Ella Sheppard

First black music teacher at Fisk University, and one of the nine singers selected by George White to form the Fisk Jubilee Singers in 1871. Provided crucial documentation and recollection of the group's founding and early activities.

Ella Sheppard was a pioneering figure in the field of music education, particularly for African Americans. She was the first black music teacher at Fisk University, a historically black university in Nashville, Tennessee. In 1871, George White, a white music professor at Fisk, selected Sheppard as one of the nine singers to form the Fisk Jubilee Singers. This group was instrumental in promoting African American spiritual music to a wider audience, including Europe, through tours. Sheppard's documentation and recollections are crucial for understanding the founding and early activities of the Fisk Jubilee Singers.