Background
Lee was born into the very musical Olden family in Meridian, Mississippi.
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Sylvia Lee
Edit ProfileEducation
She studied piano and organ at Howard University and Oberlin Conservatory.
Career
She was a master of all aspects of European classical music as well as the Negro Spiritual. Among the highlights of her career:
She was invited to play at the White House for the inauguration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1933). In 1942 she toured with Paul Robeson.
In 1954, after being hired as vocal coach for the Metropolitan Opera, she was the impetus for the historic invitation to African-American contralto Marian Anderson to perform in Giuseppe Verdi"s Un Ballo in Maschera.
In 1956 she began studies with famed German tenor Gerhard Huesch. Olden Lee taught at a number of universities, including the Curtis Institute of Music.
Her brother was the prominent African-American graphic designer Georg Olden.
Membership
Her father, James Clarence Olden, was a member of the Fisk Quartet, which included Roland Hayes.
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Born
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Died
April 10, 2004 (aged 86) -
Nationality
United States