Walter Dyett

Walter Henri Dyett (also known as Captain Walter Henri Dyett; January 11, 1901 – November 17, 1969) was an American violinist and music educator in the Chicago Public Schools system. He served as music director and assistant music director at Chicago's predominantly African-American high schools; Wendell Phillips High School and DuSable High School. Dyett served as musical director at DuSable High School from its opening in 1935 until 1962. He trained many students who became professional musicians.

Walter Dyett
Dyett (cira. 1958)
Born	Walter Henri Dyett January 11, 1901[1] Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Died	November 17, 1969(1969-11-17) (aged 68) Chicago, Illinois
Nationality	American
Education	University of California, Berkeley VanderCook College of Music
Occupation(s)	Violinist, music educator
Years active	1931–62
Known for	Music director at DuSable High School Music director at Phillips High School

Career

After studying pre-medical courses at University of California, Berkeley, Dyett returned to his home town of Chicago, where he worked in vaudeville orchestras and directed an Army band, after which he was known as Captain Dyett. In 1931, he became assistant musical director and later musical director at Wendell Phillips High School in Chicago and, in 1935, moved to DuSable High School when it opened.^[2] He received his B.M. degree at VanderCook College of Music (Chicago) in 1938, and his M.M. degree at the Chicago Musical College in 1942.

DuSable High School

Students

Among the musicians who studied in Dyett's program are:

• Gene Ammons
• Fred Below^[3]
• Ronnie Boykins
• Oscar Brashear^[4]
• Homer Brown
• Wilbur Campbell^[5]
• Sonny Cohn
• Nat King Cole
• Jerome Cooper
• Richard Davis
• Bo Diddley
• Dorothy Donegan
• Jimmy Ellis^[6]
• George Freeman
• Von Freeman
• John Gilmore
• Bennie Green
• Johnny Griffin^[5][7]
• Eddie Harris
• Johnny Hartman
• Milt Hinton (at Phillips)
• Fred Hopkins
• Joseph Jarman
• Leroy Jenkins
• Clifford Jordan
• Claude McLin^[5]
• Jesse Miller^[8]
• John E. Myatt
• Pat Patrick
• Walter Perkins
• Julian Priester
• Wilbur Ware
• Dinah Washington
• John Young^[9]
• Redd Foxx

• Red Holloway

Death/Legacy

Dyett died on November 17, 1969, aged 68.^[10] He is commemorated by Dyett High School, a Chicago public high school located in the Washington Park neighborhood in Chicago.^[11][12]

Bibliography

• "DU SABLE HIGH MUSIC CHIEF A STAR MAKER by Roi Ottley - Chicago Daily Tribune (1872-1963); Jan 9, 1960; pg. B12" for more biographical information.
• An Autobiobraphy of Black Jazz by Dempsey J. Travis (1983)

References

1. JIC:Captain Walter Henri Dyett
2. "Home". publishpath.com. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
3. Fred Below — Magic Maker, an article of September 1983 by Scott K. Fish, which includes an in-depth interview with Fred Below, published in the Modern Drummer website (retrieved August 24, 2018)
4. Feather, Leonard & Gitler, Ira The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz Oxford University Press US, 2007 ISBN 9780195320008
5. "The Claude McLin Discography". clemson.edu. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
6. Grossman, Ron (16 February 2017). "How Capt. Dyett turned DuSable's young musicians into stars". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
7. Ratliff, Ben (26 July 2008). "Johnny Griffin, 80, Jazz Saxophonist, Dies". New York Times. Retrieved 30 July 2021. Johnny Griffin, a tenor saxophonist from Chicago whose speed, control and harmonic acuity made him one of the most talented American jazz musicians of his generation yet who spent most of his career in Europe, died Friday at his home in Availles-Limouzine, a village in France.
8. Campbell, Robert L. and Christopher Trent, and Robert Pruter "From Sonny Blount to Sun Ra: The Chicago Years" Retrieved 6 July 2013.
9. "John Young: Biography". allmusic.com.
10. "Saluting Capt. Walter Dyett". chicagotribune.com. 21 August 2013. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
11. Walter H. Dyett High School
12. Thornton, Linda (1 April 2006). The Chicago High Schools Report Card: A Guide to Finding the Right School for Your Child (Rev and Updated ed.). Chicago Review Press. p. 182. ISBN 9781556526923. Retrieved 19 February 2017 – via Internet Archive. walter h dyett.