William Grant Still: African-American Composer

Children's Literature

There are very few works regarding African Americans who have dreams of being a classical musician and composer. Ms Reef provides an informative biography of such a person for young readers. William Still was raised under difficult circumstances since he lived during the time that segregation and discrimination was rampart. However, he did have the talent and perseverance required to overcome the obstacles he faced. With the help and encouragement of people like Langston Hughes and Leopold Stokowski, who at that time was conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra, opportunities opened up for him. The planners for the 1939 World's Fair were looking for someone to write the theme music for the fair. There were two pieces of music that the committee was interested in. It turned out that both pieces were composed by Still. As a result, he was commissioned to write the theme music. I attended the World Fair in 1939 as a child but I don't remember the theme music. What a shame. During his lifetime he made major contributions to the world of classical music through the symphonies, ballets and operas that he composed. 2003, Morgan Reynolds Publishing,
— Leila Toledo

School Library Journal

Gr 7 Up-A composer of classical music in a time of jazz and swing, Still distinguished himself as a talented writer who was skilled at fusing the African-American folk-music tradition, jazz, and the blues into a new classical and operatic form. Reef traces the man's youth, his musical education, his adult years, and his struggles to get his works performed. The book is organized chronologically, and the writing is clear and accessible. What this title lacks is the "how" and "why" of Still's life. It provides little interpretation of the man, and does little to place him within the context of his times. Still, this is a good introduction to this musical innovator and his compositions. Black-and-white photographs, mostly of the composer and his family, appear throughout.-Carol Jones Collins, Columbia High School, Maplewood, NJ Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.