Howard Swanson (August 18, 1907 – November 12, 1978) was an American

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

. Swanson studied at the

Cleveland Institute of Music The Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) is a private music conservatory in Cleveland, Ohio. The school was founded in 1920 by a group of supporters led by Martha Bell Sanders and Mary Hutchens Smith, with Ernest Bloch serving as its first dire ...

and was then taught by

Nadia Boulanger Juliette Nadia Boulanger (; 16 September 188722 October 1979) was a French music teacher, conductor and composer. She taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the 20th century, and also performed occasionally as a pianist and organis ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

.Liner notes - American Recording Society LP, "Three Contemporaries", ARS-10, 1950 He received fellowships, awards and prizes. His preference was for linear construction and lyrical works with subtle tonal centers. He was born in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

and died in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Particularly praised are the songs of Howard Swanson. William Flanagan, reviewing three songs of Swanson, said, "They are authentic and in the best tradition of the song-writing art--sensitive, intimate, and evocative." Virgil Thomson said, "Howard Swanson is a composer whose work singers (and pianists, too) should look into. It is refined, sophisticated of line and harmony in a way not at all common among American music writers. His songs have an acute elaboration of thought and an intensity for feeling that recall Fauré." Swanson's friendship with poet

Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. An early innovator of jazz poetry, Hughes is best known as a leader of the Harl ...

and his subsequent setting of Hughes poetry gives insight not only to the music of the African-American community, but also gives an intimate view to the psyche of the poet. Swanson consulted the poet with regularity while setting his poetry. His compositions are considered by many to be the definitive interpretations of the poet's work. His individual song settings of the poems "Joy," "In Time of Silver Rain," "Night Song," "Pierrot," and "

The Negro Speaks of Rivers "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" is a poem by American writer Langston Hughes. Hughes wrote the poem when he was 17 years old and was crossing the Mississippi River on the way to visit his father in Mexico. The poem was first published the following ...

" (performed by

Helen Thigpen Helen may refer to: People * Helen of Troy, in Greek mythology, the most beautiful woman in the world * Helen (actress) (born 1938), Indian actress * Helen (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) Places * Helen, G ...

and David Allen in 1950) reflect his intimate acquaintance with the inner workings of Hughes poetry.

References

1907 births 1978 deaths 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American classical composers African-American classical composers African-American male classical composers American male classical composers Cleveland Institute of Music alumni {{US-composer-20thC-stub