Harold "Duke" Dejan 4 February 1909 - 5 July 2002) was a New Orleans jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 alto saxophonist

Saxophone

The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...

 and bandleader

Bandleader

A bandleader is the leader of a band of musicians. The term is most commonly, though not exclusively, used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or rock and roll music....

. Dejan is best remembered as leader of the Olympia Brass Band

Olympia Brass Band

The Olympia Brass Band is a New Orleans jazz brass band.The first "Olympia Brass Band" was active from the late 19th century to around World War I...

, including during the 1960s and 1970s when it was considered the top band in the city.

In his later years Dejan often appeared at Preservation Hall

Preservation Hall

Preservation Hall is a noted jazz performance hall located at 726 St. Peter Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana. It hosts nightly concerts featuring a rotating roster of bands. The bands of Preservation Hall typically perform jazz in the New Orleans style.Despite the fame of the...

. Dejan suffered a stroke in 1991, which left him unable to play the saxophone, but continued as a band leader and singer until shortly before his death.