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Florence Cole Talbert

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Florence Cole Talbert-McCleave
Florence Cole Talbert in 1925
Florence Cole Talbert in 1925
Background information
Birth nameFlorence Cole
Born(1890-06-17)June 17, 1890
Detroit, Michigan
DiedApril 3, 1961(1961-04-03) (aged 70)
Memphis, Tennessee
GenresOpera
Occupation(s)Singer, composer

Florence Cole Talbert-McCleave (born Florence Cole, June 17, 1890 – April 3, 1961[1][2]) was an African-American soprano born in Detroit, Michigan.[3] Her family moved to Los Angeles, California, in 1910, where Talbert was the first African American to attend Los Angeles High School.[1][4] She subsequently studied at the University of Southern California and in Chicago, Illinois, at the Chicago Musical College in 1916. She began singing in New York City in 1918, and later married a pianist and director named William P. Talbert. In 1924, she traveled to Europe to play in Aïda, and returned to the United States three years later. Talbert was one of the first African-American women to record commercially. In 1919 she recorded three songs for the Broome Special Phonograph label, including "Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen" and "Villanelle".[1][5] In 1921 she recorded at least four titles for the new Black Swan label, and in 1924 recorded two additional titles for Paramount Records.[1]

Florence Cole Talbert

After retirement, Talbert became a singing teacher in Los Angeles,[4] and also composed the words to Delta Sigma Theta's official hymn.[6] She eventually moved to Memphis, Tennessee, and married Dr. Benjamin F. McCleave. She taught in historically black colleges and universities such as Fisk University, Tuskegee University and Rust College.[7] Talbert died in Memphis in 1961.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Brooks, Tim; Spottswood, Richard K. (2005). Lost Sounds: Blacks and the Birth of the Recording Industry, 1890-1919. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. pp. 486–488. ISBN 0-252-02850-3. OCLC 51511207.
  2. ^ African American Art Song Alliance (2007). "The African American Composers and Performers of Art Song". DarrylTaylor.com. Retrieved 2007-12-24.
  3. ^ Smith, Eric Ledell (1995). Blacks in Opera: an Encyclopedia of People and Companies, 1873-1993. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. p. 180. ISBN 0-89950-813-8. OCLC 31076715.
  4. ^ a b Parsons-Smith, Catherine; Murchison, Willard (2000). William Grant Still: A Study in Contradictions. Berkeley, California: University of California Press. p. 90. ISBN 0-520-21543-5. OCLC 42009448.
  5. ^ Sutton, Allan (2007-08-29). "Black Swan's Other Stars". Mainspring Press. Retrieved 2007-12-24.
  6. ^ Giddings, Paula (1988). In Search of Sisterhood: Delta Sigma Theta and the Challenge of the Black Sorority Movement. New York: Morrow. pp. 68–69. ISBN 0-688-13509-9. OCLC 17873327.
  7. ^ "Historic Black Memphians". MemphisMuseums.org. Archived from the original on 2007-10-29. Retrieved 2007-12-24.
  8. ^ "Musical Calendar for April 3rd". NFO.net. Retrieved 2007-12-24.
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