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The Eva Jessye collection contains the personal papers and collected material of Eva Jessye, the first Black woman to be internationally recognized as a professional choral director. Jessye was also a composer, arranger, writer, poet, actress and African American Music historian. Born in Coffeyville, Kansas in 1895, Jessye gained prominence as the conductor for Original Dixie Jubilee Singers, and as choral director for Gertrude Stein and Virgil Thomson's opera Four Saints in Three Acts. Jessye was the choral director for the original production (and many subsequent productions) of Porgy and Bess. The collection includes both materials from Jessye's personal and professional life as well as collected material which documents prominent Black Americans.

The Eva Jessye Collection contains Jessye's personal papers as well as materials she collected. Materials include Jessye's personal notes and a travel diary, as well as her production writings, poetry, and speeches, personal and professional correspondence, collected articles, reviews and programs, as well as family photographs, production and publicity shots.

Willis C. Patterson, the first African American professor at the University of Michigan's School of Music, was an active faculty member from 1968 to 1999. He was a professor of voice and associate dean for academic affairs. Patterson directed the Men's Glee Club from 1969 and 1975 and spent summers as a faculty member at the National Music Camp at Interlochen, Michigan. While maintaining an active concert career and fulfilling teaching duties, Patterson organized a Black American Music Symposium and compiled several works on African American composers. Patterson played an active role in securing funding and mentorship for students of color and disadvantaged students both at Michigan and in the Ann Arbor community. The collection includes some biographical material, but focuses mainly on his professional career, musical career, and collection of works by African American composers. It includes correspondence, research, photographs, clippings, publications, and topical files.

The Willis C. Patterson papers include some biographical material, but focuses mainly on his professional career, musical career, and collection of works by African American composers. The collection includes correspondence, publications and research material, photographic material, posters, student records, clippings, and topical files.