Henry Lewis became the first Black to lead a major American orchestra , named director of the New Jersey Symphony 1968
Henry Lewis (1932 – 1996) began to study music at the age of five and learned to play several instruments. After years as a double-bassist for orchestra, he began playing and conducting the Seventh Army Symphony. He did this as a member of the US Army. Amongst his music career accomplishments, Lewis is known as a conductor, instrumentalist, and pioneer in the classical music world.
In 1968, Lewis became the first Black to direct a major orchestra, the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. At the time that Lewis became director, the orchestra was a small ensemble in the community. However, the orchestra would go on to become nationally recognized and pioneer in support of outreach programs under Lewis' leadership.
In 1967, the Newark riots took lives and caused property damage that would be valued at more than $10 million dollars at the time, an estimate stated in a story from NBC news at the 50th anniversary of the upset.
National Guardsman ride along Market Street in Newark after the looting and violence. Jul 14, 1967
Henry Lewis conducted outdoor concerts as director of NJSO, two on Prince Street near Springfield Avenue where the Newark riots unfolded - the year before Lewis became director for the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra.
He began the Young Artists Auditions with the NJSO in 1975. In a special post at the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra website, the organization lists twenty-five points about the NJSO youth orchestras present-day. The list includes that the youth orchestras have performed for audiences in community settings, including at concerts for senior centers. This is a continuation of the tradition Lewis helped to begin when expanding the NJSO as director.
" ... One of the best things about the NJSO’s youth orchestra program is that it allowed me to do what I love most and also enabled me to improve as both a musician and a person. I have learned that teamwork is key in producing extraordinary results. I have learned to stay motivated if I wish to accomplish a goal and to persevere if I cannot accomplish that goal immediately ... " -- Violist Lyra Flores, Youth Orchestra with NJSO
Reference
25 reasons to love the NJSO Youth Orchestras. (March 1, 2016). https://www.njsymphony.org/news/detail/25-reasons-to-love-the-njso-youth-orchestras
Henry Lewis (Conductor). https://www.bach-cantatas.com/Bio/Lewis-Henry.htm
Then and now: Newark riots echo in city 50 years later. (July 13, 2017). https://www.nbcnews.com/slideshow/1967-newark-riots-how-landscape-has-changed-50-years-later-n782641
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