12.
Langston Hughes, one of America’s great poets, gave jubilant voice to the lives of African Americans. His poetry has inspired settings by dozens of composers; we hear some of that music and learn about the world that inspired him.
Additional recordings:
I’m Just Wild About Harry
from Shuffle Along
Eubie Blake / Noble Sissle
Al Jolson, singer with orchestra
Al Jolson: Fifty Favorites
I, Too
Langston Hughes recites his poem
Smithsonian Folkways SFW47001
Minstrel Man
Paul Robeson reads the poem by Langston Hughes
EMI Classics 509992155 8627
Song listings with composer / poet, performers, CD label, and CD number:
The Negro Speaks of Rivers
Margaret Bonds
Langston Hughes
Record#: Winona, Minnesota, July 2011 (Thomas Hampson, baritone; Vlad Iftinca, piano recital)
My People
Ricky Ian Gordon
Langston Hughes
Record#: RCA 09026-61944-2 (Harolyn Blackwell, soprano; Warren Jones, piano)
Song Collection: Genius Child: A Cycle of 10 Songs
I, Too
Margaret Bonds
Langston Hughes
Record#: Fleur de Son: The Black Art Song (Kevin Maynor, bass; Eric Olsen, piano)
Song Collection: Three Dream Portraits
Bound No’th Blues
Erik Santos
Langston Hughes
Record#: Naxos 8.559136 (Darryl Taylor, tenor; Maria Corley, piano; Patricia Terry-Ross, harp)
Song Collection: Dreamer: 7 Poems of Langston Hughes
Minstrel Man
Margaret Bonds
Langston Hughes
Record#: Fleur de Son: The Black Art Song (Kevin Maynor, bass; Eric Olsen, piano)
Song Collection: Three Dream Portraits
Lonely People
Jean Berger
Langston Hughes
Thomas Hampson, baritone, and Malcolm Martineau, piano
Record#: Orfeo d'Or C707062 (Thomas Hampson, baritone; Malcolm Martineau, piano)
Song Collection: Four Songs
A Black Pierrot
William Grant Still
Langston Hughes
Record#: Naxos 8.559136 (Darryl Taylor, tenor; Maria Corley, piano)
Joy
Howard Swanson
Langston Hughes
Record#: Naxos 8.559136 (Darryl Taylor, tenor; Maria Corley, piano)
Lovely, Dark, and Lonely One
Henry T. Burleigh
Langston Hughes
Record#: CRC 2252 (Regina McConnell, soprano; Michael Cordovana, piano)
Daybreak in Alabama
John Stone
Langston Hughes
Record#: Mp3: Daybreak in Alabama: A Langston Hughes Song Cycle (Amy Bartram, soprano; John Stone, piano)
Song Collection: Daybreak in Alabama
Litany
John Musto
Langston Hughes
Record#: Albany Records TROY 081 (Paul Sperry, tenor; Irma Vallecillo, piano)
Song Collection: Shadow of the Blues
Drum
Hermann Reutter
Langston Hughes
Record#: Orfeo d'Or C707062 (Thomas Hampson, baritone; Malcolm Martineau, piano)
Song Collection: My Dark Hands
Peace
Elie Siegmeister
Langston Hughes
Record#: CRI 814 (Esther Hinds, soprano; Alan Mandel, piano)
Song Collection: The Face of War
Dream Variations
Ricky Ian Gordon
Langston Hughes
Record#: Nonesuch 79626 (Audra McDonald, soprano; ensemble conducted by Eric Stern)
Song Collection: Only Heaven
Aaron Copland’s “Old American Songs” have become recital standards, but traditional texts and tunes have attracted many other classical composers, including John Jacob Niles, George Crumb, and Jake Heggie.
There are places in the American landscape that are part of our collective consciousness, thanks to music. In this program, we listen to songs that have helped shape the way we see our country.
