Warner Lawson was born in Hartford, Connecticut. He traveled to Nashville, Tennessee, to study at Fisk University on a Julliard scholarship until 1926. He returned to Connecticut, where he received his B.A. in music from Yale in 1929. He studied with Arthur Schnabel in 1930 and then returned to Fisk to serve as chairman of the music faculty.

Source:
Who’s Who in Colored America . Ed. Thomas Yenser. 5 th ed. Thomas Yenser: New York, 1940. pg. 323.