Anna Madah Hyers

Anna Madah Hyers was regarded as the first black woman to enter the concert world. She paved the way for many prosperous black concert singers like Marian Anderson, Paul Robeson, and Leontyne Price.

Born in Sacramento, California in 1856, Hyers spent much of her childhood studying music with her father, Sam Hyers, a musician, and with German music professor Hugo Sank. Together they transformed Hyers' immature soprano voice into an angelic powerhouse.

In 1867, Hyers made her professional debut at the Metropolitan Theater in Sacramento with her younger sister Emma Louise. Because the sisters shared the same talent, they would occasionally sing duets. Their performances were a success and ensured them a leading position among the prima donnas of the age. In 1871, the Hyers sisters performed their first major recital.

The Salt Lake Theater in Utah welcomed them along with baritone Joseph LeCount. Anna's soprano, Emma's alto tenor and LeCount's baritone sounded so riveting in harmony that they left the audience wanting more. Soon after the successful recital in Salt Lake City, the Hyers sisters were encouraged to launch a national tour. Following the tour, they formed the Hyers Sisters Concert Company, which performed concert music and staged musical comedies. Some of the most recognized productions were "Out of Bondage" (1875), "Urlina, or The African Princess" (1877), and "Colored Aristocracy" and "The Underground Railroad," which were both introduced in 1879. The production company faded after her younger sister Emma's death in 1899. Yet Anna continued singing and touring the United States with other production companies until her retirement in 1902. She died in Sacramento, California of a heart ailment in 1925.

Info: Pittsburgh Post Gazette, by Angela Dyer (March 1999), Photo: Stella Wiley's Scrapbook