Baltimore police have identified the man who was fatally stabbed near Leakin Park on Tuesday as John Dierker, a music teacher at Towson University and accomplished instrumentalist in his own right.
A witness was driving on North Franklintown Road on Tuesday afternoon when they stopped to check on a person whom they saw lying on the ground next to a bicycle near the Winans Meadow trailhead of the Gwynns Falls Trail. After approaching the scene, the witness found an injured man and called 911.
Police responded to the call shortly before 4 p.m. Tuesday and found the man suffering from stab wounds.
Medical personnel pronounced the victim dead on the scene despite life-saving efforts, police said.
Dierker, whom police identified Thursday morning as the man who was fatally stabbed, was a Baltimore native and had worked as an adjunct faculty member in Towson University’s Department of Music.
“Multi-reedman John Dierker has become a major improvisational stylist . . . interweaving concepts augmented by howling lines, injections of blues-drenched choruses and Albert Ayler-like display of energy,” reads Dierker’s biography on Towson University’s website.
Dierker collaborated with esteemed musicians such as Peter Zummo, Jason Willett, Jad Fair, The Basement Boys, Michael Formanek, and Marty Ehrlich. He was also a longtime member of Lafayette Gilchrist and The New Volcanoes. He had also been working with Quartet Offensive, Lubbock, and Microkingdom, and freelancing in the Baltimore and Washington, D.C. area, according to the biography.
Dierker played clarient, bass clarient, and tenor saxophone. He released his debut solo album in 2023.
“John Dierker is a legendary and monstrous improvisor from Baltimore. He is under-recorded and doesn’t leave Baltimore often,” his Bandcamp page reads.
Homicide detectives are investigating the stabbing. Anyone with information about the incident should call 410-396-2100.
Those who wish to remain anonymous can call the Metro Crime Stoppers tip line at 1-866-7LOCKUP, or by text an anonymous tip on the Metro Crime Stoppers of Maryland website.
