Ysaye M. Barnwell facts for kids

Ysaye Maria Barnwell, born on February 28, 1946, is a talented American singer and composer. She was a key member of the famous African American a cappella group called Sweet Honey in the Rock. She sang with them from 1979 until 2013.

Besides singing, Ysaye Barnwell wrote many songs for the group. She also leads special music workshops in places like the United States, the UK, Canada, and Australia. One of her well-known workshops is called "Building a Vocal Community: Singing in the African American Tradition." In 1977, she started a choir named the Jubilee Singers at All Souls Church, Unitarian in Washington, D.C.

Early Life and Education

Ysaye Barnwell grew up in New York City. She lived in Harlem and later in Jamaica, Queens. Her father was a violinist, and she started learning to play the violin with him when she was only two and a half years old. She studied the violin for 15 years.

Ysaye Barnwell went to college and earned several degrees. She received her bachelor's degree in 1967 and her master's degree in 1968 in speech pathology from the State University of New York at Geneseo. She then earned her PhD in speech pathology in 1975 from the University of Pittsburgh. Later, in 1981, she also earned a Master of Science degree in Public Health from Howard University.

Ysaye Barnwell's Career Journey

Ysaye Barnwell worked as a professor at Howard University's College of Dentistry for more than ten years. After that, she focused on community projects. These projects involved computer technology and the arts. She also managed health programs in Washington, D.C., at Children's Hospital National Medical Center and Gallaudet University.

While attending All Souls Church, Unitarian, Dr. Barnwell noticed that the church choir did not have many singers from different backgrounds. This inspired her to create the Jubilee Singers in 1977. She led this choir for three years. Her work with the Jubilee Singers led her to start arranging and writing music for groups that sing together.

She helped produce Sweet Honey in the Rock's 25th anniversary album, ...Twenty-Five..., which came out in 1998. She also edited a songbook for the group called Continuum: The First Songbook of Sweet Honey in the Rock.

Ysaye Barnwell has also acted. She had a main role in a TV show called A Man Called Hawk. She also appeared in the 1998 movie Beloved. In 2000, she released her own recording of stories and songs called Um Humm.

She wrote a children's book with a CD titled No Mirrors in My Nana's House. A second children's book and CD set, We Are One, was released in March 2008.

Ysaye Barnwell was named after a famous Belgian violinist, Eugène Ysaÿe.