Eva Jessye

Brief

     Dr. Jessye (1895-1992) was a preeminent Conductor, Choral Director, founder of the Eva Jessye Choir, and the first Black woman to earn international distinction as a director of a professional choral group. She was the first musical director for the original production of Porgy and Bess and, devoted to Civil Rights, Jessye and the Eva Jessye Choir were appointed by Dr. Martin Luther King as the official choir of the 1963 March on Washington.

‍Collections & Papers

1.  Eva Jessye Collection 1885-1994 (largely digitized), Pittsburg State University Special Collections, Leonard H. Axe Library

The Collection contains personal papers, writings, musical scores, photographs, and programs. It also contains her contributions to film and stage productions like Porgy and Bess and Hallelujah.

2.  Eva Jessye collection, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, The New York Public Library

The Collection contains her funeral and other memorial programs, personal and professional correspondence,  newspaper clippings, critiques, and Eva Jessye Choir performance programs.

3.  Eva Jessye Collection 1927-1992, University of Michigan, Bentley Historical Library.

The Collection contains personal papers as well as materials, personal notes, and a travel diary, production writings, poetry, speeches, personal and professional correspondence, collected articles, reviews, programs, family photographs, as well as production and publicity shots.

4.  Kenneth Spencer Research Library Archival Collection, University of Kansas

This Collection contains photographs of Dr. Jessye from Pittsburg State University in Kansas and the University of Michigan

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