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Blind musicians are singers or instrumentalists, or in some cases singer-accompanists, who are legally blind.


Resources

Historically, many blind musicians, including some of the most famous, have performed without the benefit of formal instruction, since such instruction relies extensively on written musical notation. However, today there are many resources available for blind musicians who wish to learn Western
music theory Music theory is the study of theoretical frameworks for understanding the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory": The first is the "Elements of music, ...
and classical notation.
Louis Braille Louis Braille ( ; ; 4 January 1809 – 6 January 1852) was a French educator and the inventor of a reading and writing system named after him, braille, intended for use by visually impaired people. His system is used worldwide and remains virt ...
, the man who created the
braille Braille ( , ) is a Tactile alphabet, tactile writing system used by blindness, blind or visually impaired people. It can be read either on embossed paper or by using refreshable braille displays that connect to computers and smartphone device ...
alphabet for the blind, also created a system of classical notation for the blind called Braille music. This system allows the blind to read and write music much as the sighted do. The largest collection of Braille musical scores is located at the
Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...
in Washington, D.C. Outside the U.S., the largest collection of braille music scores is stored at the
National Library for the Blind The National Library for the Blind (NLB) was a public library in the United Kingdom, founded 1882, which aimed to ensure that people with sight problems have the same access to library services as sighted people. NLB was taken over by the Royal ...
in England. Computer technology and the Internet make it possible in theory for blind musicians to be more independent in composing and studying music. In practice, however, most programs rely on
graphical user interface A graphical user interface, or GUI, is a form of user interface that allows user (computing), users to human–computer interaction, interact with electronic devices through Graphics, graphical icon (computing), icons and visual indicators such ...
s, which are difficult for the blind to
navigate Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...
. There has been some progress in creating screen-reading interfaces for the blind, especially for the
Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...
operating systems. Today there are also several organizations devoted to the support of blind musicians. The National Resource Center for Blind Musicians and The Music Education Network for the Visually Impaired are dedicated to musical education for the blind.


Image

The image of the blind musician is an important touchstone in many cultures, even where the influence of the blind on music has been limited. The idea of
Homer Homer (; , ; possibly born ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Despite doubts about his autho ...
, the blind poet, for example, has had a long existence in Western tradition, even though its basis in truth is uncertain. The legendary 6th century
Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally **Breton people **Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Gale ...
druid A druid was a member of the high-ranking priestly class in ancient Celtic cultures. The druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no wr ...
and
bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is an oral repository and professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's a ...
Kian Gwenc'hlan is depicted as being imprisoned after having his eyes gouged out for refusing to convert to Christianity and singing out that he isn't afraid to die. In his book '' Singer of Tales'',
Albert Lord Albert Bates Lord (15 September 1912 – 29 July 1991) was a professor of Slavic and comparative literature at Harvard, Harvard University who carried on Milman Parry's research on epic poetry after Parry's death. Early life Lord was born in Bos ...
explains that in
Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...
he found many stories of blind musicians, but few current musicians who were actually blind. Natalie Kononenko had a similar experience in
Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
, though one Turkish musician of great talent,
Ashik Veysel An ashik (; ) or ashugh (; ka, აშუღი) is traditionally a singer-poet and bard who accompanies his song—be it a dastan (traditional epic story, also known as '' hikaye'') or a shorter original composition—with a long-necked ...
, was in fact blind. The popularity of the idea of the blind musician has inspired several artists.
John Singer Sargent John Singer Sargent (; January 12, 1856 – April 15, 1925) was an American expatriate artist, considered the "leading portrait painter of his generation" for his evocations of Edwardian era, Edwardian-era luxury. He created roughly 900 oil ...
painted a 1912 canvas based on this theme, and
Georges de La Tour Georges de La Tour (13 March 1593 – 30 January 1652) was a French Baroque painter, who spent most of his working life in the Duchy of Lorraine, which was temporarily absorbed into France between 1641 and 1648. He painted mostly religious chia ...
has a whole series of paintings devoted to blind musicians. Though the idea of blind musicians may be even more prevalent than their actuality, it remains true that at many points in history and in many different cultures, blind musicians, individually or as a group, have made important contributions to the development of music. Some of these contributions are discussed below. Blind musicians have also appeared in Muslim
harem A harem is a domestic space that is reserved for the women of the house in a Muslim family. A harem may house a man's wife or wives, their pre-pubescent male children, unmarried daughters, female domestic Domestic worker, servants, and other un ...
s to entertain the patron and his wives.
Robert Heinlein Robert Anson Heinlein ( ; July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific acc ...
made a science fiction use of the "blind bard" theme in "
The Green Hills of Earth "The Green Hills of Earth" is a science fiction short story by American writer Robert A. Heinlein. One of his Future History (novel), Future History stories, the short story originally appeared in ''The Saturday Evening Post'' (February 8, 1947 ...
".


