Nora Holt
Encyclopedia
Nora Douglas Holt was an American
singer, composer and music critic, who was born in Kansas
and was the first African American
to receive a masters degree in the United States. She composed over 200 works of music and was associated with the leading figures of the Harlem Renaissance
and the co-founder of the National Association of Negro Musicians. She died in 1974 in Los Angeles
.
, Kansas
in either 1885 or 1890 to Calvin Douglas, an African Methodist Episcopal Church
minister and Gracie Brown Douglas. She graduated Western University
at Quindaro, Kansas
in 1917 with a bachelor's degree in music. In 1918 she earned her master's degree in music at Chicago Musical College
, becoming the first African American woman to earn a master's in the United States. In the late 1930s, Douglas also studied music education at the University of Southern California. At the Chicago Musical College, her thesis composition was an orchestral work called Rhapsody on Negro Themes.
She was married five times. In 1916 Douglas married her fourth husband, hotel owner George Holt, taking his name and changing her first name to "Nora".
From 1917-1921 Holt contributed music criticism to the Chicago Defender, a black daily newspaper. In 1919 she co-founded the National Association of Negro Musicians.
Holt then spent 12 years abroad in Europe
and Asia
, where she sang at night clubs and private parties. By 1926, when she left for Europe, she had composed over 200 works of orchestral music and chamber songs, which she placed in storage before departure. Upon returning, she discovered that all her works had been stolen. Only one piece survived, as it had already been published. It was called Negro Dance, a ragtime-like piano piece.
During the 1920s, Holt was known as a wild socialite
. She was wealthy due to her inheritance from her late husband George Holt. In 1923 she married Joseph Ray, assistant to tycoon Charles Schwab
, in her fifth marriage. They moved to Pennsylvania.
After the break-up of the marriage, Holt moved to Harlem, where she became an important part of the Harlem Renaissance
. She became good friends with novelist and critic Carl Van Vechten
.
While studying music at the University of Southern California
in the 1930s, she also taught music in Los Angeles for several years. In 1943 she took a position as an editor and music critic with a black-oriented publication called Amsterdam News.
During the early 1950s to early 1960s, Holt began hosting a radio concert series called "Nora Holt's Concert Showcase". It ran to 1964. In 1966 she was a member of the First World Festival of Negro Arts in Dakar, Senegal.
Nora Holt died January 25, 1974 in Los Angeles
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer, composer and music critic, who was born in Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
and was the first African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
to receive a masters degree in the United States. She composed over 200 works of music and was associated with the leading figures of the Harlem Renaissance
Harlem Renaissance
The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned the 1920s and 1930s. At the time, it was known as the "New Negro Movement", named after the 1925 anthology by Alain Locke...
and the co-founder of the National Association of Negro Musicians. She died in 1974 in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
.
Biography
She was born Lena Douglas in Kansas CityKansas City, Kansas
Kansas City is the third-largest city in the state of Kansas and is the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri, and is the third largest city in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The city is part of a consolidated city-county government known as the "Unified...
, Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
in either 1885 or 1890 to Calvin Douglas, an African Methodist Episcopal Church
African Methodist Episcopal Church
The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the A.M.E. Church, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination based in the United States. It was founded by the Rev. Richard Allen in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1816 from several black Methodist congregations in the...
minister and Gracie Brown Douglas. She graduated Western University
Western University (Kansas)
Western University was a historically black college established as Quindaro Freedman's School at Quindaro, Kansas after the Civil War. It was the earliest school for African Americans west of the Mississippi River and the only one ever to operate in the state of Kansas...
at Quindaro, Kansas
Quindaro Townsite
Quindaro Townsite is an archaeological district in the vicinity of North 27th Street and the Missouri Pacific Railroad tracks in Kansas City, Kansas. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 22, 2002....
in 1917 with a bachelor's degree in music. In 1918 she earned her master's degree in music at Chicago Musical College
Chicago Musical College
Chicago Musical College is a division of Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt UniversityIt was founded in 1867, less than four decades after the city of Chicago was incorporated...
, becoming the first African American woman to earn a master's in the United States. In the late 1930s, Douglas also studied music education at the University of Southern California. At the Chicago Musical College, her thesis composition was an orchestral work called Rhapsody on Negro Themes.
She was married five times. In 1916 Douglas married her fourth husband, hotel owner George Holt, taking his name and changing her first name to "Nora".
From 1917-1921 Holt contributed music criticism to the Chicago Defender, a black daily newspaper. In 1919 she co-founded the National Association of Negro Musicians.
Holt then spent 12 years abroad in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, where she sang at night clubs and private parties. By 1926, when she left for Europe, she had composed over 200 works of orchestral music and chamber songs, which she placed in storage before departure. Upon returning, she discovered that all her works had been stolen. Only one piece survived, as it had already been published. It was called Negro Dance, a ragtime-like piano piece.
During the 1920s, Holt was known as a wild socialite
Socialite
A socialite is a person who participates in social activities and spends a significant amount of time entertaining and being entertained at fashionable upper-class events....
. She was wealthy due to her inheritance from her late husband George Holt. In 1923 she married Joseph Ray, assistant to tycoon Charles Schwab
Charles M. Schwab
Charles Michael Schwab was an American steel magnate. Under his leadership, Bethlehem Steel became the second largest steel maker in the United States, and one of the most important heavy manufacturers in the world....
, in her fifth marriage. They moved to Pennsylvania.
After the break-up of the marriage, Holt moved to Harlem, where she became an important part of the Harlem Renaissance
Harlem Renaissance
The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned the 1920s and 1930s. At the time, it was known as the "New Negro Movement", named after the 1925 anthology by Alain Locke...
. She became good friends with novelist and critic Carl Van Vechten
Carl van Vechten
Carl Van Vechten was an American writer and photographer who was a patron of the Harlem Renaissance and the literary executor of Gertrude Stein.-Biography:...
.
While studying music at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
in the 1930s, she also taught music in Los Angeles for several years. In 1943 she took a position as an editor and music critic with a black-oriented publication called Amsterdam News.
During the early 1950s to early 1960s, Holt began hosting a radio concert series called "Nora Holt's Concert Showcase". It ran to 1964. In 1966 she was a member of the First World Festival of Negro Arts in Dakar, Senegal.
Nora Holt died January 25, 1974 in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
.