Honoring the Memory
of Those
We Love

There must be truth in Nice guys get all the good stuff- Clearly, 97 years of loving music was Ted's reward- It never occurred to me, or our other clarinet/sax friends that Mr. Jeannette could be a Theodore- obviously likely, but never, ever, ever, did it cross my mind. Ted taught me about clarinet and a bit of sax from about 1968-1972. His efforts got me into the 'good' band at Baldwin High school, and then later into both the CMU honors bands and the State bands, whatever called. Also, I got to play in a kick-ass clarinet section, along with Rick Barnes and Jim Webber, other Ted students- both better than I was. And a few others as well. Band was then a big part of our lives. Ted once took Rick and me to some jazz ensemble performance somewhere in Pittsburgh, and then later to one of his favorite Pizza joints. The last of that pizza still lingers in my memory- best ever. The times in his basement studio, with the dog wandering in every now and then were a combination of humor, torture (probably for both of us), gabbing, gossip, war stories, culture, humanity. He was just a lovely human being. I owe to him a lifelong love of music and also enough competence that now at age 67, 60 years after I first picked up a misery stick (my first was a steel one that my uncle gave/abandoned to me), I still play almost every night- mostly clarinet, but now over the last few years, Sax- both alto and tenor, which were easy for me to pick up. I still hear his voice in my head- "Man, you are just one square cat. Can't you even feel the off-beat in that jazz crack?" He called us 'patatahs,' and other such lovely pejoratives. But my favorite times were when we would play the duet parts of our lessons. Just playing with such a master still brings water to my eyes. Loved that guy. (If you other Jeannettes are still reading these notes, and if you are looking to re-home, for a fair price, any of his horns, I'd be honored to be considered.) (apologies for such a late note, but I only learned of Ted's longevity and death recently at the wedding of a child of one of Ted's best students ever.)

I grew up next door to the Jeanette's in a home my grandfather built. Lisa was our babysitter and Mr. Jeanette was my clarinet teacher. In fact, he got me my first clarinet...a wooden one..."only the best for you Jeaneen" I was told. And so week after week through grade school I would walk next door for my lesson. Little did I know way back then that learning to play the clarinet would pretty much save my life. Maybe not literally but pretty darn close. When I was a freshman, I was able to join Baldwin High School's marching band and I loved it. Also that year, I found out my dad was taking a new job in New Jersey and we were moving. I was leaving friends and an enormous extended family. It was awful and I was miserable. But when I started 10th grade at my new school I joined the marching band. I made a few friends and nearly 40 years later, two of those girls are my dearest friends. I was able to find something to hold onto in New Jersey that felt like Pittsburgh to me. Mr. Jeanette made that possible. We are not back in Pittsburgh as often as we'd like but I was there last weekend with my parents for a memorial. As we drove down Prospect Road, the three of us felt a little sad seeing how our home had declined from our last visit a couple of years ago, and my dad wondered out loud if the Jeanette's were still next door. A quick google search brought up this obituary and here I am. So Mrs.Jeanette, Mark and Lisa, know that we think of you when we are in town and know that your husband/father made a big impact on my life and I'm sorry I never actually told him. Know that you are all in our thoughts and prayers.

Ted taught all 3 of our children to play the clarinet(Beth) , flute ( Susie) and saxophone( Christopher) . My husband or I spent many nights waiting in the car while they took their lessons. He was a talented and lively man. Betty Orsega

Thank you for teaching about the importance of hard work and perseverance. It was always more than the music. -Matt B.

Mr. Jeannette was truly one of my favorite teachers. For eight years, he taught me how to play the alto sax, which was no small feat. The best part of Mr. Jeannette wasn't his obvious musical talent, but his sense of humor. I still have all my music books, annotated with his droll jokes and comments. He loved to tell stories, and you could often get him to spend more than half the lesson telling them, but they always seemed to be important, beyond music, and that you should store them away as tightly as possible. Some kids took advantage of his gab, but that was really his teaching. Although I haven't seen him in many years, I thought of him often. He was a great person and much loved.

My mentor and friend. Greatest music teacher anywhere. My deepest sympathies to all who loved him. Richard Long. "Straphanger"

I'm so sorry for family n didn't know him but was friends n worked with daughter Lisa. My heartfelt prayers r with family n friends.

Mark and Lisa, my sympathy many great memories of your dad. Paul Schwarm

My deepest condolences to the family. I know Ted was so deeply loved and will be terribly missed. Rest easy Ted. God bless.