David Friedrich Dallwitz (25 October 1914 – 24 March 2003) was a South Australian

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

and classical musician, bandleader, composer, painter, and art teacher whose work spanned almost seven decades. He led jazz, Dixieland, and ragtime bands, and performed with classical chamber music groups.

Biography

Dallwitz was born in

Freeling, South Australia Freeling is a small town in South Australia, about 60 km north of Adelaide. It neighbours the Barossa Valley wine region. At the 2016 census, Freeling had a population of 2,214. Description Freeling is in the Light Regional Council, the s ...

. He studied violin as a child. After moving with his family to Adelaide in 1930, he developed an aptitude for jazz piano. From 1933 to 1935, he studied concurrently at the

South Australian School of Art The University of South Australia (UniSA) is a public research university in the Australian state of South Australia. It is a founding member of the Australian Technology Network of universities, and is the largest university in South Australi ...

and the North Adelaide School of Fine Art.

Music career

He led the Southern Jazz Group, a

Dixieland Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ( ...

band that performed at the first Australian Jazz Convention. He abandoned jazz for a period, during which he studied at the

Elder Conservatorium of Music The Elder Conservatorium of Music, also known as "The Con", is Australia's senior academy of music and is located in the centre of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. It is named in honour of its benefactor, Sir Thomas Elder. Dating in ...

, composing symphonic and

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...

and taking up

bassoon The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...

and cello. He became involved in composing and arranging music for

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...

s, leading to the formation of the Flinders Street Revue Company, for which he also directed and played piano. He returned to jazz in 1970 and resumed recording shortly after. He worked with Australian progressive musicians such as

John Sangster John Grant Sangster (17 November 1928 – 26 October 1995) was an Australian jazz composer, arranger and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as a composer although he also worked with Graeme Bell, Humphrey Lyttelton and Don Burrows. H ...

, Bob Barnard, and Len Barnard. He also led the Dave Dallwitz Ragtime Ensemble. Dallwitz died on 24 March 2003 in Adelaide, after finishing the art work for his album ''The Dave Dallwitz Big Band live at Wollongong, December 1984''. This album was the result of the band's second appearance at the Australian Jazz Convention in Wollongong in 1984 and was mastered and co-produced by trumpeter Greg Englert, who was lead trumpet for the concert.

Art career

In 1940, Dallwitz joined the

Royal South Australian Society of Arts The South Australian Society of Arts was a society for artists in South Australia, later with a royal warrant renamed The Royal South Australian Society of Arts in 1935. History A meeting of persons interested in the formation of a society for the ...

as an associate member, full membership being the preserve of followers of conservative styles. In July 1942 the associate members held an exhibition in the Society's gallery on North Terrace of

modern art Modern art includes artistic work produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the styles and philosophies of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the tradi ...

, which drew local and interstate interest. He was involved in the formation in 1942 of the South Australian branch of the

Contemporary Art Society The Contemporary Art Society (CAS) is an independent charity that champions the collecting of outstanding contemporary art and craft for UK museum collections. Since its founding in 1910 the organisation has donated over 10,000 works to museums ...

, which identified with progressive modes of art, becoming its foundation chairman. Dallwitz taught technical drawing subjects (drafting, dimensioned sketching, lettering) at Thebarton Boys Technical School (known as ‘Thebbie Tech’). He taught at

Adelaide Technical High School Glenunga International High School (GIHS), formerly Glenunga High School (GHS), is a publicly-funded international school in Adelaide, South Australia. It is located approximately south-east of the Adelaide city centre in the suburb of Glenun ...

from around 1954 to 1964, where he introduced painting, drawing and history of art to replace the old technical drawing subjects. He then lectured in Art History and drawing at the School of Art until 1974. In 1974 he quit teaching and turned to painting and printmaking. His range of subjects was extensive (landscapes, portraits, still life) and he presented many one-man exhibitions.

Personal life

Dallwitz married art student Joan Rowe on 14 April 1938. Their home at Seacliff, South Australia, became known as the ‘Jazz House’ and as a gathering place for artists and musicians. They had two children, John (born 3 March 1941) and Julie (born 12 February 1947).

Awards and honors

In 1986 he was appointed an

Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

for contributions to music, and the same year a plaque bearing his name was installed on North Terrace, Adelaide as part of the Jubilee 150 celebrations. In 1994 he was honoured by a retrospective exhibition at the Art Gallery of South Australia. His work hangs in the Art Gallery of South Australia and the

National Gallery of Australia The National Gallery of Australia (NGA), formerly the Australian National Gallery, is the national art museum of Australia as well as one of the largest art museums in Australia, holding more than 166,000 works of art. Located in Canberra in th ...

and the

University of South Australia The University of South Australia (UniSA) is a public research university in the Australian state of South Australia. It is a founding member of the Australian Technology Network of universities, and is the largest university in South Australi ...

Partial discography

As leader

* ''Melbourne Suite'' ( Swaggie, 1973) * ''Ern Malley Suite'' (Swaggie, 1975) * ''Creation Suite: In the Beginning'' * ''Ragtime Fantasy No. 4''

As composer

* ''Ned Kelly Suite: Dawn over Euroa'' – Bob Barnard

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dallwitz, Dave 1914 births 2003 deaths 20th-century Australian musicians 20th-century Australian male artists 20th-century pianists Australian art teachers Australian jazz pianists Dixieland revivalist pianists Ragtime musicians Officers of the Order of Australia Stomp Off artists Australian male painters Australian mid-20th century modern painters