R. Nathaniel Dett (1882-1943)
“There was poured into the astonished and delighted ears of the world an indigenous music, sung by its own creators, a music as fresh as the morning, as intimate as the breath and as vital as the heartbeat.”- R. Nathaniel Dett
Celebrated composer Nathaniel Dett was born in Drummondville (Niagara Falls), Ontario on October 11, 1882. He died on October 2, 1943 in Battlecreek, Michigan. Dett studied piano as a child and was church organist in Niagara Falls, Ontario from 1898-1903. During this period he composed numerous works, including the well-known The Cake Walk and After the Cake Walk. Among his other works are Listen to the Lambs (1914), an eight-part anthem which was recorded by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir; Juba Dance (1913), a piano solo which has appeared in the Royal Conservatory of Music syllabus and was a favourite of Dett’s friend, Percy Grainger; and the oratorio The Ordering of Moses (1937).
Dett earned several degrees at various educational institutions, including Oberlin College (Bachelor of Music, 1908; Honourary Doctorate of Music, 1926); Howard University (Honourary Doctorate of Music, 1924); and Rochester’s ESM (Masters of Music, 1932). Dett studied composition in Paris with the internationally-renowned Nadia Boulanger and performed at prestigious concert halls such as Carnegie Hall and Boston Symphony Hall. Dett also performed for two American presidents, Herbert Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Dett taught at several distinguished schools, including:
Nathaniel Dett was dedicated to the cause of Black music, winning the Bowdoin and Frances Boott prizes in 1920 from Harvard University for his paper The Emancipation of Negro Music, and for his motet, "Don't Be Weary Traveller."
Dett also explored and promoted Black music by editing collections of spirituals and folk songs, and was President of the National Association of Negro Musicians from 1924 to 1926.
