Three generations of Dallabettas receive Muse award

The late John Leo Dallabetta, John Anthony Dallabetta and Amanda Dallabetta are the 2010 recipients of the Tribute of the Muses award given each year to someone who has a great impact on the arts in the Yuma community.

“It is amazing and I am really honored, and I think Amanda is, too,” John A. told the Yuma Sun after the 10th annual ceremony, which was held at the Yuma Art Center Wednesday night.

“I think it is phenomenal,” Amanda said.

The first annual Helios Award, which recognizes young or emerging artists or arts advocates, was also given out during the ceremony to Lia Littlewood, who teaches art to people of all ages in Yuma.

The three Dallabettas, when combined, have taught over 75 years' worth of music to music students at Yuma High School. Their Muse nominations noted they have affected thousands of students, both those who have gone on to perform music professionally and those who have not.

“There are about 77 years between the three of us in music education and that is amazing,” John A. said.

John L. took over the music program at YHS after returning to Yuma in the late 1940s and remained the director of bands there until his death in the summer of 1964. While at YHS, John L. developed a jazz band and convinced the school administration to add jazz band as a core music class, becoming the first school in the state to recognize jazz as a virtual part of the American heritage in music curriculum.

The jazz band was so renowned it was invited by the Kennedy administration in the summer of 1963 to tour overseas to entertain U.S. troops. The following year, John L. and the YHS Jazz Band were invited by President Lyndon B. Johnson to tour Europe.

John L. was accompanied by his two sons, John A. and Patrick, who performed and toured with the band. While in Paris, John L. died of a heart attack at the age of 41.

His sons, along with his students, escorted John L.'s body back home to Yuma.

His legacy did not die, however, and was passed on to John A., who has taught and contributed to the arts for the past 40 years. As a high school music teacher, he has had the opportunity to work with thousands of students. In Yuma County alone there are six music educators that have graduated from John A.'s band programs the nomination pointed out.

After retiring from the music program at Yuma High School in 2004, John A. passed along the director's baton to his daughter-in-law and former student, Amanda Dallabetta. She is married to John Grady Dallabetta, son of John A. and grandson of the late John L.

“Amanda has done a hell of a job and I couldn't have turned over the program to somebody else who could keep it alive like she has,” John A. said.

The legacy may not end there, however, as John G. and Amanda have recently given birth to son, John William Dallabetta.

Amanda hopes her son will pick up music for himself.

“I hope so,” she said with a proud smile. “He is going to play everything. That is all there is to it.”

“He is already pretty good at beating everything so he might be a drummer,” John A. said.

The Dallabettas are deserving of the Muse award, said Rex Ijams, arts and culture program manager for the Yuma Art Center.

“The Dallabettas have been nominated many times before and I think the committee that selected the recipients felt it was time to honor not only John A. but also his father John L. and his daughter-in-law Amanda, who is now carrying on this long and wonderful tradition of teaching students at Yuma High. The committee recognized the incredibly valuable work that the three generations have done and felt it was time to honor the family.”

The Dallabettas are one of a kind, Ijams said.

“It is a unique legacy to Yuma in that they have been teaching for so long at Yuma High and so well. They have innumerable awards for band and jazz band, and Amanda continues that quality of education today.”

Chris McDaniel can be reached at cmcdaniel@yumasun.com or 539-6849.