Blind musicians in tradition


In China

Court musician was a traditional profession for the blind in China in antiquity. The first musician mentioned in Chinese sources, Shi Kuang, was a blind performer in the 6th century BC. The Guilds of Blind Musicians and Fortune-Tellers, which were still around in China during the middle of the 20th century, claimed to have existed as far back as 200 BC. More recently, groups of blind buskers have continued to perform in Zuoquan County, and presumably in other areas as well. One of the most popular musical works in China, " Erquan Yingyue (Moon Reflected in the Second Spring)", was composed in the first half of the 20th century by
Hua Yanjun Abing ( zh, c= 阿 炳, p=Ābǐng; 20 August 1893 or 3 November 1898 – 4 December 1950), born Hua Yanjun ( zh, t=華彥鈞, s= 华 彦 钧, p= Huá Yànjūn, links=no) was a blind Chinese musician specializing in the ''erhu'' and ''pi ...
, better known as "Blind Ah Bing".


In Japan

In Japan, Heike Biwa, a form of narrative music, was invented and spread during the
Kamakura period The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...
(1185–1333) by traveling musicians known as biwa hoshi, who were often blind. These musicians played the
biwa The is a Japanese short-necked wooden lute traditionally used in narrative storytelling. The is a plucked string instrument that first gained popularity in China before spreading throughout East Asia, eventually reaching Japan sometime durin ...
, a kind of lute, and recited stories, of which the most famous was
The Tale of the Heike is an epic account compiled prior to 1330 of the struggle between the Taira clan and Minamoto clan for control of Japan at the end of the 12th century in the Genpei War (1180–1185). It has been translated into English at least five times. ...
. The musicians were sometimes known as "blind priests" because they wore robes and shaved their heads, though they were not in fact
Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
priests. Goze were similar communities of visually impaired female
shamisen The , also known as or (all meaning "three strings"), is a three-stringed traditional Japanese musical instrument derived from the Chinese instrument . It is played with a plectrum called a bachi. The Japanese pronunciation is usually b ...
and
kokyū The is the only traditional Japanese string instrument played with a bow (music), bow. A variant of the instrument also exists in Okinawa Prefecture, Okinawa, called () in Okinawan language, Okinawan. The , like the , has its origins in Oki ...
players who travelled around the country singing songs and begging alms.


