Profile of William Warfield on Famous Like Me

William Warfield (22 January 1920 - 26 August 2002), concert baritone singer, was born in West Helena, Arkansas. He gave his recital debut in New York's Town Hall of March 19, 1950. He was quickly invited by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation to tour that continent for 35 concerts. In 1952, Warfield performed in Porgy and Bess during a tour of Europe sponsored by the U.S. State Department (he made six separate tours for the US Department of State, more than any other American solo artist.) In this production he played opposite the opera star Leontyne Price, whom he soon married, but the demands of two separate careers left them little time together. They divorced in 1972.

In 1975 he accepted an appointment as Professor of Music at the University of Illinois (Champaign-Urbana Campus). He later became Chairman of the Voice Department.

Warfield was also accomplished in acting and poetry recitation. He appeared in numerous Hollywood films, including a celebrated performance in "Show Boat." In March 1984 he was the winner of a Grammy in the "Spoken Word" category for his outstanding narration of Aaron Copland's A Lincoln Portrait accompanied by the Eastman Philharmonia Orchestra.

Warfield was active in many organizations, and served on the boards of the National Association of Negro Musicians (NANM) and the Schiller Institute. He collaborated with acclaimed vocal coach Sylvia Olden Lee in a project to save the performance tradition of the Negro Spiritual. He was a graduate of the Eastman School of Music.

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