Composer Julia Perry's Previously Unavailable Catalog Of Music to be Published By Videmus Inc.

Through a new relationship with Boosey & Hawkes, one of the world's leading classical music publishers, Videmus Inc. will make available the previously unpublished music of composer Julia Perry, whose work fell into obscurity after her death in 1979 and is only now beginning to receive the attention it has so richly deserved.

Directed by Dr. Louise Toppin, Videmus is a non-profit arts organization dedicated to the promotion of concert works by African American, women, and under-presented composers, providing access to the work of marginalized composers through educational programming, performance opportunities, and scholarly research. In 2024, Julia Perry's centennial year, the Estate of Julia A. Perry assigned all copyrights for her unpublished work to Videmus Inc. Perry's music is also currently GRAMMY-nominated for the first time, as part of the American Counterpoints album from Experiential Orchestra, music director James Blachly, and violinist Curtis Stewart.

Julia Perry (1924-1979) was an African American composer, born in Lexington, Kentucky and raised in Akron, Ohio. Her early career was filled with promise: she spent two summers at the Berkshire Music Center, studied with Luigi Dallapiccola and briefly with Nadia Boulanger, won the Prix Fontainebleau and two Guggenheim Fellowships, and her Study for Orchestra was performed by the New York Philharmonic in 1965. But tragically, many of her roughly 100 compositions remain unknown. Perry suffered a paralytic stroke in 1970. As musicologist J. Michele Edwards writes, “Her letters reveal her effort to walk, talk, and conduct again. She did learn to write with her left hand and resumed composing; however, she endured tragic emotional and financial difficulties.”

As a non-profit, mission-based organization, Videmus supports the research, publication, recording, and performances of Perry's music, creating accurate materials serving the practical needs of performers and providing regularly updated editions. Videmus intends for this endeavor to serve as a model for others seeking to bring works of unjustly ignored composers to light. Additionally, the publication of Perry's works will help scholars to reconstruct her musical and personal journey, providing a valuable resource to future biographers. For distribution of Perry's works, Videmus is proud to partner with Boosey & Hawkes to make Perry's music available worldwide through print, performance, and licensing.

Louise Toppin says, “Julia Perry's prominence in music history as an African American woman composer has been erased for too long. Her story as a rising star in the world of composition and conducting during the years of extreme segregation in the United States is both compelling and astonishing. Her compositions (although to date her known output is small) show craftsmanship of the highest caliber that appeal to performers and audiences alike. Many of her compositions remain lost. Videmus is devoted to uncovering any works that still lie in publishers' archives, university libraries, or in public or private collections. The neglect Perry's music has faced is not unique. We hope that this endeavor might serve as a model for others seeking to bring additional works of unjustly ignored composers to light.”

“During her too-brief career, Julia Perry's compositions earned praise in every esteemed musical circle from New York to Paris, despite the immense systemic challenges she faced,” says Steven Lankenau, Senior Vice President of Boosey & Hawkes. “She is an indisputably important figure in the history of 20th-century American music, and Boosey & Hawkes is proud to partner with Videmus to bring her unpublished works to the public as this noteworthy composer's larger legacy continues to unfold.”

Julia Perry's Works to be Published: The Julia Perry catalog published by Videmus, which will be released across multiple years, includes a broad range of works for orchestra, choir, chamber ensemble, songs, and piano music.

The following works are immediately available from Boosey & Hawkes:

Three Spirituals for Orchestra (1965–67)

Prelude for Piano (1946/1962)

Prelude for Strings (Prelude for Piano 1946/1962; arr. for strings by Roger Zahab, 2020)

Symphony in One Movement for Violas and String Basses (1961)

Quartette for Wind Quintette (Symphony No. 13 for Wind Quintet) (1963/1976)

Quinary Quixotic Songs for Bass-Baritone and Five Instruments (1976)

Works planned for future release include Four Spirituals for orchestra, Contretemps for orchestra, Hymn to Pan for choir, and The Selfish Giant: A Sacred Musical Fable (piano reduction of a three-act opera).

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