Everett Lee

Everett Lee (August 31, 1916 – January 12, 2022) was an American conductor and violinist. He was the first African-American to conduct a Broadway musical. He was also the first African-American to conduct a performance by a major US opera company. In September 1945, he became the main conductor of the musical On the Town. He later conducted at Tanglewood. He served as director of Columbia University's opera department in the early 1950s.

Lee was born in Wheeling, West Virginia. In 1927, he moved with his parents to Cleveland, Ohio. He married Sylvia Olden Lee in 1944. The couple later divorced. He later married his second wife. He lived in Sweden. He turned 100 in 2016.

Lee died on January 12, 2022, in Malmö, Sweden. He was 105.

References

Category:1916 births
Category:2022 deaths
Category:African-American musicians
Category:American centenarians
Category:American conductors
Category:American pianists
Category:American violinists
Category:Musicians from Cleveland
Category:Musicians from West Virginia