How a New Orleans composer fought to preserve Creole music

Camille Nickerson faced a cultural tension in early 20th-century America. Many Creole musicians felt embarrassed by their own heritage, viewing it as inferior due to its complex history. Nickerson, known as the Louisiana Lady, rejected that sentiment. She spent her career performing and teaching to prove the opposite.

Born in the French Quarter in 1888, Nickerson began her musical career before her teenage years. She played piano with the Nickerson Ladies' Orchestra, directed by her father. That group was recognized as the first women's orchestra in New Orleans. She later studied at Oberlin Conservatory, the Juilliard School, and Columbia Teachers College. After graduating from Oberlin in 1916, she launched a concert circuit in Southern cities.

In 1917, she established the B-Sharp Music Club to promote Black music. Her academic career began in 1926 when she started teaching at Howard University. She remained there until 1962 and served as professor emerita until her death in 1982. She also led the National Association of Negro Musicians and organized the Musicians Guild of Washington, D.C.

Nickerson's international tours ran from 1941 to 1960. She combined musical performances with lectures on Creole traditions, often wearing 19th-century-style attire. A 1954 trip to France was sponsored by the State Department. Her musical contributions were formally recognized in 1942. That year, a collection titled Five Creole Songs Harmonized and Arranged by Camille Nickerson was published.

The 64 Parishes publication described her arrangements as fine examples of folk music transcription. It noted their Caribbean rhythms and creative piano accompaniments. Cornell music professor Jean Bernard Cerin said Nickerson collected stories from Creole people who felt their music was lesser. Cerin explained that some believed Creole was literally lesser.

After her death in 1982, Nickerson's papers were donated to Howard University. Archives at Howard, Tulane University's Amistad Research Center, and other institutions now hold her legacy.