Beyond Florence Price: The Students and Circle Who Carried the Legacy

In the renewed recognition of Florence Price, the first African American woman to have a symphony performed by a major American orchestra, much of the attention has understandably been on her own works. Yet Price’s influence extended well beyond her compositions.

Through teaching, mentoring, and collaboration, she shaped a network of musicians who continued her legacy in their own distinctive voices.

One of the most prominent figures from her circle was Margaret Bonds, who as a teenager studied piano with Price in Chicago. Bonds would go on to become one of the most important Black women composers of the mid-20th century, writing songs, choral works, and orchestral pieces that combined classical craft with African American musical idioms.

Her partnership with Langston Hughes produced art songs of enduring depth, such as Three Dream Portraits and The Ballad of the Brown King. Bonds carried forward not only Price’s example as a Black woman in classical music, but also her commitment to rooting composition in cultural identity.

Another close collaborator was Estella Conway Bonds, Margaret’s mother, who was both a pianist and a teacher. Estella Bonds ran one of Chicago’s cultural salons, hosting gatherings of musicians, poets, and intellectuals. For Price, who had moved to Chicago after years of professional struggle in the segregated South, the Bonds household offered connection and support. Estella Bonds helped create the environment where Florence Price’s music could be rehearsed, performed, and heard in a community context before reaching larger concert halls.

Price’s circle also included her daughter, Florence Price II, sometimes referred to as “Florence Robinson” after her marriage. Though less widely known as a performer or composer, she was active in stewarding her mother’s legacy, helping to preserve manuscripts and maintain connections with musicians who had championed her mother’s works. Her role as guardian of Price’s archive—though quieter than the achievements of Margaret Bonds—was crucial in ensuring that Price’s music would eventually be rediscovered.

Together, these figures form a constellation around Florence Price: a community of women, teachers, and collaborators who amplified her presence in a world that often sought to silence it. Their stories remind us that artistic legacies are rarely solitary. Price’s compositions may now be finding their rightful place on symphonic stages, but her influence also survives in the teaching she gave, the encouragement she offered, and the networks of resilience she helped sustain.