The Jazz Journalists Association has recognized Dr. Harry Clark as a “Jazz Hero” - and he will be given this national award on Duke Ellington’s Birthday, Sunday, April 28th at Alphabet City in Pittsburgh

Dr. Harry Clark's Jazz Hero Award presentation: 
April 28 6-8:30pm Off Minor Jazz Series:  Duke Ellington’s 120th birthday
Alphabet City
40 W. North Avenue
Pittsburgh PA 15212

At WZUM, we celebrate with Marty Ashby, VP & Executive Producer of MCG Jazz as we welcome Dr. Harry Clark as a guest host for the MCG Jazz Spotlight

Dr. Harry D. Clark was instrumental in founding the Pittsburgh High School for the Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA), the first public arts high school in western Pennsylvania, where he served as principal.

Dr. Clark has served as president of the International Network of Performing and Visual Arts Schools, a professional arts advocacy organization with membership from schools across the United States and Canada as well as schools in the United Kingdom, South Africa, Australia and Chile.

A prominent fixture on the music scene in the Pittsburgh region since he was drum major at North Hills High School (where he was honored with the 2012 North Hills Distinguished Alumni Award). His Ph.D. in education, was awarded in 1977 from the University of Pittsburgh where he has also served for over 30 years as a member of the University of Pittsburgh’s Jazz Seminar Committee.

His recent activities include work in support the African American Jazz Preservation Society of Pittsburgh (AAJPSP); a board member of Kente Arts Alliance and co-president of the Lighthouse, Inc (A Beacon for America’s Original Art Form).

Among Dr. Clark’s musical choices for this show:

Paquito D'Rivera, as recorded at the Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild with the UN Orchestra.

Pittsburgh natives Erroll Garner and Ray Brown, the latter as featured with Oscar Peterson. Plus, the founder of the Jazz Studies program at Pitt, Dr. Nathan Davis.

And to cap it off, some spiritual sounds from the Yellowjackets featuring the vocal group Take 6

Harry Clark, with sound and stories on the MCG Jazz Spotlight, 6pm Friday and Sunday on WZUM.

Dr. Harry Clark

2019 Pittsburgh Jazz Hero

Dr. Harry D. Clark has been an essential member of Pittsburgh’s jazz community since the early 1960s, his contributions to the region’s scene arriving in several forms. Originally a drum major and trumpet player, he earned his bachelor and masters degrees in music education from Duquesne University. Upon graduation, he commenced his 30-year career as an educator in the Pittsburgh Public School system. In 1977, Clark earned his PhD. in education from the University of Pittsburgh.

Since his earliest days as a teacher, Dr. Clark has been an unwavering supporter of young people, especially musicians and artists. He solidified his place in local arts education history by founding the Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts School (CAPA) in the late 1970s, serving as its principal into the 1990s. Countless graduates from his school have become well-known artists, one being Broadway star Billy Porter. Due to CAPA, Dr. Clark went on to serve as president of the International Network of Performing and Visual Arts Schools, and also initiate new school arts programs in Virginia, Michigan, Colorado and abroad.

Serving is Dr. Clark’s way of life, and he has always looked for ways to get involved, hands-on. As a University of Pittsburgh alumnus, he has been a part of the Pitt Jazz Seminar Committee, advising on its annual jazz event for over 30 years. He has served on the board of directors for numerous non-profit organizations, including Bridgeway Capital, a community loan fund. Currently, Dr. Clark is on the board of Kente Arts Alliance; president of the African American Jazz Preservation Society of Pittsburgh; lead advisor for jazzPGH, a voluntary impact coalition of performers, presenters, and educators devoted to jazz education, awareness and community outreach, and co-president of Lighthouse Arts, Inc.

But probably most importantly, Dr. Clark is a constant presence on the Pittsburgh music scene, attending several events every week, offering encouraging words and advice to anyone in need. Such devotion is an ostensibly quiet but deeply meaningful investment in local culture -- people in the audience paying genuine attention tend to heighten the sensitivities of everyone else in attendance, and longterm if hard to quantify benefits accrue. He was honored as a “Pittsburgh Jazz Legend” by MCG Jazz in 2015 -- Pittsburgh is happy to celebrate Dr. Harry D. Clark even more broadly as our 2019 JJA Jazz Hero.

-- Thomas Wendt



Dr. Harry Clark's Jazz Hero Award presentation: 
April 28 6-8:30pm Off Minor Jazz Series:  Duke Ellington’s 120th birthday
Alphabet City
40 W. North Avenue
Pittsburgh PA 15212