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POLAND -- David S. Morgan, 68, of Poland, Ohio, died peacefully at his home on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026. Near him were his wife, Martha Ruth (McCorkle) Morgan, and his son, Benjamin S. Morgan.
Born Sept. 10, 1957, Dave was the son of Charles R. Morgan and Patricia (Strickland) Morgan and brother of Jane (Morgan) Sapienza (Michael).
A native of Parma, Ohio, Dave began his musical career playing bass around northeast Ohio as a young man. After finishing undergrad at the University of Texas at Austin, Dave entered their master's program in music theory and received his PhD in composition from UT Austin in 1996.
Dave's impact on students, colleagues and music lovers is a tribute to his gifts. His creativity, compositions and love of improvisation lay at the heart of all his projects. After teaching and working in Austin as a musician, he returned to Ohio in 1994 and taught for several years at Tri-C and the Oberlin Conservatory before beginning his 25-year tenure at YSU. Dave was a member of the Jazz Unit, Cleveland Jazz Orchestra and played regularly at the Bop Stop and across the region. As a composer, he shared his creative spirit through innumerable projects, concerts and recordings.
Dave remained an inquisitive learner and influential teacher throughout his life. His unquenchable curiosity and pursuit of new ways of thinking informed both his music and his deeply personal spirituality. From varied sources, he developed a path that was beautifully unique. A man of few words, he was a keen observer, drew inspiration from the world around him and worked with each player's potential in mind. Dave knew the power of being quiet and listening. He knew how to encourage and excite his students, colleagues and listeners.
We miss his smile already, but he will forever be with all of us whom he touched as a husband, father, musician, composer, friend and mentor.
Professional arrangements are being handled by Higgins-Reardon Funeral Homes, Poland Chapel.
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