Lillian Evanti
| Lillian Evanti | |
|---|---|
 Lillian Evanti in France in 1926 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Annie Wilson Lillian Evans |
| Born |
August 12, 1890 Washington, D.C. |
| Died | December 6, 1967 (aged 77) |
| Occupation(s) | Opera Singer |
| Instruments | Soprano |
| Years active | 1925–1945 |
Lillian Evanti (August 12, 1890 – December 6, 1967), was an African-American opera singer.
Life
She was born in Washington, D.C., and graduated from Armstrong Manual Training School,[1] where her father, W. Bruce Evans, was the first principal.[2]
She graduated from Howard University with a Bachelor's Degree in music and studied in France and Italy. Evanti, a soprano, sang at the Belasco Theater in 1926 with Marian Anderson.[3] She debuted in 1927 in Delibes's Lakmé at Nice, France.[2] As an opera singer and concert artist, she toured throughout Europe and South America. From 1932 to 1935 she gave recitals in the United States to praise and acclaim for the "tonal beauty of her voice.", including a private recital at the White House for an audience of Eleanor Roosevelt and her friends.[2]
In 1943, she performed with the Watergate Theater barge on the Potomac River.[4] In 1944, she appeared at The Town Hall (New York City).[5] She received acclaim as Violetta in Verdi's La traviata as produced by the National Negro Opera Company in 1945.[6]
In 1963, she walked with her friend Alma Thomas in the March on Washington.[7]
Family
She married Roy W. Tibbs, a former director of the Coleridge-Taylor Society, a Washington D. C. African-American chorus founded in honor of the composer Samuel Coleridge Taylor.[2] They lived at 1910 Vermont Avenue in the Shaw Neighborhood of Northwest, Washington, D.C., which is now known as the Evans-Tibbs House and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. They had a son, Thurlow E. Tibbs, Jr.
References
- ↑ Peterson, Heather. "Evans, Annie/Evanti, Lillian (1891-1967)". The Black Past. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
- 1 2 3 4 "Negro musicians and their music.". A Celebration of Women Writers. Retrieved 2015-11-10.
- ↑ Baker, Jueseppi (February 12, 2013). "Black History Moment: Lillian Evanti; 1st African American To Perform In Major European Opera Company". The ObamaCrat. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
- ↑ "Madame Lillian Evanti (Lillian Evans Tibbs) Residence, African American Heritage Trail". Cultural Tourism DC. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
- ↑ "LILLIAN EVANTI HEARD; Lyric Soprano Returns to Local Concert Stage After 12 Years". The New York Times. October 13, 1944.
- ↑ "Lillian Evanti, soprano". Extravagant Crowd: Carl Van Vechten's Portraits of Women. Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
- ↑ "Alma Thomas’s March on Washington …with 250,000 Others". Archives of American Art. August 9, 2013.
Sources
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lillian Evanti. |
- Eileen Southern, The Music of Black Americans: A History. W. W. Norton & Company; 3rd edition. ISBN 0-393-97141-4
- Lillian Evanti photographs and other material at Columbia College, Chicago
- Madame Lillian Evanti seated on train in Europe.