Mattiwilda Dobbs
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Mattiwilda Dobbs was an American coloratura soprano and was one of the first black singers to enjoy a major international career in opera. She was the first black singer to perform at La Scala in Ital
Dobbs in 1957
Mattiwilda Dobbs (1955) Photo by Carl Van Vechten
Spelman College
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Spelman College is a private, historically Black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It is a founding member of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium. Founded
Mattiwilda Dobbs
…and educator June Dobbs Butts (1928–2019). Dobbs began piano lessons at the age of seven, and sang in community and church choirs. Dobbs attended Spelman College where she studied home economics and considered becoming a fashion designer. Her teachers encouraged her to study music, however, and she began to study…
Harriet E. Giles and Sophia B. Packard began Spelman College
Spelman College c. 1910
Spelman College sign in 2025
Museum of Fine Art