Ruth Miriam Greenfield ( Wolkowsky; November 17, 1923 – July 27, 2023) was an American concert pianist and teacher who, through music, broke racial barriers and brought together black and white students, taught by black and white teachers. This pioneering color-blind approach, considered scandalous at the time, was a breath of fresh air in the then-segregated society.

Biography

Ruth Miriam Wolkowsky was born in

Key West, Florida Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Sigsbee Park, Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Islan ...

, on November 17, 1923. At age six months she moved to

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

and was raised there. While growing up, she was unaware of the pervasive segregation of the time, except when visiting her grandparents in Spring Garden. Across the railroad tracks from there was the neighborhood then called Colored Town, and now called Overtown. This town seemed like a strange other world, in which black people had a servile role, doing laundry for white people. Greenfield began studying piano at age 5, and later studied with Mana-Zucca, who moved from New York to Miami. Greenfield graduated from

Miami Beach High School Miami Beach Senior High School (Beach High, MBSH) is a secondary school located at 2231 Prairie Avenue Miami Beach, Florida, across from the Miami Beach Convention Center and Botanical Garden. It is located at the corner of Prairie Avenue and Da ...

in 1941, then studied for two years at the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private university, private research university in Coral Gables, Florida, United States. , the university enrolled 19,852 students in two colleges and ten schools across over ...

, then obtained her bachelor's and master's degrees in music at the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

Ann Arbor Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

. While studying with the renowned pianist

Artur Schnabel Artur Schnabel (17 April 1882 – 15 August 1951) was an Austrian-born classical pianist, composer and Pedagogy, pedagogue. Schnabel was known for his intellectual seriousness as a musician, avoiding pure technical bravura. Among the 20th ...

, she broke more racial taboos by dating a classmate who was a young black man from

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

. She returned to the University of Miami again to teach piano. Greenfield later left Miami for

Paris, France 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 ...

, in 1949, in order to study composition with

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 ...

, the teacher of successful composers including

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, and

Astor Piazzolla Astor Pantaleón Piazzolla (, ; March 11, 1921 – July 4, 1992) was an Argentine tango composer, bandoneon player, and arranger. His works revolutionized the traditional tango into a new style termed '' nuevo tango'', incorporating elements fr ...

. Paris of that time was refreshingly integrated, with integration considered as the norm. In Paris, she married Miami attorney Arnold Merwin Greenfield, a graduate of

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...

. He enjoyed painting and cooking and listening to his wife play the piano. Her maid of honor at the small Paris wedding was a black pianist Lois Towles from

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

. Upon returning to segregated Miami, Greenfield wanted to do something about the situation. She founded, in 1951, the Fine Arts Conservatory, one of the first fully integrated schools for music, art and dance in the South. Greenfield was motivated by her friendship with school principal Mary Ford Williams, whose son, James "Jimmy" Ford, a

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

graduate, had found doors to Miami's music establishment and competitions closed to him. During the early years, the school moved between black and white neighborhoods, holding classes in such locations as private homes, a

Masonic lodge A Masonic lodge (also called Freemasons' lodge, or private lodge or constituent lodge) is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also a commonly used term for a building where Freemasons meet and hold their meetings. Every new l ...

, a YMCA and the most notorious location, a storage room for caskets that reeked of formaldehyde, in an Overtown funeral home. On May 9, 1953, Greenfield's Fine Arts Conservatory student, 15-year-old James Ford performed at an otherwise all-white recital at Miami Memorial Library thanks to Greenfield having alerted Jack Bell, a Miami Herald columnist who wrote about the issue. By 1961, the conservatory had raised enough money to buy a small run-down house in the vicinity of N.W. 60th Street and 7th Avenue that served as its permanent headquarters, until it closed in 1978. The Fine Arts Conservatory eventually expanded to six branches throughout Dade County. Prominent community leaders, including Congresswoman Carrie Meek, continued to steer talented students to the school. Greenfield continued to teach for 32 years at what is today

Miami Dade College Miami Dade College (MDC) is a public university, public college located in Miami, Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1959, MDC operates eight campuses and numerous outreach centers throughout Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade Count ...

, Florida's first integrated college. She founded Miami-Dade Community College's Lunchtime Lively Arts Series in the late 1970s and made it all-encompassing (including music, theater, and literature). The wide-ranging list of artists who performed include

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Odetta Odetta Holmes (December 31, 1930 – December 2, 2008), known as Odetta, was an American singer, often referred to as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement". Her musical repertoire consisted largely of American folk music, blues, jazz, and s ...

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and

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. In the fall of 2011, the college rededicated its Wolfson Campus auditorium in Greenfield's honor. Greenfield's family has also been influential in the arts. Her children include New York City photographer

Timothy Greenfield-Sanders Timothy Greenfield-Sanders (born February 16, 1952) is an American documentary filmmaker and portrait photographer based in New York City. The majority of his work is shot in large format. Early life Greenfield-Sanders was born in 1952, in Mi ...

, Miami cultural critic Charles D. Greenfield, published clinical social worker Alice Greenfield, and golfer Frank Greenfield.

Key West Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it con ...

preservationist David Wolkowsky is her brother. Her grandchildren include filmmaker Liliana Greenfield-Sanders and painter

Isca Greenfield-Sanders Isca Greenfield-Sanders (born 1978) is an American landscape painter based in New York City. Early life Greenfield-Sanders was born in New York City to lawyer, Karin and photographer, Timothy Greenfield-Sanders. She grew up in New York City's E ...

. She is survived by a total of seven grandchildren and five great grandchildren. In 2013, director Steve Waxman released a feature documentary, ''Instruments of Change'', about Greenfield and her history with the Fine Arts Conservatory. The film featured Miami personalities including Eduardo Padron, Marvis Martin, Garth Reeves, and Carrie Meek. The same year, Posse Miami honored her for her contributions to education in Miami. On November 18, 2022, a day after she celebrated her 99th birthday, the city of Miami co-designated the street where Greenfield lived as Ruth Greenfield Way. In December 2022 Ruth Greenfield received the FSMTA Breaking Barriers Award. She died in Miami on July 27, 2023, at the age of 99.https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/obituaries/article277722378.html On April 13, 2024, Ruth W. Greenfield was awarded (posthumously) the Parker Thomson Legacy Award by The

Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts The Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County is a performing arts center located in Miami, Florida. It is one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States. According to Arts Management Magazine, the Arsht C ...

of Miami-Dade County. Her son, Charles D. Greenfield, accepted the award representing her family.

References

External links

New York Times article

Miami Dade College
- Official website
Sun-Sentinel article on one of her musical performances
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Greenfield, Ruth W. 1923 births 2023 deaths American classical pianists American music educators American women classical pianists category:Jewish American classical musicians Musicians from Miami University of Miami alumni University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance alumni