Kobzars of Ukraine

There is a long tradition of performance by blind minstrels in
Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
known as ''
Kobzarstvo ''Kobzarstvo'' () in the wider definition, is the art and related culture of singing to the accompaniment of the Ukrainian plucked string instruments ''bandura'' and ''kobza'', as well as the Ukrainian hurdy-gurdy, which is called ''lira''. More ...
''. At least from 1800 to 1930 — and probably well before that as well — the majority of
itinerant An itinerant is a person who travels habitually. Itinerant may refer to: *"Travellers" or itinerant groups in Europe *Itinerant preacher, also known as itinerant minister *Travelling salespeople, see door-to-door, hawker, and peddler *Travelling s ...
musicians in Ukraine were blind. Music was an important part of the culture. Those who could not work at other occupations could be apprenticed to become professional bards, often referred to as ''
kobzar A ''kobzar'' ( ; ) was an itinerant Ukrainian bard who sang to his own accompaniment, played on a multistringed kobza or bandura. Tradition The professional kobzar tradition was established during the Hetmanate Era around the sixteenth cen ...
s'' (both
bandura A bandura ( ) is a Ukrainians, Ukrainian plucked string instrument, plucked-string folk-instrument. It combines elements of the zither and lute and, up until the 1940s, was also often called a kobza. Early instruments () had 5 to 12 strings and ...
and
lira Lira is the name of several currency units. It is the current Turkish lira, currency of Turkey and also the local name of the Lebanese pound, currencies of Lebanon and of Syrian pound, Syria. It is also the name of several former currencies, ...
players could be referred to by this title). These wandering blind minstrels were divided into two groups—
bandurist A bandurist () is a person who plays the Ruthenian plucked string instrument known as the bandura. Types of performers There are a number of different types of bandurist who differ in their particular choice of instrument, the specific reperto ...
s, or ''
kobzar A ''kobzar'' ( ; ) was an itinerant Ukrainian bard who sang to his own accompaniment, played on a multistringed kobza or bandura. Tradition The professional kobzar tradition was established during the Hetmanate Era around the sixteenth cen ...
s'' who played
bandura A bandura ( ) is a Ukrainians, Ukrainian plucked string instrument, plucked-string folk-instrument. It combines elements of the zither and lute and, up until the 1940s, was also often called a kobza. Early instruments () had 5 to 12 strings and ...
, and ''
lirnyk The lirnyks ( Ukrainian: лірник; plural: лірники – lirnyky) were itinerant Ukrainian musicians who performed religious, historical and epic songs to the accompaniment of a lira, the Ukrainian version of the hurdy-gurdy. Lirnyks ...
s'', who played the lira, which was a crank-driven
hurdy-gurdy The hurdy-gurdy is a string instrument that produces sound by a hand-turned crank, rosined wheel rubbing against the strings. The wheel functions much like a violin (or nyckelharpa) bow, and single notes played on the instrument sound similar ...
. The ''kobzars'' were an important part of oral tradition in Ukraine. According to the ethnographer P. Zhytetsky, ''kobzars'' were thought to have been initially sighted
Cossack The Cossacks are a predominantly East Slavic Eastern Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Ukraine and southern Russia. Cossacks played an important role in defending the southern borders of Ukraine and Rus ...
s, who were especially associated with
epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...
songs, or '' dumas''. Kononenko states that ''lirnyks'', on the other hand, were blind church singers organized into guilds who sang religious songs and were often associated with
beggars Begging (also known in North America as panhandling) is the practice of imploring others to grant a favor, often a gift of money, with little or no expectation of reciprocation. A person doing such is called a beggar or panhandler. Beggars m ...
. By the middle of the 19th century, the two groups had merged; both sang many different types of songs, all were organized into the guilds, and all were blind. The ''kobzars'' have a central place in the national identity of Ukraine. Folklorist Izmail Sreznevskyi argued that the initial
Cossack The Cossacks are a predominantly East Slavic Eastern Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Ukraine and southern Russia. Cossacks played an important role in defending the southern borders of Ukraine and Rus ...
bandurist A bandurist () is a person who plays the Ruthenian plucked string instrument known as the bandura. Types of performers There are a number of different types of bandurist who differ in their particular choice of instrument, the specific reperto ...
s were actual witnesses of the great battles about which they sang. The image of warrior-bards singing
epics Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...
was quite popular, and there became a tradition that the great ancient singers were veterans valorously blinded in combat. This in turn led to the belief that the kobzar tradition had greatly weakened in the 19th century, since the traditional songs were now sung by people who were more like beggars than like warriors. Kononenko points out that there is no factual basis for this image, and her research showed that the minstrel tradition was still very strong and creative up until the 1930s. Because the art of the ''kobzars'' was language-specific and included themes dealing with historic subjects of Ukraine's past, the blind singers were often the focus of persecution by occupying powers, according to researcher Mikhailo Khay. This persecution reached its height under
Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
in the 1930s, when many forms of Ukrainian cultural expression were crushed by the communist government of the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
. In the late 1930s many bandurists were arrested and some shot. Documents have been discovered to show that the renowned bandurist
Hnat Khotkevych Hnat Martynovych Khotkevych (, also ''Gnat Khotkevich'' or ''Hnat Khotkevych'', born December 31, 1877 – died October 8, 1938) was a Ukrainians, Ukrainian theater and public figure, engineer, inventor, writer, historian, translator, ethnographe ...
was executed in 1938 and the blind ''kobzar'' Ivan Kucherenko was shot in 1937. Numerous sources claim that there was an organized large scale massacre of Ukrainian blind musicians in the 1930s, though this has not been confirmed by official documents, and most details of the incident (including year, place, and method of execution) are disputed. Traditional blind minstrelsy by the late 1930s had largely vanished. Today, the traditional repertoire of the ''kobzars'' is performed by sighted, educated performers. During her research in Ukraine, Kononenko found only one blind folk performer of the old songs, a man named Pavlo Suprun, who had studied bandura playing and voice at the Kiev State Conservatory.


