Additional Resources

Leakin Hall, 1932

Peabody Institute Records

Much of the research for this project involved resources held at the Peabody Archives of the Arthur Friedheim Library. The Peabody Archives maintains the historical records of the Peabody Institute, including records of the Board of Trustees and Conservatory Director, historical photographs of the Institute, Institute publications, concert programs, and more.

Special Collections

The Peabody Archives also contains more than 200 special collections in the performing arts, many of which involve individuals and organizations with a connection to the Peabody Institute or the Baltimore area. Historical collections involving African-American musicians with ties to Baltimore include the following:

• The Sounds and Stories collection, a collection of more than 60 oral histories with individuals associated with African-American musical culture in Baltimore in the mid-to-late 20th century.
• Anne Brown, a soprano best known for creating the role of Bess in George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess and starring in its initial stage run in 1935.
• Cal Lampley, a record producer, composer, pianist, critic, and educator, who directed the Peabody Institute's first jazz ensemble in the early 1970s.
• Roy McCoy, a jazz trumpeter and amateur photographer who captured images of Baltimore's jazz scene in the 1940s.
• Ronald Roxbury, a composer who studied at the Peabody Conservatory in the 1960s and wrote scores in graphic notation.
• A. Jack Thomas, a composer, educator, and conductor who served as a bandmaster in the United States Army and became the first African American to conduct the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.
• The Storm Is Passing Over, an exhibit including a summary of African-American musical history in Baltimore.
• Baltimore City Colored Orchestra concert programs, 1936-1939.

For more information on these materials, please contact peabodyarchives@lists.jhu.edu.

Active Organizations

The Peabody Black Student Union and the Peabody Society of Black Alumni are active organizations for current and former Peabody students who wish to get involved in creating a more positive experience for today's African-American students at Peabody.