Johnson, Carlyle (1939-) | University of Illinois Archives

Carlyle Wardell Johnson (1939- ) is a music educator and clarinetist. Born and raised in Quincy, IL. While he was in middle school he played in Quincy Middle School Band under Dan Perrino, who would eventually persuade him to come to the University of Illinois. Johnson enrolled in the Illinois Summer Youth Music Program, studying tenor saxophone and clarinet. In 1957, Johnson enrolled as a music education major at the University of Illinois. He played 1st clarinet, eventually serving as first chair within the section, with the Concert Band directed by Mark Hindsley. Johnson also performed with the Marching Illini for all four years and was a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. He received his bachelor’s degree in 1961 and completed his master’s degree, also at Illinois, the following year.

After graduating, Johnson taught instrumental music in Flint, Michigan. With a growing family, he and his wife, Judith, decided to move back to Champaign to raise their children. In 1969, he began teaching at Eastern Illinois University Lab School. In 1971, he was hired to teach instrumental music at Franklin Elementary School in the Champaign Public School district. Five years later, he transitioned to Eddison Elementary School, where he would work until his retirement in 1994. During this time, Johnson also taught jazz band and worked with the woodwind instruments during the marching band season at Centennial High School. He also performed alongside his former teacher, Dan Perrino, in Medicare 7, 8, or 9 and with his own group, The New Orleans Jazz Machine. Following his retirement, Johnson began performing bass clarinet with the C-U Symphony and the Danville Symphony Orchestras.

In 2023, he received a Lifetime ACE Award from 40 North “for countless years dedicated to teaching music and entertaining audiences all over Champaign-Urbana and beyond.”

Carlyle Johnson Bio, Champaign County African American Heritage, online at https://ccafricanamericanheritage.org/carlyle-johnson/.

"Studio Visit: Carlyle Johnson of Champaign," The Champaign News-Gazette (April 25, 2010), online at: https://www.news-gazette.com/arts-entertainment/studio-visit-carlyle-johnson-of-champaign/article_1fd91acf-0808-5ce4-80e3-05485131f759.html.

Illio Yearbook, 1961.

"Lifetime ACE Award - Carlyle Johnson," YouTube, (December 8, 2023) online at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DThePfPc5A

Gary Lewis, "All That Jazz: Former Champaign Teacher Can't Stop the Music," Champaign School District (August 1, 2023), online at: https://www.roe9.k12.il.us/article/1186485.