Florence Price
1887 - 1953
American
Biography
The discovery of dozens of scores in an Illinois attic in 2009 led to renewed interest in the music of Florence Price, performances and recordings, and critical acclaim. Her music combines a rich and romantic symphonic idiom with the melodic intimacy and emotional intensity of African-American spirituals. As Alex Ross wrote in The New Yorker, her music "deserves to be widely heard."
In 1932 her Sonata in E Minor for piano won First Prize in the Wanamaker music contest, with overall honors awarded to her first symphony. Frederick Stock, music director of the Chicago Symphony, became a supporter of her music and programmed the work. Price became the first African-American woman to have a work performed by a major U.S. orchestra when the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performed it in 1933. Though she composed hundreds of pieces, her catalogue did not enter the twentieth-century mainstream canon, and many of her works, including two violin concertos, could have vanished if not uncovered during the renovation of her abandoned home.
Born in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1887, Price received early training on the piano from her mother, a music teacher. She went on to attend the New England Conservatory, one of few higher musical institutions accepting African-American students. There, she studied composition and counterpoint with George Chadwick and Frederick Converse, and graduated in 1906 with both an artistic diploma in organ and a teaching certificate. After years teaching music privately and serving as the head of the music department at Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia, Price returned to Little Rock, then moved to Chicago, where she advanced her musical studies under Arthur Olaf Andersen, Carl Busch, Wesley LaViolette, and Leo Sowerby.
Price artist-playlist on Spotify
In 1932 her Sonata in E Minor for piano won First Prize in the Wanamaker music contest, with overall honors awarded to her first symphony. Frederick Stock, music director of the Chicago Symphony, became a supporter of her music and programmed the work. Price became the first African-American woman to have a work performed by a major U.S. orchestra when the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performed it in 1933. Though she composed hundreds of pieces, her catalogue did not enter the twentieth-century mainstream canon, and many of her works, including two violin concertos, could have vanished if not uncovered during the renovation of her abandoned home.
Born in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1887, Price received early training on the piano from her mother, a music teacher. She went on to attend the New England Conservatory, one of few higher musical institutions accepting African-American students. There, she studied composition and counterpoint with George Chadwick and Frederick Converse, and graduated in 1906 with both an artistic diploma in organ and a teaching certificate. After years teaching music privately and serving as the head of the music department at Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Georgia, Price returned to Little Rock, then moved to Chicago, where she advanced her musical studies under Arthur Olaf Andersen, Carl Busch, Wesley LaViolette, and Leo Sowerby.
Price artist-playlist on Spotify
News
Performances
8th April 2026
- PERFORMERS
- Los Angeles County High School for the Arts
- CONDUCTOR
- Alan Mautner
- LOCATION
- Caroline's Loft, Los Angeles, CA, United States of America
9th April 2026
- SOLOISTS
- ; Nick Davies
- PERFORMERS
- Lakewood Symphony
- CONDUCTOR
- Mathew Switzer
- LOCATION
- Lakewood Cultural Center, Lakewood, CO, United States of America
9th April 2026
- SOLOISTS
- Seohyun Kim
- PERFORMERS
- Academy of St Martin in the Fields
- CONDUCTOR
- Tomo Keller
- LOCATION
- St Martin in the Fields, London, United Kingdom
10th April 2026
- PERFORMERS
- Hofstra Orchestras
- CONDUCTOR
- Adam Glaser
- LOCATION
- John Cranford Adams Playhouse, Hempstead, NY, United States of America
10th April 2026
- SOLOISTS
- Irina Rostomashvili
- PERFORMERS
- Ambler Symphony
- CONDUCTOR
- Jack Moore
- LOCATION
- Ambler Theater, Ambler, PA, United States of America
Features
- Best Wise Music Recordings of 2025
- 2025 saw the release of a myriad of recordings of works by Wise Music composers. From classical powerhouse labels to indie new music organizations, major symphony orchestras to chamber ensembles, opera houses to choirs, a broad range of collaborators has brought these works to life, generating both critical acclaim and powerful at-home listening experiences.
- The Best Recordings of 2022 from Wise Music Classical
- Wise Music Classical invites you to enjoy a selection of the best recordings of 2022, featuring composers from across our international family of publishing houses.
- Celebrating Women Composers
- Join Wise Music Group in celebrating the works of our female composers with this new brochure for 2024
- Curtain-Up | Concert Openers
- Explore engaging, creative, and captivating orchestral openers for your upcoming programs. Set the stage for memorable musical experiences after the curtain comes up.
- Independent Repertoire: American Optimism — Grappling with Dark and Light
- Since the early days of the United States, Americans have had a reputation for optimism and a particular attitude of possibility. Yet the U.S. has also faced great challenges in its history, from the Civil War to the Great Depression and present-day threats. Numerous scholars and cultural commentators have also noted our enduring streaks of both apocalyptic thinking and forthright engagement with life’s hardships. American composers have grappled with and balanced such forces of dark and light.