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Nina Simone

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To Be Young, Gifted and Black

Nina Simone Biography

source: WikiPedia

This entry is from Wikipedia, the user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors and is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. If you find the biography content factually incorrect, defamatory or highly offensive you can edit this article at Wikipedia.

Nina Simone , born Eunice Kathleen Waymon (February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music. Simone aspired to become a classical pianist while working in a broad range of styles including classical, jazz, blues, folk, R&B, gospel, and pop. Born the sixth child of a preacher's family in North Carolina, Simone aspired to be a concert pianist. Her musical path changed direction after she was denied a scholarship to the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, despite a well-received audition. Simone was later told by someone working at Curtis that she was rejected because she was black. When she began playing in a small club in Philadelphia to fund her continuing musical education and become a classical pianist she was required to sing as well. She was approached for a recording by Bethlehem Records, and her rendering of "I Loves You, Porgy" was a hit in the United States in 1958. and accompanied with her expressive jazz-like singing in her characteristic contralto. She injected as much of her classical background into her music as possible to give it more depth and quality, as she felt that pop music was inferior to classical. Her intuitive grasp on the audience–performer relationship was gained from a unique background of playing piano accompaniment for church revivals and sermons regularly from the early age of six years old. In the early 1960s, she became involved in the civil rights movement and the direction of her life shifted once again. Simone's music was highly influential in the fight for equal rights in the United States. In later years, she lived abroad, finally settling in France in 1992.

Wikipedia This entry is from Wikipedia, the user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors and is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. If you find the biography content factually incorrect, defamatory or highly offensive you can edit this article at Wikipedia.
Biography

Nina Simone Albums

source: MusicBrainz

Links & information come from MusicBrainz. You can add or edit information about Nina Simone.

60 Essentials Remastered Compilation 2012 itunes amazon
The Very Best of Nina Simone Compilation 2010 itunes amazon
Original Album Classics Compilation 2009-09-28 itunes amazon
The Definitive Rarities Collection Compilation 2009-09-15 itunes amazon
Protest Anthology Compilation 2008-01-08 itunes amazon
20th Century Masters: The Millennium… Compilation 2007-06-12 itunes amazon
The Very Best of Nina Simone Compilation 2006-05-01 itunes amazon
Forever Young, Gifted & Black: Songs… Compilation 2006-01-17 itunes amazon
Songs to Sing: The Best of Nina Simone Compilation 2006 itunes amazon
Love Songs Compilation 2005-01-11 itunes amazon
Gold Compilation 2005 itunes amazon
Nina Simone at Carnegie Hall Live 2005 itunes amazon
Nina Simone for Lovers Album 2005 itunes amazon
The Nina Simone Collection Compilation 2004-09-20 itunes amazon
Mood Indigo Compilation 2004 itunes amazon
MusicBrainzLinks & information come from MusicBrainz. You can add or edit information about Nina Simone at musicbrainz.org.
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