Dwight Beckham

Dwight Beckham became the youngest member of the Wichita Symphony Orchestra when he was a Junior at Planeview High School. He was a charter member of the Wichita Youth Symphony. He retained his position in the Wichita Symphony Orchestra trumpet section for 25 years. He has held principal trumpet positions with several organizations and has appeared as trumpet soloist with the Wichita Musicians’ Association Concert Band, the Mid-Kansas Symphony Orchestra and the Wichita Wind Ensemble Professional Concert Band. He retired from playing trumpet in 2012 after a 64 year professional career. His bachelor and master degrees are from Wichita University.

In addition to serving as trumpet instructor at Wichita University and Bethel College, Dwight spent 30 years in the public schools of Valley Center and Newton, where his performing groups maintained a long tradition of excellence. From 1977 until his retirement in 1988, he was Newton’s District Music Coordinator.

He was a member of KNEA, NEA, KMEA, MENC and KBA. He served as clinician and adjudicator in Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri, and Oklahoma.

His works are listed on a number of graded and required lists. He studied composition with Homer Keller, Harold Moyer, Joshua Missal and Robert Marek. He was the recipient of a Kansas Arts Commission Fellowship in Music Composition.

He was inducted into the Kansas Teachers’ Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Newton High School Hall of Fame in 2003. In 1997, he was named Kansas Music Educator of the Year by the Federated Music Clubs and in 2006 he was inducted into the Kansas Music Educators’ (KMEA) Hall of Fame.

A multi-faceted musician, he made music important in the lives of hundreds of students, many of whom have gone on to distinguish themselves in the profession.