Ted Dunbar, a self-taught guitarist, later became an instructor. His witty riffs, taut solos and accompaniments have been used in jazz-rock, soul-jazz and hard bop. Dunbar was a Texas Southern trumpeter and guitarist in the late ’50s. Arnett Cobb, Don Wilkerson and Joe Turner were his colleagues. Dunbar played and studied with Dave Baker at Indiana, often substituting for Wes Montgomery. In the middle of the 1960s, he moved to New York and recorded and performed with Gil Evans, Tony Williams’ Lifetime, and Frank Foster. He worked with Sonny Rollins and Ron Carter, Billy Harper and Roy Haynes. Before joining Livingston College’s (Rutgers), faculty in 1972, he was involved with Billy Taylor’s Jazzmobile project, New Jazz Repertory Co. and the National Jazz Ensemble. Dunbar recorded sessions with Muse and Xanadu, and he also wrote many books about jazz harmony and guitar.
