If “books have their own destiny,” the same is true of symphonies as well.  William Dawson’s Negro Folk Symphony was performed with great success by the Philadelphia Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski in 1934, in Philadelphia and at Carnegie Hall.  One critic wrote that the work “took the house by storm,” another felt that it was “the most distinctive and promising American symphonic proclamation which has so far been achieved.”  Yet subsequently the work was neglected for many years.  In a long article devoted to the symphony, musicologist Gwynne Kuhner Brown has written:  “The crucial factor….was that there were simply not enough copies of the score and parts to meet the demand early on, and before long conductors turned their attention elsewhere.”  In 1952, Stokowski introduced a revised version, which reflected impressions Dawson had received during a trip to Africa; then, however, the work fell into oblivion once again.  It was only in the last few years that a real revival got underway.  Today, it seems that the Negro Folk Symphony has finally found its permanent place in the repertoire alongside the works of William Grant Still and Florence Price, both contemporaries of Dawson’s.

Dawson, who in later years was known primarily as a great choral conductor, based his only symphony entirely on spirituals (which he preferred the call “folk songs”).  Thus, like Price and Still, he followed the advice Antonín Dvořák had given to American composers in the 1890’s:  the Czech composer had urged his students in New York to base their works on Black traditions, which he considered to be the most valuable part of the American musical heritage.

Dawson used his folk-song arrangements to construct a coherent narrative across the three movements, to which he gave the following programmatic titles:  “The Bond of Africa,” “Hope in the Night,” and “O Lem-me Shine.”  Thus, we follow the dreams of Black people as they emerged from a dark past and contemplated a brighter future.

The first movement opens with a slow introduction in turn solemn and lyrical.  It leads into a lively Allegro that contains several memorable themes.  One of them, a beguilingly simple tune, was originally sung to the words “Oh, m’ litt’l’ soul gwine-a shine, shine, / Oh, m’ litt’l’ soul gwine-a shine lik’ a star.”  A dynamic symphonic development culminates in a grandiose recapitulation of the opening theme and finally of the “little soul” melody.

The main theme of the second movement is played by the English horn, as in Dvořák’s New World Symphony, an important model for the new African-American school.  But Dawson quickly moves from nostalgia to powerful drama, introducing a faster middle section.  After a quiet retransition, the opening melody returns, now played by the solo horn, and the faster music is recapitulated as well.  The movement ends with a broad Andante section where the main melody is presented powerfully by the entire orchestra.  The protracted final chord is made more ominous by a persistent drumbeat getting louder and then softer.

The opening theme of the third movement is announced by a solo oboe and a solo bassoon.  A vigorous Allegro soon gets underway, with a “Hallelujah” melody inspired by the African-American folk music tradition.  A happy, triumphant mood prevails to the end of the symphony, only temporarily interrupted by either introspective or more agitated moments.

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— Peter Laki