Traditional Irish musicians

During the medieval and early modern eras,
harpist The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has individual string (music), strings running at an angle to its sound board (music), soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing ...
s, pipers, and other musicians traveled around Ireland, providing music for dances and other occasions. As in Ukraine, many of the Irish musicians were blind. It was common practice for blind or disabled children to be taught a musical instrument as a means of supporting themselves, as they could not perform hard labour. The most famous of these blind musicians, harper
Turlough O'Carolan Turlough O'Carolan ( ; 1670 – 25 March 1738) was a blind Celtic harper, composer and singer in Ireland whose great fame is due to his gift for melodic composition. Although not a composer in the classical sense, Carolan is considered by som ...
, composed many tunes that have become part of the traditional repertoire, including "Sidh Beag Sidh Mór" and "Carolan's Concerto". Others included Eoghain Ó Cianáin (fl. 1540), Nicholas Dáll Pierce (fl. 1601), William fitz Robert Barry (fl. 1615), Ruaidri Dáll Ó Catháin (died 1653), Higgins of Tyrawley (fl. 18th century), and
Martin O'Reilly Martin O'Reilly (1829–1904) was a blind Irish piper. Although associated with east County Galway in some sources, O'Reilly was born in Galway City, living at the junction of Eyre Street and Suckeen (now St. Brendan's Avenue). At one stage ...
(1829–1904).


Blind organists in Europe

There is a long tradition of blind organists, including Louis Braille himself. In the 20th century some of the greatest organists were blind, including the great German Bach scholar and teacher
Helmut Walcha Arthur Emil Helmut Walcha (27 October 1907 – 11 August 1991) was a German Organ (music), organist, harpsichordist, music teacher and composer who specialized in the works of the Dutch and German Baroque music, Baroque masters. Blind since h ...
(1907–1991), and a number of prominent French organists and composers for the organ including
Louis Vierne Louis Victor Jules Vierne (8 October 1870 – 2 June 1937) was a French organist and composer. He was the organist of Notre-Dame de Paris from 1900 until his death. As a composer, much of his output was Organ (music), organ music, including six ...
(1870–1937), Andre Marchal (1894–1980), Gaston Litaize (1909–1991), and Jean Langlais (1907–1991), as well as one of the current organists at
Notre Dame de Paris Notre-Dame de Paris ( ; meaning "Cathedral of Our Lady of Paris"), often referred to simply as Notre-Dame, is a Medieval architecture, medieval Catholic cathedral on the Île de la Cité (an island in the River Seine), in the 4th arrondissemen ...
,
Jean-Pierre Leguay Jean-Pierre Leguay (born 4 July 1939 in Dijon) is a French organist, composer and improviser. He studied with André Marchal, Gaston Litaize, Rolande Falcinelli (organ), Simone Plé-Caussade (counterpoint), and Olivier Messiaen (composition) ...
(b. 1939). England has also produced brilliant blind organists in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, including John Stanley (1712-1786), John Purkis (1781-1849), George Warne (1792-1868), William Wolstenholme (1865-1931),
Alfred Hollins Alfred Hollins (11 September 1865 – 17 May 1942) was an English organist, composer and teacher, who was noted as a recitalist in Scotland. Early life and education Hollins was born in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, and ...
(1865-1942) and David A. Liddle (b. 1960), the latter a student of Marchal and who currently enjoys an international performing career. Yet it is a tradition which goes back even further: to 14th-century Italian
Francesco Landini Francesco Landini ( or 1335 – 2 September 1397; also known by many names) was a Florentine composer, poet, organist, singer and instrument maker, and a central figure of the music of the Trecento in the Italian peninsula. Name Frances ...
(?–1397) and Spanish baroque master Antonio de Cabezon (1510–1566). One could argue that even
Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...
and George Frederic Handel, who lost their sight late in life but presumably continued to play and compose, should be included in this discussion, along with the great American popular organist George Wright (1920–1998), who likewise lost his sight late in life but continued to present concerts and make sound recordings until his death. Blind composer Frances McCollin (1892–1960) won the Clemson Prize from the
American Guild of Organists The American Guild of Organists (AGO) is an international organization of academic, church, and concert organists in the US, headquartered in New York City with its administrative offices in the Interchurch Center. Founded as a professional educa ...
in 1918. She studied organ with another blind musician, David Duffield Wood (1838–1910), the organist at Philadelphia's St. Stephen's Episcopal Church for many years.Annette Maria DiMedio
''Frances McCollin: Her Life and Music''
(Scarecrow Press 1990).


