January 4 …

Grace Bumbry was a world famous opera singer and pioneering African-American classical singer who was inspired by and followed in the footsteps of the great Marian Anderson.

Born on January 4, 1937 in St. Louis, Bumbry graduated from the prestigious Charles Summer High School, the first black high school west of the Mississippi River. As a teenager, in 1954, she won a radio talent competition, which earned her a scholarship to study at the St. Louis Institute of Music.

Bumbry later expanded her studies at Northwestern University, then honed her voice under the tutelage of several renowned music teachers — including legendary German soprano Lotte Lehmann at the Music Academy of the West. She furthered her craft while studying singing in Paris.

Considered one of the leading mezzo-sopranos of her generation, Bumbry became recognized internationally when, in 1961, she broke the color barrier as the first black artist to perform at Germany’s Bayreuth Festival.

Grace Bumbry, whose professional accomplishments afforded her an illustrious and jet-setting career, died at age 86 on May 7, 2023.