In Memoriam — George Gagliardi

June 1, 1947 — November 14, 2024

George Gagliardi was a prolific poet, composer, musical director, singer, musician, teacher, unapologetically Christian and dear friend to many. Born in Paris, Texas, he spent his childhood in Yonkers, New York. George attended Paris Junior College, Wayland Baptist University and North Texas State University (now UNT). He majored in music, but taught himself guitar, piano, banjo and tenor sax. 

George worked as a studio musician in Nashville and Los Angeles in the late 1980s. He worked in many capacities across the country teaching youth how to write songs, performing, creating musicals, traveling with his gospel band, New Hope, and living his life in faith in God. 

Here in Dallas, he wrote and collaborated on many musical theater productions at the Pocket Sandwich Theatre and the Undermain Theatre, where he won a Leon Rabin Award for “The Joy of Going Somewhere Definite.”

The Creative Arts Theatre and School of Arlington commissioned George to co-write a children’s musical with playwright Natalie Gaupp. He also collaborated with Gaupp for productions at Plano Children’s Theatre.

George also spent 12 years with the Spotlight Musical Theater program for adults with disabilities at Highland Park United Methodist Church, where he wrote and directed them in their own show. An award-winning documentary film, “Into the Spotlight,” was made about this endeavor.

Gospel hymn singer Cynthia Clawson recorded many of George’s songs, including “Words and Music,” nominated for a Dove Award in 1980, and “My Finest Hour,” the title track on her Grammy-nominated album. In 2018, he won an Artist Music Guild Heritage Award for Song of the Year, “The Man I Love Is Gone.” 

In recent years George performed in numerous groups, including Matt Tolentino’s Singapore Slingers, the Mark McKenzie Jazz Quartet, Dave Washburn’s Three Quarters Fast Jazz Band, the Dallas Banjo Band, the AChord Trio, New Song Community Choir and the Wilshire Winds at Wilshire Baptist Church.  

As a longtime member at Wilshire Baptist, George shared his talent and faith, including performing original pieces in worship, writing musicals for children, acting in the church’s Faith in 3D productions and presenting solo concerts. 

His faith sustained and inspired him not only in church but with everyone that he met. George had a multitude of friends and acquaintances from all walks of life and from all over the country and of all places from bus stops to Nashville and LA producers.

He never got a drivers’ license and got rides from everyone who agreed or took public transportation. He made many of his friends in Dallas that way.

A Memorial Service and Celebration was held on Monday, Jan. 27 at 1:30 p.m.

Memorial gifts may be made in his honor. Contact Wilshire Baptist Church, 4316 Abrams Rd., Dallas, Texas, 75214, wilshirebc.org. for more information.