Edmund Thornton Jenkins (1894–1926) was an American composer who spent much of his life in Europe.
['' The Music of Black Americans: A History''. Eileen Southern. W. W. Norton & Company; 3rd edition. ]
Biography
Charleston
Jenkins was born in
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...
where his Baptist-minister father, Reverend Daniel Joseph Jenkins, had set up and run the
Jenkins Orphanage
The Jenkins Orphanage, now officially known as the Jenkins Institute For Children, was established in 1891 by Rev. Daniel Joseph Jenkins in Charleston, South Carolina. Jenkins was a businessman and Baptist minister who encountered street children ...
, which became internationally well-known for its wind band. Edmund Jenkins studied clarinet, piano and violin at the Atlanta Baptist College (now
Morehouse College
Morehouse College is a Private college, private, Historically black colleges and universities, historically black, Men's colleges in the United States, men's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia, ...
), and played in and directed the Jenkins Orphanage Band.
[''Edmund Thornton Jenkins: The Life and Times of an American Black Composer, 1894-1926'' by Jeffrey P. Green (Westport, Conn : Greenwood Press,1983) ]
London
In 1914 the orphanage band travelled to England to perform at the Anglo-American Exposition in London. Edmund remained in London where, aged 20, he enrolled at the
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is one of the oldest music schools in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the firs ...
(RAM) to study clarinet, piano, singing and composition. At the RAM he was awarded an orchestral scholarship (1915–17), prizes for singing, clarinet and piano playing, the
Charles Lucas
Sir Charles Lucas, 1613 to 28 August 1648, was a professional soldier from Essex, who served as a Royalist cavalry leader during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Taken prisoner at the end of the First English Civil War in March 1646, he was re ...
prize for composition (1918),
Battison Haynes
Walter Battison Haynes (21 November 1859 – 16 February 1900) was an English pianist, organist and composer.
Biography
Haynes was born in Kempsey near Worcester, and received his earliest musical education from his uncle William Haynes, who wa ...
prize for composition (1918) and the Ross Scholarship (1919–21). On leaving the RAM he was made an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music. While in London Edmund Jenkins worked as an orchestral musician in theatre orchestras and dance bands resulting in his participation in a number of recordings.
Paris
In 1924 Edmund Jenkins moved to Paris where he established the Anglo-Continental-American Music Press while also performing and composing.
He died in Paris 'from causes unknown' after being admitted to the city's
Tenon hospital.
['American Composer: At Home Abroad' by Betty Hillmon ''et al''. ''The Black Perspective in Music'', Vol. 14, No. 2 (Spring, 1986), pp. 143-180]
Works
Chamber ensemble
* (n.d.) Chanson; violin and piano
[The Edmund Thornton Jenkins Collection, 1917-1940]
Columbia College Chicago: Center for Black Music Research Collection. Online resource, accessed 14 April 2023
* (n.d.) Commodo quasi allegro (poco martial); piano and solo instrument
* (n.d.) Dance; cello and piano
* (n.d.) Romanesque: violin and piano
* (1916) Overture to Much Ado about Nothing; piano and strings
* (1919) Andante quasi lento, or Allegro energico; flute, 2 clarinets, horn, piano
* (1919) Rêverie-Fantasie; violin and piano
[Dominique-René de Lerma. (1990) 'Black Composers in Europe: A Works List'. ''Black Music Research Journal'', Vol. 10, No. 2 (Autumn, 1990), pp. 275-334]
* (1919) Slow movement and rondo
ento ma non troppo woodwind quartet
* (1925) The Saxophone Strut; saxophone and piano
* (1926) Sonata in A minor; violin
ello?and piano
Opera
* 1924 Operetta: Afram, ou La Belle Swita, Roman Africain
Orchestral works
* (n.d.) Allegro strepitoso
* (n.d.) Andante, with solo clarinet and solo cello
* (n.d.) Ballet: Processional; Pas Seul; Danse Generale
* (n.d.) Concerto; for clarinet
* (n.d.) Rhapsody on American Folk Tunes)
* (n.d.) Rhapsodic Overture
* (1917) Prélude Religieuse, with organ
* (1918) Romance, with solo violin
* (1925) African War Dance
* (1917?/1925)
olk?Rhapsody No. 1: ''Charlestonia'', op. 12
* (1917/1926) Folk Rhapsody No 2: ''Rhapsodie spirituelle''
'
* (1926) Symphony, op. 12
Organ
* (1917?/1926) Prélude Religieux
Piano
* (n.d.) The Cabaret Brawl, or Double-crossing the Stool Pigeon
* (n.d.) Characteristic American Indian Dances
* (n.d.) Negro Symphonie Dramatique. Scenes de la Vie d’un Esclave
* (1920/1925) Spring Fancies
Songs
with orchestra
* (1916) Love’s Hour
* (1917) How Sweet is Life
* (1925) That place called Italie
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* (1926?) A Prayer<
with piano
* (n.d.) I want You Near Me
* (n.d.) Je te desire pres de moi; fox-trot'
* (n.d.) Jungle Blues; fox-trot
* (n.d.) Kiss Baby Good Night
* (n.d.) The Lilac Tree
* (n.d.) Pampa Blues
* (n.d.) 'Si je vous dis, je vous aime
* (n.d.) Through the Metidja to Abd-el-Kadr
* (n.d.) Trying
* (n.d.) Your Voice I Hear
* (1910) Baby Darling, Baby Mine
* (1916) Love's Hour
* (1917) A Romance
* (1917) Doubting
* (1917) The Fiddler's Fiddle
* (1925) Amber Eyes
* (1925) If I Were to Tell You I Love You
* (1925) Three Songs: Doubting; A Romance; The Fiddler’s Fiddle
* (1926) A Preyer
* (1926) That Place Called Italy
External links
'A Charlestonian Rhapsody: The Story of Edmund T Jenkins' ''Sunday Feature''. BBC Radio 3. First broadcast 16 April 2023
Charlestonia(composed 1917) for orchestra. Score. Online resource
musescore.com accessed 22 April 2023
'Charlestonia: a folk rhapsody' by Edmund T. Jenkins Performed by an un-named studio orchestra conducted by Philip Brunelle. ''YouTube''. Online resource, accessed 27 April 2023
*
Class of 1918: Edmund Jenkins & Evelyn Dove, ''200 Years of the Royal Academy of Music''. ''YouTube''. Online resource accessed 27 April 2023
B contains advertisements*
Top Songs of Edmund T. Jenkins. ''Black Europe. The Sounds and Images of Black People in Europe pre-1927''. Vol. 12. ''YouTube''. Online resource accessed 26 April 2023.
Prélude Religieux(pub. 1926) for organ solo. Score. Online resource
archive.org accessed 20 April 2023
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jenkins, Edmund
1894 births
1926 deaths
20th-century American classical composers
20th-century American male musicians
American male classical composers
Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music
20th-century African-American musicians
Morehouse College alumni