For over four decades, the Community Music Center of Houston (CMCH) has kept the spirit of Black music alive in classrooms, sanctuaries and performance halls across the city.
CMCH is where legacy meets voice, history is sung and generations come together to learn, perform and pass it on.
Founded in 1979 by Patricia Johnson and Ron Scales as the “Society for the Preservation of Spirituals,” the organization was born out of the Black church and the realization that vital cultural treasures such as American Negro Spirituals were fading.
The effort to reclaim and preserve Black musical heritage took root with support from the music ministry at Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church, including engaged church members such as the late Reverend William A. Lawson, who soon became a part of the new advisory board.
By 1981, the organization had grown in vision and was renamed the Community Music Center of Houston. It began its first programming at the historic Blue Triangle YWCA in Houston’s Third Ward, where HISD teacher Charles Russ volunteered to teach music to children. The focus on youth instruction and community performance continues to define CMCH’s approach today.
CMCH’s early leadership helped shape its direction. Dorceal Duckens served as the first executive director, followed by Dr. Robert Henry, who introduced opera into the center’s offerings. But it was in 1983 that conductor and violinist Dr. Anne Lundy took the helm, bringing with her a dream of building a Black orchestra.
“I grew up being the only Black kid in orchestras. Even as a child, I was looking at conductors and thinking, ‘I can do that.’ I just never saw anyone who looked like me doing it.” After earning multiple degrees in music, she discovered a world of classical music by Black composers that was never taught in her formal education,” Lundy says. “I had three degrees in music and had never heard of William Dawson, Florence Price, or Margaret Bonds. I had to go dig that history out myself.”
Her chance encounter with Ron Scales around 1981 solidified her place at CMCH. “Ron had this gift for seeing things that others couldn’t. I told him I wanted to build a Black orchestra, and instead of brushing it off, he said, ‘That’s a great idea. Who can we call?”
Lundy became executive director and later music director, forming the Scott Joplin Chamber Orchestra (SJCO) under CMCH in 1983. The ensemble, made up primarily of African American musicians, offered three goals: to provide a space for Black instrumentalists to perform, to elevate the work of Black composers and to be a visible, inspirational presence in the community.
“We performed Handel’s Messiah that first year and the support from churches was overwhelming,” Lundy recalls. “Black churches were the lifeblood of this orchestra. Without them, we wouldn’t have survived.”
In 1989, Lundy made history as the first Black woman to conduct the Houston Symphony Orchestra, in a joint concert featuring William Dawson’s Negro Folk Symphony. “At the time, they had no Black members,” she says. “That moment was symbolic. It told people that yes, we belong on these stages.”
It wasn’t long before people like Tweed Smith, a powerhouse vocalist and the only female member of the internationally acclaimed band WAR, became part of CMCH’s evolving story as an instructor.
“I had just come off the road, moved back to Houston with my two-year-old son and I was searching for something meaningful,” Smith says. “One day, I was walking and saw the Community Music Center. They were holding auditions. It felt like the universe was calling me in.”
She auditioned and was cast in a show alongside the legendary Jewel Brown, the only living member of Louis Armstrong’s band.
“That moment blew me away,” Smith said. “I had just come from New York, where Ruth Brown told me, ‘You go back to Houston and find Jewel Brown.’ And there she was, starring in that show. I knew I was meant to be here.”
Smith quickly became a key voice in CMCH’s vocal programs and outreach. “They put me to work immediately as a vocal coach,” she says. “I’ve taught hundreds of people to use their voices, not just to sing, but to speak, to lead, to stand tall in their identity.”
She believes CMCH’s real power lies in its commitment to intergenerational learning. “We keep building bridges between old school and new school. You can’t appreciate hip-hop until you understand other genres of music and CMCH makes those connections come alive.”
Today, CMCH programs continue to expand that mission. From the Intermezzo Singers and Ebony Brass to the Jazz at the Crossroads series and Dancing in the Streets, CMCH continues to mentor and feature a wide range of Black musical traditions.
The Youth Vocal Program, launched in 2019, trains young artists to sing in the style of legendary R&B groups like Destiny’s Child and Boyz II Men. The youth version of the SJCO, launched in 2013, gives young instrumentalists an opportunity to explore classical music through the lens of Black heritage.
“The challenge is to maintain interest in art and music, even old music, to keep it fresh and new in our youth, even when they haven’t been exposed to it,” Smith said. “Our youth are not losing their interest in music of the past, but more people need to spark their curiosity.”
