It wasn’t just a cultural event that had been years in the making. It was the cultural event of the era, and would remain without parallel for decades hence. The arrival of Afro-British composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor in America in 1904 – to perform as conductor for his internationally acclaimed masterpiece – was a dream come true. It was particularly significant for a handful of privileged African-Americans, whose lofty primary motivation was to convince talented fellow Black citize...
