After Rejecting W.E.B. Du Bois In The 1800s, Harvard Choir Will Now Pay Tribute To Him

A Harvard University choir group that rejected author W.E.B. Du Bois when he was a student in the 1800s because he was black will celebrate his work through a musical tribute.

The Harvard Glee Club will perform a concert inspired by Du Bois' 1903 book "The Souls of Black Folk" on Saturday at the Ivy League school's Cambridge campus.

The book begins its chapters with musical notations from black spirituals alongside European poems. The concert will feature some of the same spirituals alongside European choral pieces.

Last year marked the 150th anniversary of Du Bois' birth in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. In 1895, He became the first black student to earn a doctorate from Harvard.

While at Harvard, Du Bois auditioned for the Glee Club but was turned away by the all-white group.