New York School Kids Have Written a Book About Composer Florence Price

The book, entitled "Who Is Florence Price?" was written and illustrated by 45 middle school students at New York's Special Music School (SMS). The school teaches high-level music alongside the standard curriculum and was born out of a partnership between the Kaufman Music Center and the New York City Department of Education.

The project started when SMS English teacher Shannon Potts set Florence Price as the topic of an assignment for her sixth, seventh, and eighth-graders. The students quickly found, however, that there were no resources about Price's life that were aimed specifically at children. Potts, therefore, decided to change the brief of the assignment and suggested that they could create a children's book instead about the trailblazing African-American composer.

The book begins:

"In 2009, a couple bought an old house outside of Chicago. in the attic, they found boxes filled with yellowed sheets of music. Every piece was written by the same woman, Florence Price. 'Who is Florence Price?' they wondered...

Florence's mind was filled with music, but she had a big question. She was a girl and her skin was a different color than so many of the composers she knew about. Could she grow up to be a famous composer, too? When Florence was only 11, her first piece was published. Was it possible that Florence's music could change things?"

"We’re so proud of our Special Music School students for taking the initiative to create this book, which is a beautiful example of what can happen when we remove barriers to music education," said Kate Sheeran, the Kaufman Center's Executive Director. "A comprehensive music education from the earliest grades opens doors and helps children make connections between disciplines.”

"Who is Florence Price? is a very special project for Wise Music Group,” says Robert Thompson, President of their Schirmer Books division. “It celebrates the power of storytelling and the benefits of early music education, while championing the life of a pioneering composer. We are especially proud of this release, since all book proceeds will go right back to Special Music School, to support its important music program.”

"Who Is Florence Price?" is published by Schirmer Books. All sales royalties will go to the Kaufman Music Center in support of the SMS.