HistorianSpeaks emblemHistorianSpeaksSubscribe

Elieen Southern, Muscologist, Researcher and Educator

Eileen Southern
Eileen Southern

#OTD Dr Eileen Southern (Nov 4, 1920 - Oct 13, 2002). Musicologist, researcher, author, educator. Her research focused on Black American musical styles, musicians and composers. She is best known for her 1970 book ‘The Music of Black America’. Holding a PhD from NYU, Dr Southern taught at Prairie View, Southern, Brooklyn College and CUNY before joining the Harvard faculty in 1974. She became the school's 1st tenured Black woman in 1979, and was chair of the department of Afro-American Studies.

#EileenSouthern #MusicofBlackAmericans

Share:
Cite this blog:
"Elieen Southern, Muscologist, Researcher and Educator." Historianspeaks, November 4, 2025. https://historianspeaks.org/blog/elieen-southern-muscologist-researcher-and-educator.

Ask the Historian

Have a question about this story, or an idea for a future post? Send it here.

Stay Current

Join our mailing list

One dispatch a week: a new essay, a podcast episode, and something from the archive worth a second look.