Pearl Williams-Jones () (June 28, 1931 – February 4, 1991) was an American gospel musician. A native of

Washington, D.C. ) , 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, ...

, Williams was the daughter of Smallwood Edmond Williams, pastor of the

Bible Way Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ The Bible Way Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ World-Wide was an African-American Oneness Pentecostal denomination started in 1957 in Washington, DC. In 1997, a division over who was the rightful successor to Presiding Bishop and founder Smallwood ...

. She attended public schools in the District, graduating from Charles Young Elementary, Brown Junior High School and Dunbar High School. She studied piano with Hazel Harrison and

Natalie Hinderas Natalie Leota Henderson Hinderas (June 15, 1927 – July 22, 1987) was an American pianist, composer and professor at Pennsylvania's Temple University. Hinderas was born in Oberlin, Ohio to a musical family. Her father (Abram) was a jazz piani ...

while attending

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

, from which she received both a bachelor's degree and a master's of music, and from which she graduated ''

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some So ...

''. She served as minister of music at her father's church and performed as a singer and pianist throughout the United States and Europe, appearing in such venues as

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 millio ...

, the

Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

Wigmore Hall Wigmore Hall is a concert hall located at 36 Wigmore Street, London. Originally called Bechstein Hall, it specialises in performances of chamber music, early music, vocal music and song recitals. It is widely regarded as one of the world's leadin ...

in London and the Suphiensalle in Munich. A well-regarded scholar of

gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music, and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is com ...

, she spent decades as a professor of music at the

University of the District of Columbia The University of the District of Columbia (UDC) is a public historically black land-grant university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1851 and is the only public university in the city. UDC is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall ...

, where she developed the first degree program in the United States dedicated to the study and performance of gospel. She taught jazz history and music appreciation as well, and directed the university's gospel choir. She served as a technical advisory on the film ''

Say Amen, Somebody ''Say Amen, Somebody'' is a 1982 documentary film directed by George Nierenberg about the history and significance of gospel music as told through the lives and trials of its singers. Included are Thomas A. Dorsey, considered the "Father of Gosp ...

''. For two decades she consulted with the

Smithsonian Folklife Festival The Smithsonian Folklife Festival, launched in 1967, is an international exhibition of living cultural heritage presented annually in the summer in Washington, D.C. in the United States. It is held on the National Mall for two weeks around the Fo ...

, and worked as an administrative staff member of its African Diaspora Advisory Group. Williams-Jones published a number of works, including a study of the work of

Roberta Martin Roberta Evelyn Martin (February 12, 1907 – January 18, 1969) was an American gospel composer, singer, pianist, arranger and choral organizer, helped launch the careers of many other gospel artists through her group, The Roberta Martin Singers. ...

written with

Bernice Johnson Reagon Bernice Johnson Reagon (born Bernice Johnson on October 4, 1942) is a song leader, composer, scholar, and social activist, who in the early 1960s was a founding member of the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee's (SNCC) Freedom Singers in t ...

. As a composer she was especially known for her performance of "Jesus, Lover of My Soul" to the accompaniment of

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

's "

Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" (or simply "Joy"; German: ''Jesus bleibet meine Freude'') is the most common English title of a piece of music derived from a chorale setting from the cantata ''Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben'', BWV 147 ("Heart and ...

". Williams-Jones received an honorary degree from

Lynchburg College The University of Lynchburg, formerly Lynchburg College, is a private university associated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and located in Lynchburg, Virginia. It has approximately 2,800 undergraduate and graduate students. ...

in 1972. She died in 1991 after an 18-month battle with cancer. She was married to Williams V. Jones, MD, with whom she had two children, Yvonne and Virgil Jr.

References

External links

Pearl Williams-Jones Papers
at the Library of Congress {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams-Jones, Pearl 1931 births 1991 deaths American gospel singers American Pentecostals Singers from Washington, D.C. Howard University alumni University of the District of Columbia faculty Deaths from cancer in Washington, D.C. Dunbar High School (Washington, D.C.) alumni American women academics 20th-century African-American women singers