Calvin Eduoard Ward
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Calvin Edouard Ward (April 19, 1925 – February 10, 2018) was an American concert pianist,
music theorist Music theory is the study of the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory". The first is the "rudiments", that are needed to understand music notation (ke ...
and educator.


Biography

He was born in
Atlanta, GA Atlanta ( ) is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georgia, Fulton County, the mos ...
, and educated 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 ...
,
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 ...
and the University of Vienna in Austria.The second child and first son of Effie Elizabeth Crawford Ward (graduate of
Spelman College Spelman College is a private, historically black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman re ...
, where she was a classmate of Alberta Williams King, mother of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, and sewing instructor at Atlanta's Evening School) and Jefferson Sigman Ward (graduate of the Haynes Institute in Augusta, GA, World War I veteran,
Pullman porter Pullman porters were men hired to work for the railroads as porters on sleeping cars. Starting shortly after the American Civil War, George Pullman sought out former slaves to work on his sleeper cars. Their job was to carry passengers’ bagga ...
and small businessman), Ward demonstrated musical prowess, including the ability to memorize tunes, from two years of age. As a four-year-old kindergartner at Atlanta's Oglethorpe School, he attracted his teacher's attention when he played the hymn "Just as I Am" in thirds on the classroom toy piano. He began formal music lessons when he entered first grade and within a year was playing complete sonatas. By the age of 10, Ward was accompanying the church choir and performing throughout Atlanta. After graduating from high school, Ward studied piano 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 ...
, then served for two years in the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
, rising to the rank of sergeant chaplain's assistant. Resuming music studies, he earned a Bachelor of Music in pipe organ performance in 1949 and Master of Music in choral performance in 1950. Ward taught at
Florida A&M University Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), commonly known as Florida A&M, is a public historically black land-grant university in Tallahassee, Florida. Founded in 1887, It is the third largest historically black university in the U ...
and served as University Organist from 1950 to 1951. Ward received a
Fulbright Fellowship The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...
to study organ at the Staatsakademie und Hochschule für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna, Austria, and earned his Doktorat in Musical Research from the
University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich histor ...
in 1955. Ward taught at
Southern University Southern University and A&M College (Southern University, Southern, SUBR or SU) is a public historically black land-grant university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It is the largest historically black college or university (HBCU) in Louisiana, a ...
in
Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, it is the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana's most populous parish—the equivalent of counties i ...
from 1957 to 1958, and was chair of the Department of Music and Fine Arts at
South Carolina State College South Carolina State University (SCSU or SC State) is a public, historically black, land-grant university in Orangeburg, South Carolina, United States. It is the only public, historically black land-grant institution in South Carolina, is a me ...
from 1959 to 1961. He taught at
Kingsborough Community College Kingsborough Community College (KBCC) is a public community college in Brooklyn, New York. It is part of the City University of New York (CUNY) system and the only community college in Brooklyn.Tuskegee Institute Tuskegee University (Tuskegee or TU), formerly known as the Tuskegee Institute, is a private, historically black land-grant university in Tuskegee, Alabama. It was founded on Independence Day in 1881 by the state legislature. The campus was de ...
. He taught music theory, applied organ and African-American classical music at the
Peabody Conservatory of Music The Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, The Johns Hopkins University is a Private university, private music school, conservatory and College-preparatory school, preparatory school in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in 1857 and ...
at
Johns Hopkins Johns Hopkins (May 19, 1795 – December 24, 1873) was an American merchant, investor, and philanthropist. Born on a plantation, he left his home to start a career at the age of 17, and settled in Baltimore, Maryland where he remained for most ...
from 1972 to 1977, and later taught as an adjunct at the
University of Maryland at Baltimore The University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) is a public university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1807, it comprises some of the oldest professional schools of dentistry, law, medicine, pharmacy, social work and nursing in the United States ...
and at
Coppin State College Coppin State University (Coppin) is a public historically black university in Baltimore, Maryland. It is part of the University System of Maryland and a member of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. In terms of demographics, the Coppin State stu ...
. In 1977, a Fulbright-Hays fellowship provided the opportunity to do research in Paris, France and
Lambaréné Lambaréné is a town and the capital of Moyen-Ogooué in Gabon. It has a population of 38,775 as of 2013, and is located 75 kilometres south of the equator. Lambaréné is based in the Central African Rainforest at the river Ogooué. This rive ...
,
French Equatorial Africa French Equatorial Africa (french: link=no, Afrique-Équatoriale française), or the AEF, was the federation of French colonial possessions in Equatorial Africa, extending northwards from the Congo River into the Sahel, and comprising what are ...
. Ward was a guest lecturer at Cuttington University College in the Republic of Liberia in 1979, and was a Phelps-Stokes African-American Exchange Scholar a
Kenyatta University College in Nairobi, Kenya
In 1986 he became the first
Fulbright The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...
fellow to both lecture and perform. He was the first African-American visiting professor and co-conductor of the choir at the State Conservatory of Music in
Vilnius, Lithuania Vilnius ( , ; see also #Etymology and other names, other names) is the capital and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the munic ...
and the first American guest conductor/lecturer of th
Ave Sol Choir
at the State Conservatory of Music in Riga, Latvia. He was the first American to perform on the
Riga Cathedral Riga Cathedral ( lv, Rīgas Doms; german: Dom zu Riga) formally The Cathedral Church of Saint Mary, is the Evangelical Lutheran cathedral in Riga, Latvia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Riga. The cathedral is one of the most recognizable l ...
's renowned Walcker pipe organ. Ward traveled to the St. Petersburg State Conservatory in the USSR, where he lectured in African-American classical composers, and to St. John's Theological College in New South Wales, Australia in 1990. In 1998, he accompanied the Street Theatre Dance Ensemble on the piano in concerts at the Island Center for the Performing Arts in St. Croix, Virgin Islands. Ward administered music activities for the
Trenton, NJ Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.Willingboro, New Jersey Willingboro Township is a township in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The township is a suburb of Philadelphia and part of the state's South Jersey region. As of the 2020 census, the population was 31,889, an increase of ...
community.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Calvin Edouard 1925 births 2018 deaths American music educators African-American classical musicians American music theorists United States Army non-commissioned officers Morehouse College alumni Northwestern University alumni 20th-century American pianists American male pianists 20th-century American male musicians African-American pianists 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American people Musicians from Atlanta