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Title
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Interview Clip: German review sparked exploration of Black music
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Description
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Recorded in Studio 2 (The Berg) in the Dance Building at the University of Michigan's School of Music, Theatre, and Dance.
[00:00:00] PATTERSON
But that interest, in-interest came about during my concert career.
TOPPIN:
Right.
PATTERSON
I sang a concert in one of the 13, uh German, uh, German, uh houses.
TOPPIN:
Okay.
[00:00:23] PATTERSON:
And uh, one of the concerts I did, I've forgotten exactly where now, but the newspaper columnist wrote very assiduously, "why does Patterson come here to sing German lieder for us who have heard it many times and probably, as well as he did it, better?" And uh, "why does he not come here and sing American art songs?" of which I knew nothing of, I knew of no body of African American writers.
[00:01:15] And that first offended me intensely, but then I thought about it and I asked myself, where are the American art songs? And uh, I'd become by then acquainted at Southern University and Virginia State University, and I wrote to my former colleagues asking them, do they—does such a body of literature exist? And they corresponded and allayed my fears that there was, uh, there was not a body of literature.
I was raised in Western music—
TOPPIN:
Right, right.
[00:02:14] PATTERSON:
—but luckily, the question was asked, and so I began to learn about—
TOPPIN:
Black music.
PATTERSON:
—about African American music of all kinds. I became friends with Bill Warfield and Natalie Hinderas and all these wonderful people who were performing and writing. Betty Jackson King and on and on and on. They were writing and producing American, African American music. And I became acquainted with Rogie Clark, who had written the last book of that, uh, limited time frame of African American art songs. Wonderful book, the last of which I obtained from the University of, of Chicago.
[00:03:27] TOPPIN:
Yeah, the Negro Art Songs, 1946.
PATTERSON:
Yes.
[00:03:30] TOPPIN:
Yeah, that preceded the work that you did. But isn't it interesting that which was such a negative and painful review in many ways, set you on a path to be the premier person to inspire all the rest of us, the next generations behind you, to take a look at this repertoire and to even, you brought it to light in such a way because Rogie Clark's book went in and out of print quickly.
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Identifier
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PattersonToppininterviewclip2
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Creator
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Louise Toppin; Willis Patterson
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Date
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07/25/24
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Subject
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expanding the repertoire; artistry
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Type
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moving image
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Format
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mp4
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Relation
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—
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Source
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Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Office at the University of Michigan's School of Music, Theatre, & Dance
