Eva Jessye

Conductor and arranger, educated at Wilberforce University (MA), and Allen University (Mus. D.) She conducted the Eva Jessye Choir, with appearances in universities and colleges with symphony orchestras and in festivals throughout the United States and Europe. On Broadway, she appeared in the musical "Porgy and Bess" (and was the choral director for all "Porgy and Bess" productions between 1935 and 1958 including American and European tours) and "Lost in the Stars", and the opera "Four Saints in Three Acts", plus films and television, as well as television writing and directing. Also, she was an American consultant for the BBC in London, head of the music department at Morgan State College, and composer-in-residence for Maryland State College. Joining ASCAP in 1957, her musical arrangements included "An' I Cry", "Who Is That Yondah?", and "The Spirit o' the Lord Done Fell on Me", plus sixteen songs and stories for the collection "My Spirituals".