Blind piano tuners

In 19th century France and England, piano tuners were frequently blind. The first blind
piano tuner Piano tuning is the process of adjusting the tension of the strings of an acoustic piano so that the Interval (music), musical intervals between strings are Musical tuning, in tune. The meaning of the term 'in tune', in the context of piano tunin ...
is thought to be Claude Montal, who taught himself how to tune a piano while studying at L'Institut National des Jeunes Aveugles in 1830. At first Montal's teachers were skeptical, doubting that a blind man could actually perform the necessary mechanical tasks. Montal's skill was undeniable, however, and he was soon asked to teach classes in tuning to his fellow students. Eventually, he also overcame public
prejudice Prejudice can be an affect (psychology), affective feeling towards a person based on their perceived In-group and out-group, social group membership. The word is often used to refer to a preconceived (usually unfavourable) evaluation or classifi ...
, and landed several prestigious jobs as a tuner for professors and professional musicians. Montal's success paved the way for other blind tuners, both in France and in England, where Montal's example and teaching methods were adopted by
Thomas Rhodes Armitage Thomas Rhodes Armitage (2 April 1824 – 23 October 1890) was a British physician, and founder of the Royal National Institute of Blind People. He was born at Tilgate in Sussex into a family of wealthy Yorkshire industrialists, the son of Ja ...
. Today the image of the blind piano tuner is so ingrained that people in England sometimes express surprise when they encounter a piano tuner who can see. An organization of blind piano tuners remains active in Britain.


American country blues

Blind musicians have made a significant contribution to American popular music. This is particularly true in
blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...
,
gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...
,
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. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
, and other predominantly African American forms – perhaps because discrimination at the time made it more difficult for black blind people to find other employment. In any case, the achievement of blind African-Americans in music is extensive. The first recorded gospel
sanctified Sanctified may refer to: *Sanctification, the process of making holy Music Albums * ''Sanctified'' (album), by Morgana Lefay, 1995 *''Sanctified'', by the Rance Allen Group, 1975 Songs * "Sanctified" (song), by Rick Ross featuring Big Sean and ...
barrelhouse piano player, Arizona Dranes, was blind, as were
Al Hibbler Albert George Hibbler (August 16, 1915 – April 24, 2001) was an American baritone vocalist, who sang with Duke Ellington's orchestra before having several pop hits as a solo artist. Some of Hibbler's singing is classified as rhythm and blu ...
, and
Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential musicians in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Gen ...
, one of the most important figures in the creation of
soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in African-American culture, African-American African-American neighborhood, communities throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps ...
.
Art Tatum Arthur Tatum Jr. (, October 13, 1909 – November 5, 1956) was an American jazz pianist who is widely regarded as one of the greatest ever. From early in his career, fellow musicians acclaimed Tatum's technical ability as extraordinary. Tatum a ...
, commonly cited as the greatest jazz pianist of all time, was also almost blind.
Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...
, who is blind from birth, has recorded more than thirty U.S. top ten hits and won twenty-two Grammy Awards (the most ever won by a solo artist in history). However, blind black musicians are still most strongly associated with the
country blues Country blues (also folk blues, rural blues, backwoods blues, or downhome blues) is one of the earliest forms of blues music. The mainly solo vocal with acoustic fingerstyle guitar accompaniment developed in the rural Southern United States in t ...
. The first successful male country blues performer,
Blind Lemon Jefferson Lemon Henry "Blind Lemon" Jefferson (September 24, 1893 – December 19, 1929) was an American blues and gospel singer-songwriter and musician. He was one of the most popular and successful blues singers of the 1920s and has been called the "Fat ...
, was blind, as were many other country bluesmen, including
Blind Willie McTell Blind Willie McTell (born William Samuel McTier; May 5, 1898 – August 19, 1959) was an American Piedmont blues and ragtime singer, songwriter and guitarist. He played in a fluid, syncopated finger picking guitar style common among many Eas ...
,
Blind Willie Johnson Willie Johnson (January 25, 1897 – September 18, 1945), commonly known as Blind Willie Johnson, was an American gospel blues singer and guitarist. His landmark recordings completed between 1927 and 1930, thirty songs in all, display a combinat ...
,
Sonny Terry Saunders Terrell (October 24, 1911 – March 11, 1986), known as Sonny Terry, was an American Piedmont blues and folk musician, who was known for his energetic blues harmonica style, which frequently included vocal whoops and hollers and occas ...
,
Blind Boy Fuller Fulton Allen (July 10, 1904 – February 13, 1941), known as Blind Boy Fuller, was an American blues guitarist and singer. Fuller was one of the most popular of the recorded Piedmont blues artists, along with Blind Blake, Josh White, and Budd ...
,
Blind Blake Arthur Blake (1896 – December 1, 1934), known as Blind Blake, was an American blues and ragtime singer and guitarist. He is known for recordings he made for Paramount Records between 1926 and 1932. Early life Little is known of Blake's life. ...
and
Reverend Gary Davis Gary D. Davis (April 30, 1896 – May 5, 1972), known as Reverend Gary Davis and Blind Gary Davis, was a blues and gospel singer who was also proficient on the banjo, guitar and harmonica. Born in Laurens, South Carolina and blind since infanc ...
. The figure of the blind country bluesman became so iconic that when
Eddie Lang Eddie Lang (born Salvatore Massaro; October 25, 1902 – March 26, 1933) was an American musician who is credited as the father of jazz guitar. During the 1920s, he gave the guitar a prominence it previously lacked as a solo instrument, as p ...
, a sighted jazz guitarist, wanted to choose a black pseudonym for purposes of recording blues records with Lonnie Johnson, he naturally settled on Blind Willie Dunn. Bogus Ben Covington was known for pretending to be blind. John William Boone, known as "Blind Boone", was an important American pianist and composer of ragtime.


