Edward Boatner - BLACK SWANS: Earliest African-American Classical Stars (CD)

An amazing revival of a lost area of African American cultural history: classical music performances from the early part of the 20th century. These souvenirs of the earliest such commercial recording ventures showcase forgotten examples of a great culture's accomplishments. The engineering and re-mastering, along with the exquisitely researched and annotated accompanying booklet are the joint labor of love of the Parnassus triumvirate team of Leslie Gerber, Tim Brooks, and Steve Smolian, making BLACK SWANS in my list, at least one of the top albums of the year.

Track List:

Disc: 1

1. Go Down Moses; Harry Burleigh
2. I don't feel No Ways Tired; Edward Boatner
3. Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child; Edward Boatner
4. Dett: in the bottoms Barcarolle; R. Nathaniel Dett
5. Dett: Magnolia Suite-Mammy; R. Nathaniel Dett
6. Delibes: Lakme Bell Song; Florence Cole-Talbert
7. The Last Rose of Summer; Florence Cole-Talbert
8. Dell'Acqua: Villanelle; Florence Cole-Talbert
9. Arditi: Il Baccio; Talbert
10. Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen; Talbert
11. White: Cradle Song; Clarence Cameron White (violin)
12. White: Lament; Clarence Cameron White
13. Make More Room; Hattie King Reavis
14. Gounod: There is a Green Hill; Hattie King Reavis
15. Leoncavallo: Vesti La Giubba (Pagliacci); Roland Hayes
16. Donizetti: Una Furtiva Lagrima (L'Elisir d'Amore); Roland Hayes
17. Verdi: Sollene in quest'ora (La Forza del Destino; Roland Hayes
18. Katherine Glen: Twilight; Roland Hayes
19. Bye and Bye; Roland Hayes
20. Steal Away to Jesus; Roland Hayes
21. Swing Low, Sweet Chariot; Roland Hayes
22. Verdi: Caro Nome (Rigoletto); Antoinette Garnes
23. Verdi: Ah! Fors'e lui (La Traviata); Antoinette Garnes
24. Haydn: My Mother Bids Me Bind My Hair; Antoinette Garnes
25. Faure: Les Rameaux; Harry Burleigh