Merrifield, Norman L.
(born: 1906 - died: 1997)Norman L. Merrifield, a music teacher, was born in Louisville, KY, the son of Clarence and Henrietta Merrifield. The family moved to Indianapolis, IN in 1913.
Norman was a graduate of Northwestern University with a bachelor's and master's in music education. He was a bandmaster while enlisted in the U.S. Army and attended the Army Band School. He taught at Fisk University, at public schools in Tennessee, at Florida A&M, and at a high school in Indianapolis.
Merrifield also published spiritual arrangements and published a number of articles. Some artists influenced by Merrifield's teaching were Bobby Womack, James "J.J." Johnson, and LaVerne Newsome.
For more see "Norman L. Merrifield" in Biographical Dictionary of Afro-American and African Musicians, by E. Southern; and the Norman Merrifield Oral History Interview within the African American Personal Papers at the Indiana Historical Society.