Blind individual musicians in history

* Shi Kuang *
Francesco Landini Francesco Landini ( or 1335 – 2 September 1397; also known by many names) was a Florentine composer, poet, organist, singer and instrument maker, and a central figure of the music of the Trecento in the Italian peninsula. Name Frances ...
* Antonio de Cabezón *
Joaquín Rodrigo Joaquín Rodrigo Vidre, 1st Marquess of the Gardens of Aranjuez (; 22 November 1901 – 6 July 1999), was a Spanish composer and a virtuoso pianist. He is best known for composing the '' Concierto de Aranjuez'', a cornerstone of the classical g ...
* Rudolf Braun * Irène Fuerison * Turlough O’Carolan * Friedrich Ludwig Dülon *
Michio Miyagi was a Japanese musician, famous for his '' koto'' playing. He was born in Kobe. He lost his sight in 1902, when he was 8 years old, and started his study in koto under the guidance of Nakajima Kengyo II, dedicating the rest of his life to the ...
* Takahashi Chikuzan


Modern blind musicians

Ronnie Milsap Ronnie Lee Milsap (born Ronald Lee Millsaps; January 16, 1943) is an American country music singer and pianist. He was one of country music's most popular and influential performers of the 1970s and 1980s. Nearly completely blind from birth, h ...
is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He began his career as a R&B and soul artist, but is most known for his country and pop music career.
Jeff Healey Norman Jeffrey Healey (March 25, 1966 – March 2, 2008) was a Canadian blues, rock and jazz guitarist, singer and songwriter who attained popularity in the 1980s and 1990s. He reached No. 5 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart with " Ang ...
was a blind Juno Award-winning and Grammy Award-nominated Canadian blues-rock vocalist and guitarist, who attained musical and personal popularity, particularly in the 1980s and 1990s. The American guitarist and songwriter,
Doc Watson Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. He won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. His ...
, was blinded before his first birthday from an eye infection, and went on to become an influential musician in American bluegrass and folk music, known for his proficient flatpicking and fingerpicking skills on guitar as well as his extensive knowledge of traditional American songs. The Italian pop
tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...
,
Andrea Bocelli Andrea Bocelli (; born 22 September 1958) is an Italian tenor. He rose to fame in 1994 after winning the newcomers' section of the 44th Sanremo Music Festival performing " Il mare calmo della sera". Since 1994, Bocelli has recorded 15 solo st ...
, who was born with congenital
glaucoma Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases that can lead to damage of the optic nerve. The optic nerve transmits visual information from the eye to the brain. Glaucoma may cause vision loss if left untreated. It has been called the "silent thief of ...
and completely lost his sight at the age of 12, after a
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
accident, is the biggest-selling singer in the history of classical music, with worldwide sales exceeding 70 million copies. In 2009, Japanese
Nobuyuki Tsujii (also known as Nobu Tsujii) is a Japanese pianist and composer. He was born Blindness, blind due to microphthalmia. Tsujii performs extensively, with a large number of conductors and orchestras, and has received critical acclaim for his unique t ...
, at age 20, became the first blind pianist to win the top prize at a major international competition, the 13th
Van Cliburn International Piano Competition The Van Cliburn International Piano Competition (The Cliburn) is an American piano competition by The Cliburn, first held in 1962 in Fort Worth, Texas and hosted by the Van Cliburn Foundation. Initially held at Texas Christian University, the ...
. He was also awarded the Beverley Taylor Smith Award for the Best Performance of a New Work. He played all twelve of
