William Dawson Jr is an alumnus of the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia where he studied with world renowned concert pianist, Rudolf Serkin. He went on to earn his Graduate Degree in Music at Yale University where he studied piano with John Kirkpatrick and Composition. He earned his Bachelor Degree at Wheaton College (IL). Dawson has appeared as soloist with major symphony orchestras including an NPR national broadcast with the Boston Pops and Arthur Fiedler, the Florida Philharmonic in Miami and the Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de Mexico. He has played recitals and given master classes all over the United States, Switzerland, Japan, Republic of China and Latin America. Gian Carlo Menotti invited Dawson to perform at the Spoleto Festival in Italy. His chamber music concerts include performances with members of the Miami String Quartet, Anne Williams, Principal Cellist with the Pittsburgh Symphony and Daniel Majeske, late Concertmaster of the Cleveland Orchestra.
He is Professor Emeritus at Miami Dade College and is a founder of the New World School of the Arts in Miami where he was assistant to the Dean, John Delancie, former Director of the Curtis Institute of Music and Principal Oboist with the Philadelphia Orchestra. Dawson was co-founder of the Escuela de Música J.S. Bach in Mérida, Yucatán and has served as Visiting Professor at the Universidad del Valle in Guatemala City and the Conservatorio Victoriano Lopez in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. In 1994 the BiNational Symphony Orchestra premiered Dawson’s composition “Suite Chichen Itza” which was performed at that archaeological zone in Yucatan, Mexico. This work was performed and recorded in Miami by Grammy nominated Mexican conductor, Eduardo Diazmuñoz. The Instituto de Cultura in Yucatan produced a CD of Dawson’s “Trilogía Yucateca” for Soprano, Strings & Piano. In addition, Dawson has composed numerous songs based on poetry and traditional themes of the Yucatan. In recognition of his bi-national cultural achievements Dawson received various official honors and awards from the University of Yucatan, the State of Yucatan, Mexico and the U.S. State Department.
The Florida State Music Teachers Association named Dawson Commissioned Composer of the Year 2007. The Southwest Florida Symphony commissioned Dawson to compose choral music in 2008. At the invitation of Metropolitan Opera conductor, Maestro Paul Nadler, Dawson’s songs were performed in a New York concert in 2017 at the at the International Vocal Arts Institute. Dawson’s latest project is the setting of poetry by Peter Meinke, Florida Poet Laureate to music. Performances of these works have been scheduled throughout the state. His music has been published by Augsburg-Fortress. He is presently President of the Music Foundation of SW Florida.
