Born in Dallas, Texas, Jeremiah Evans studied piano from an early age, attending Dallas’ Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. He also participated in the Tanglewood Institute and the International Summer Festival Institute at Round-Top. His mentors included David Karp and William Westney for piano and Mary Jeanne van Appledorn for composition. 

Evans’ work has performed through North America, Africa, Europe, and Asia, as well as in esteemed venues such as Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. He has served as a guest faculty member, guest composer, and guest artist at various institutions and competitions. His compositions range from art songs for vocalists, to piano suites, to oboe solos. Renowned tenor and collaborative pianist, Lawrence Brownlee and Kevin J. Miller have performed a collection of Evans’ art songs for their album entitled Rising. 

Evans’ work has been compared to that of Damien Sneed and William Grant Still. His art song “Rain Song,” has garnered praise for its musical composition from the likes of LA Opus and OperaWire. It is a musical setting of Langston Hughes’ poem “April Rain Song.” The piece has been performed by Brownlee and Miller to critical acclaim.

-Lucy Koukoudian

This profile was created during the 2023-2024 academic year as part of the Song of America Fellowship Program, a project of the Classic Song Research Initiative between the Hampsong Foundation and the University of Michigan, School of Music, Theatre, and Dance.