John Powell (musician)
Encyclopedia
John Powell was an American
pianist
, ethnomusicologist
and composer
. He helped found the White Top Folk Festival
, which promoted music of the people in the Appalachian Mountains
.
Believing in segregation
and white supremacy
, Powell was one of the founders of the Anglo-Saxon Clubs of America, which soon had numerous posts in Virginia. He contributed to the drafting and passage of the Racial Integrity Act of 1924
, which institutionalized the one-drop rule
by classifying as black (colored) anyone with any African ancestry, regardless of the individual's or family's identification and recognized community.
He had a racialist approach to music, which he expressed in his writings. He was interested in Appalachian folk music and championed its performance and preservation. He was one of the founders of the White Top Folk Festival
, held in Grayson County, Virginia
annually from 1931-1939.
. They worked closely with Walter Ashby Plecker
to promote state legislation to classify people simply as "white" or "negro", and to end "amalgamation" of the races by intermarriage. The activities of the club split the elite in Virginia, which had tried to take pride in its "genteel paternalism" in controlling racial relations.. Premiered by Benno Moiseiwitsch
in London
in 1914. Published and recorded in an abridged edition.
Daniel Gregory Mason
wrote a string quartet (G minor, op. 19) on a theme by Powell.
Different sources have him dying in 1963 in Richmond or possibly in Charlottesville
(of sources mentioned among 54 different ones used by Musicsack.com's compiler, Hedges & Hall, 1994, and Press, 1980 have Charlottesville.)
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
, ethnomusicologist
Ethnomusicology
Ethnomusicology is defined as "the study of social and cultural aspects of music and dance in local and global contexts."Coined by the musician Jaap Kunst from the Greek words ἔθνος ethnos and μουσική mousike , it is often considered the anthropology or ethnography of music...
and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
. He helped found the White Top Folk Festival
White Top Folk Festival
The White Top Folk Festival was a folk festival held on Whitetop Mountain in Grayson County, Virginia from 1932 to 1939. Established by Annabel Morris Buchanan, John Blakemore, and classical musician John Powell, it featured Appalachian folk music. At its height, the festival hosted First Lady...
, which promoted music of the people in the Appalachian Mountains
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...
.
Believing in segregation
Segregation
Segregation or segregate refers to setting apart or separating things or people and may refer to:* Particle segregation* Segregation in materials* Magnetic-activated cell sorting* Segregate * Mendel's law of segregation...
and white supremacy
White supremacy
White supremacy is the belief, and promotion of the belief, that white people are superior to people of other racial backgrounds. The term is sometimes used specifically to describe a political ideology that advocates the social and political dominance by whites.White supremacy, as with racial...
, Powell was one of the founders of the Anglo-Saxon Clubs of America, which soon had numerous posts in Virginia. He contributed to the drafting and passage of the Racial Integrity Act of 1924
Racial Integrity Act of 1924
On March 20, 1924 the Virginia General Assembly passed two laws that had arisen out of contemporary concerns about eugenics and race: SB 219, entitled "The Racial Integrity Act" and SB 281, "An ACT to provide for the sexual sterilization of inmates of State institutions in certain cases",...
, which institutionalized the one-drop rule
One-drop rule
The one-drop rule is a historical colloquial term in the United States for the social classification as black of individuals with any African ancestry; meaning any person with "one drop of black blood" was considered black...
by classifying as black (colored) anyone with any African ancestry, regardless of the individual's or family's identification and recognized community.
Music career
Powell became a world-renowned composer.He had a racialist approach to music, which he expressed in his writings. He was interested in Appalachian folk music and championed its performance and preservation. He was one of the founders of the White Top Folk Festival
White Top Folk Festival
The White Top Folk Festival was a folk festival held on Whitetop Mountain in Grayson County, Virginia from 1932 to 1939. Established by Annabel Morris Buchanan, John Blakemore, and classical musician John Powell, it featured Appalachian folk music. At its height, the festival hosted First Lady...
, held in Grayson County, Virginia
Grayson County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 17,917 people, 7,259 households, and 5,088 families residing in the county. The population density was 40 people per square mile . There were 9,123 housing units at an average density of 21 per square mile...
annually from 1931-1939.
Political activism
Powell's ideology - and musicology - were strongly racialist and anti-black, a topic which served as the subject for many of his essays. In the fall of 1922 together with Ernest Sevier, a self-proclaimed ethnologist and explorer, Powell founded the Anglo-Saxon Clubs of America in Richmond, VirginiaRichmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
. They worked closely with Walter Ashby Plecker
Walter Ashby Plecker
Walter Ashby Plecker was a physician and public health advocate who was the first registrar of Virginia's Bureau of Vital Statistics, serving from 1912-1946. He was a leader of the Anglo-Saxon Clubs of America, a white supremacist organization founded in Richmond, Virginia in 1822...
to promote state legislation to classify people simply as "white" or "negro", and to end "amalgamation" of the races by intermarriage. The activities of the club split the elite in Virginia, which had tried to take pride in its "genteel paternalism" in controlling racial relations.. Premiered by Benno Moiseiwitsch
Benno Moiseiwitsch
Benno Moiseiwitsch CBE was a Ukrainian-born British pianist.-Biography:Born in Odessa, Ukraine, Moiseiwitsch began his studies at age seven at the Odessa Music Academy. He won the Anton Rubinstein Prize when he was just nine years old. He later took lessons from Theodor Leschetizky in Vienna...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1914. Published and recorded in an abridged edition.
- Piano Concerto, Op.13
- Violin Sonata, Op.19
- Violin Concerto in E, Op.23 (premiered by Efrem ZimbalistEfrem ZimbalistEfrem Zimbalist, Sr. was one of the world's most prominent concert violinists, as well as a composer, teacher, conductor and a long-time director of the Curtis Institute of Music.-Early life:...
, 1912, New York) - String Quartet, E minor (see John Powell Sound Archives)
- Rhapsodie Nègre for piano and orchestra
- Symphony in A major (Virginia Symphony) (1945, rev. 1951) (recorded)
Daniel Gregory Mason
Daniel Gregory Mason
Daniel Gregory Mason was an American composer and music critic.-Biography:...
wrote a string quartet (G minor, op. 19) on a theme by Powell.
Different sources have him dying in 1963 in Richmond or possibly in Charlottesville
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
(of sources mentioned among 54 different ones used by Musicsack.com's compiler, Hedges & Hall, 1994, and Press, 1980 have Charlottesville.)
Legacy and honors
- A hall associated with the arts and music program at Richmond University was named after him, for his championing of Appalachian music. In 2010, the university's board of visitors discovered his role in white supremacy and voted to remove his name from the building.
External links
- John Powell Sound Archives, University of Virginia