James Weldon Johnson Collection in the Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bonds, Margaret 1913 births 1972 deaths 20th-century American composers 20th-century American pianists 20th-century American women pianists 20th-century classical composers 20th-century classical pianists 20th-century women composers African-American classical composers American classical composers African-American classical pianists African-American women classical composers American classical pianists American women classical composers American women classical pianists Bienen School of Music alumni Classical musicians from Illinois Jazz arrangers Jazz-influenced classical composers Musicians from Chicago African-American women musicians 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American musicians