Henry Lee Grant
*Henry Lee Grant was born on this date in 1886. He was a Black music educator and administrator.
He was born in Washington, DC. He studied music with his father, Henry F. Grant, who was head of the music department in segregated schools. Grant taught music briefly at Livingstone College in Salisbury, NC, before returning to Washington, DC, to teach at Dunbar HS in 1917. Duke Ellington studied harmony and piano with Grant.
Other students include Dr. Billy Taylor and Billy Eckstine. Ellington kept in close touch with Grant for the remainder of his life and took him on a tour with his band. Grant conducted several professional choirs and was the choirmaster at several D.C. churches. He also taught privately and at the Washington Conservatory of Music.
Grant co-founded the National Association of Negro Musicians in 1919 and was a past president. Henry Grant died on March 23, 1954.
