Rudolph Dunbar

Rudolph Dunbar
Rudolph Dunbar, ca. 1920
Background information
Born(1907-11-26)26 November 1907
Nabacalis, British Guiana
Died10 June 1988(1988-06-10) (aged 80)
London, United Kingdom
GenresClassical, jazz
Occupation(s)Conductor, musician, composer, journalist
Instrument(s)Clarinetist, and composer

Rudolph Dunbar (26th November 1907[1][2] – 10 June 1988) was a Guyanese conductor, clarinetist, and composer, as well as being a jazz musician of note in the 1920s.[3] Leaving British Guiana at the age of 20, he had settled in England by 1931, and subsequently worked in other parts of Europe but lived most of his later years in London. Among numerous "firsts", he was the first black man to conduct the London Philharmonic Orchestra (1942), the first black man to conduct the Berlin Philharmonic (1945) and the first black man to conduct orchestras in Poland (1959) and Russia (1964).[4] Dunbar also worked as a journalist and a war correspondent.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference AAR was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Rye, Howard (23 September 2004). "Dunbar, Rudolph (1907-1988)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/74922. Retrieved 5 February 2024. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  3. ^ Rudolph Dunbar profile, British Jazz History, Jazz Services.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference BPM was invoked but never defined (see the help page).