The life of a great musician is always interesting, but the story of Hazel Harrison is exceptional. Her achievement was particularly impressive because she had been schooled entirely at home and was the first black pianist, male or female, to perform with a major European orchestra. Harrison's extraordinarily long and impressive performing career spanned more than half a century, from the days when Brahms was still alive and Stravinsky had not yet composed The Rite of Spring to the time of the civil rights struggle in the deep South.