Frédéric Chopin Frédéric François Chopin (born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin; 1 March 181017 October 1849) was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic period who wrote primarily for Piano solo, solo piano. He has maintained worldwide renown ...
's Op. 10 Études as part of his performance in the preliminaries. Born blind, Tsujii developed his own technique for learning complex classical piano works. With videos of his piano performances widely viewable on the Internet, Tsujii's competition win has made him an international sensation. As of 2010, Tsujii's discography includes ten CDs, some of which have sold over 100,000 copies. As a Van Cliburn winner, Tsujii has been performing in concerts all over the world. One of the prominent blind South Indian carnatic musicians is M. Chandrasekaran, a violin maestro who has received some of the highest awards by many musical institutions in India. His musical career spans over six decades and he has travelled to perform in many music festivals all over India and the world.
Ravindra Jain Ravindra Jain (28 February 1944 – 9 October 2015) was an Indian music composer, lyricist and playback singer. He started his career in the early 1970s by composing for several hit movies. His notable works include '' Chor Machaye Shor'' (19 ...
(28 February 1944 – 9 October 2015) was an Indian blind-born music composer, lyricist and playback singer. He started his career in the early 1970s, composing for hit movies such as ''Chor Machaye Shor'' (1974), ''Geet Gaata Chal'' (1975), ''Chitchor'' (1976) and ''Ankhiyon Ke Jharokhon Se'' (1978). He composed music for many films and TV shows based on Hindu epics, including Ramanand Sagar's ''Ramayan'' (1987). He was awarded the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India in 2015 for his contribution to the arts.


Others

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Blessing Offor Blessing Offor is a Nigerian-born American Gospel music, gospel and contemporary Christian music singer and songwriter. Early life and career Offor was born blind in one eye and with limited vision in the other due to congenital glaucoma. He ...
* The Blind Boys of Alabama * Charlotte *
George Shearing Sir George Albert Shearing (13 August 191914 February 2011) was a British jazz pianist who for many years led a popular jazz group that recorded for Discovery Records, MGM Records and Capitol Records. Shearing was the composer of over 300 so ...
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José Feliciano José Montserrate Feliciano García (; born September 10, 1945) is a Puerto Rican musician. He recorded many international hits, including his rendition of the Doors' " Light My Fire" and his self-penned Christmas song "". Music genres he explo ...
* Lachi *
Moondog Louis Thomas Hardin (May 26, 1916 – September 8, 1999), known professionally as Moondog, was an American composer, musician, performer, music theoretician, poet and inventor of musical instruments. Largely self-taught as a composer, his ...
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Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential musicians in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Gen ...
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Roland Kirk Roland (; ; or ''Rotholandus''; or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. The historical Roland was mil ...
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Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...
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Marcus Roberts Marthaniel "Marcus" Roberts (born August 7, 1963) is an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, bandleader, and teacher. Early life Roberts was born in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. His mother was a gospel singer who had gone blind a ...


References

{{Reflist Disability in the arts