Jacoby, Don, 1920-1992

Donald Bernard "Jake" Jacoby was born on May 28, 1920 in York, Pennsylvania. He began playing trumpet at age 6, and became a soloist with the Spring Garden Band at age 9; he appeared on radio stations WCAU in Philadelphia and WJZ in New York. At age 16, he studied with Ernest S. Williams at his School of Music in Brooklyn, New York. By the time he graduated at age 19, he had been a soloist at Carnegie Hall. After graduating, he joined the Milt Britton band, and then the Les Brown band. Jacoby joined the Navy at age 22, and led his own band while stationed at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station north of Chicago. He also appeared on Armed Forces Radio Service series recordings including Command Performance and Mail Call, and performed with Sam Donahue And The Navy Band. After the war, he relocated to the Chicago area full-time to rejoin the Les Brown band, and also played with Benny Goodman. He became a soloist first for the ABC network in Chicago, followed by NBC and CBS, and became a clinician for the C.G. Conn musical instrument company. Jacoby toured extensively, playing with numerous groups and performers, including Tommy Dorsey and Woody Herman. He moved to Dallas by the late 1960s, served as president of the American Federation of Musicians Local 147, and taught numerous trumpet players in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, including many who studied jazz at what is now the University of North Texas. He later moved to Denton, and published a method book in 1990. Don Jacoby died in Denton on December 25, 1992.