American concert singer in the United States, performed for presidents and foreign heads of state, yet today few people remember her name. A new biography about this famed opera and concert diva, Sissieretta Jones, The Greatest Singer of Her Race, 1868-1933, seeks to bring her the recognition she deserves.
Author Maureen Lee spent four years combing old newspapers and public records for information to tell Joness life story. The famed singer, also known as Black Patti, a name created by the press to compare her to the world-famous European prima donna Adelina Patti (1843-1919), did not leave letters or diaries describing her life, nor did she make any recordings to capture her magnificent voice.
Born in Portsmouth, Va. in 1868, Sissieretta moved to Rhode Island in 1876 with her
parents Jeremiah and Henrietta Joyner. They settled on Providences east side, where, at the age of 15, Sissieretta married David Richard Jones in 1883. She got her early vocal training in Providence and later in Boston. By 1888 Sissieretta was hired as the lead soprano of a small, all-black troupe to tour throughout the West Indies and some South American cities. She completed two successful tours in this part of the world by 1891.
In early 1892, President Benjamin Harrison invited Sissieretta to sing at a White House luncheon in the Blue Room. But it wasnt until she sang in a Grand Negro Jubilee at Madison Square Garden in New York City two months later that the young soprano began to earn recognition in the United States. Shortly after this concert she signed a 3-year contract with a well-known white manager who helped her become famous in America. She was one of the first African American women to sing at Carnegie Hall.
Sissieretta performed on the concert stage until 1896, including a 10-month tour of Europe in 1895. When she returned from Europe she found limited opportunities for African American concert singers. Her career took a new direction. In 1896, Sissieretta became the star of a 40-member, all-black musical comedy troupe called the Black Patti Troubadours. For the next 19 years Sissieretta and her company, led by two white managers, toured extensively throughout the United States and Canada. Sissieretta had found a way to continue her music career using this new format to sing opera and concert ballads. During these years, her company provided a chance for many African American entertainers to get their start in show business. Sissieretta retired from the stage in 1915 and returned to her home in Providence. Over the years she sold her property, silver, and jewels to keep afloat, but died in poverty in 1933.
Lees biography examines the obstacles and limitations this musical pioneer faced because of her race as well as the opportunities she seized upon to become a famous, successful prima donna and role model for other African Americans. In telling Sissierettas captivating story, Lee also brings to life the development of black musical shows in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Sissieretta Jones: The Greatest Singer of Her Race 1868-1933 will be published May 15, 2012 by the University of South Carolina Press. Maureen Donnelly Lee is a retired public relations professional and a former newspaper journalist and magazine editor. Lee spent eight years as a research associate for child and family research centers at Clemson University and the University of South Carolina. She grew up in Rhode Island, the state Sissieretta Jones called home for 57 years. Lee holds bachelors and masters degrees from Rhode Island College. She lives in Columbia, SC, where she and her husband, John, own and operate Lees Book Attic, a used and antiquarian book business.