An Operatic Star Who Raised Others’ Voices

Grad student helped process Library of Congress’ collection of legendary singer Jessye Norman.

By Sala Levin ’10 | Maryland Today

The late vocalist Jessye Norman was famous for her recitals as well as her roles in works by Wagner and Verdi, but she also had another passion: to champion music written by and for Black people that didn’t generally take center stage in concert halls.

That’s one facet of Norman’s life that the public can discover through the Jessye Norman Papers, a collection of audio and visual recordings, correspondence, contracts, datebooks, programs, sheet music and ephemera now available through the Library of Congress. Jessica Grimmer MLIS ’21 helped process the collection as part of her field study before graduating from the University of Maryland.

“She wanted to showcase African American spirituals and Black artists in a way that foregrounded their place in classical music,” said Grimmer, who is a lecturer in UMD's School of Music. “If we think about the classical canon, it’s a lot of dead white guys.”

Norman first reached global renown in 1968, when she won the ARD International Music Competition, Germany’s largest international classical music competition. She joined the Deutsche Oper Berlin, but stepped away after a few years to focus on performing recitals, “a less secure path” than being a member of an opera company, said Grimmer, who works as a copyright examiner in the U.S. Copyright Office and project archivist in UMD’s Special Collections in Performing Arts at the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library.

Read the full story in Maryland Today.

This is one of a series of Maryland Today features during Black History Month celebrating Terp faculty, staff, students and alums.

Photo by David Wolff - Patrick/Getty Images