Repertoire Type: Works by Black Composers

CelloBello’s mission has always been to foster a global cello community, and to that end we hope this new database may help encourage new curiosities and explorations into this repertoire that, historically, has not been equally represented on our concert stages or in our music schools. We envision a future in classical music where racial equity and representation are the norm, not the exception, and hope this database might take us a step towards this vision by easing access to information about repertoire that is more inclusive of our diverse communities.

Over time we hope to expand our offerings to include a larger BIPOC database (highlighting all composers who identify as Black, Indigenous, or People of Color). However, given the urgency of the struggle for racial equity and justice in the United States we felt it paramount to begin by focusing first on the plethora of contributions made by Black composers.

The information contained in the catalog is displayed using the criteria of composers’ name and personal website link (where available), as well as the works’ title, date of composition, duration, and instrumentation. Although this catalog does not grant specific information about purchasing scores for all of the pieces listed, it facilitates the search of scores and provides links of contact to the composers, where applicable.

We welcome any feedback on this page, particularly information on missing works or compositional information. As it is an ever-expanding resource, please check back for updates. Contact us via admin@cellobello.org.

We would like to thank Gabriela Diaz, Lina Bahn and their other collaborators for sharing their initial research with us—explore all their findings here, which include non-cello instrumental and chamber music repertoire. An additional thank you to Dr. Timothy Holley for his generous additions to the database, sharing his decades-worth of research with us. Please explore his blog, where he shares his recommendations for student-appropriate works by Black composers. A final thank you to Francesca McNeeley of the CelloBello staff, for her dedicated efforts in formalizing this new resource for CelloBello.