The “Black Mozart, Wagner and Mahler”, three composers of the African Diaspora who were compared to great European composers. Looking at notable musical events in their working lives, the conditions in which they were working including the racial parameters and how within the confines of those parameters they were able to produced works of note. Given the situations that the composers of African origin faced, it is astonishing that they were able to produce significant works, but by and large have been omitted from the history of western art music or are just footnotes. By comparing these composers, I will illustrate that although these composers have made powerful contributions to the classical music world, their omission in the programming of music in the concert hall and in the musical education and examination systems diminishes the input of these pioneers and significantly adds to the lack of individual recognition for other Black composers.
