Camille Nickerson Published Creole Arrangements in 1942

Camille Nickerson published her musical arrangements in 1942, a move that formalized her contribution to Creole music. The collection, titled Five Creole Songs Harmonized and Arranged by Camille Nickerson, presented the genre for a wider audience. 64 Parishes described the work as fine examples of folk music transcription, citing its Caribbean rhythms and creative piano accompaniments.

Nickerson’s career began in the French Quarter, where she was born in 1888. She played piano with the Nickerson Ladies’ Orchestra before her teenage years. Her father directed that group, which 64 Parishes identified as the first women’s orchestra in New Orleans. She later trained at Oberlin Conservatory, the Juilliard School, and Columbia Teachers College.

After graduating from Oberlin in 1916, she performed concerts in Southern cities. The following year, she established the B-Sharp Music Club to promote Black music. She taught at Howard University from 1926 until 1962. During that tenure, she served as president of the National Association of Negro Musicians and organized the Musicians Guild of Washington, D.C.

Her international tours ran from 1941 to 1960. This period included a 1954 trip to France sponsored by the State Department. She combined these performances with lectures on Creole traditions while wearing 19th-century-style attire. Jean Bernard Cerin, a Cornell music professor, noted that she collected stories from Creole people who often felt their culture was considered inferior.

Nickerson died in 1982. Her papers were donated to Howard University, where she held the title of professor emerita until her death. Archives at Howard, Tulane University’s Amistad Research Center, and other institutions now hold documents related to her life's work in preserving Creole music.