Ann Hobson Pilot insisted on having her picture on the cover of compact discs she recorded. She wanted African-American children to see that a woman with dark skin could star in the classical world.
Click on image to read full article.
One day in high school, Ann Hobson Pilot, an aspiring harpist who happened to be African-American, was at a friend’s house when the girl’s mother pointed to a picture on the wall. It showed a white woman with flowing blond hair.
“Now she looks like a harpist is supposed to,’’ the woman said with an edge.
Hobson Pilot still remembers the sting of the comment, even a half century later. She remembers it as she prepares for the highlight of her four decades with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, tomorrow night’s premiere of a concerto written for her by John Williams.
“It surprises me when I think back to that time,’’ says Hobson Pilot, now 65. “I worked hard, but what was I thinking? The harp was considered to be the instrument of an angel, a white woman with flowing gowns.’’
From the Symphony Hall stage, Hobson Pilot changed that perception.
Related posts:
- A classical case of beating the odds, major orchestra Conductor Thomas Wilkins As music director of the Omaha Symphony and resident conductor...
- Kenyan Robert Cheruiyot Wins Boston Marathon, Sets Record Men’s winner Robert Cheruiyot beat the previous course record by...
- Tacoma Youth Symphony nurtures music appreciation Symphony Association is seventh-largest group of its kind in the...
- Giants to retire club’s first African-American players uniform number Monte Irvin, the first African-American to play for the Giants,...
- Alabama’s oldest African-American town to celebrate 111 years Hobson City is considered the oldest incorporated black municipality in...
RSS (syndication)
Loading ...
[...] Boston Symphony’s master harpist to retire after 40 years Ann Hobson Pilot insisted on having her picture on the… [...]
Pingback by Alabama’s oldest African-American town to celebrate 111 years | My Black News — August 14, 2010