From the Big Apple to Africa: Ms. Nkeba’s Sabbatical

If you go onto Google and look up the name William H. Eaton, you won’t find much, at most an article about a soldier in the First Barbary War. While few in the Gilman community may be familiar with William H. “Bill” Eaton, he is one of the most influential artists of the late 20th century. Starting as a music arranger, he went on to become a music director and eventually co-founded Antisia Records, a record label. Throughout his career, he collaborated with the likes of Harry Belafonte, the King of Calypso, and Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, and was also personal friends with Ray Charles and Quincy Jones. Although his work has not been documented until now, he has written countless songs and jingles, which many people from his time easily recognize. Another fun fact: he is the uncle of Upper School Music Teacher Cheryl Nkeba.

Starting in January of 2024, Ms. Nkeba embarked on a six-month sabbatical, travelling across continents, speaking to experts, and combing through records and books in order to, as she put it,  “share his story with the world.” Though he was one very influential composer, his work has never been properly and fully cataloged, and thus, while many people know his works, they do not know him. She also planned to integrate the research she has done into the Gilman Music History curriculum. 

To accomplish this, she first traveled to New York to interview her uncle and conduct research in the New York Public Libraries as well as the Schoenberg Center for Research in Black Culture. During her time in New York, she also conducted interviews with musicians mentored by Eaton, as well as arrangers and composers from his career. She then travelled to Africa “to trace his musical journey," as during his time working with Harry Belafonte, he often performed in Africa. Overall, Ms. Nkeba gave a glowing, comprehensive review of this experience, describing her sabbatical as a “life-saving event.”

Ms. Nkeba is also incredibly thankful for the opportunity that Gilman has given her, saying, “I feel extremely blessed to have had the opportunity to hear first hand from uncle Bill about his music and career; to meet many of his musical friends and to learn of his significant influence on American music culture through his work with major musicians including Harry Belanfante, Aretha Franklin, Grover Washington, Jr. and many others.”

From her six months of hard work researching, cataloging, and uncovering previously unknown information, Ms. Nkeba produced a plethora of work that benefits both the Gilman community and the greater world. Perhaps most importantly, she has created a comprehensive discography of her uncle, finally allowing his complete set of works to be documented together. This collection will help reveal the full impact of William’s work by putting it all in one place and attributing it to him. To further increase his notoriety, Ms. Nkeba has been working with Brian Choo ‘14 to create a Wikipedia page for him. She also produced a documentary cataloguing the life and works of her uncle. 

Ms. Nkeba’s extensive research will improve her teaching, too.. She has incorporated her research within her Music History class to better educate her students. Furthermore, she plans to share Eaton’s work with the community through the Gilman Jazz Band, which will play two of his pieces at the Winter Concert. Clearly, her sabbatical has been a resounding success, allowing her to improve her curriculum and expand the world's knowledge of William H. Eaton.