Jeri Lynne Johnson: Changing the face and gender of the Classical conductor

Category: Entertainment Published on Friday, 15 March 2013 07:00 Written by Genea Webb Hits: 725

JERI LYNNE JOHNSON

by Genea L. Webb

When most people think of classical music, the words soft and relaxing come to mind.

But not for classical conductor Jeri Lynne Johnson.

“Classical music is live instruments. There are no driving beats but there’s something powerful, sexy and exciting about it and it allows me to have greater imagination. With a song with words, the story is being told by the songwriter.

Classical music has its own interpretations based on who hears it,” said Jeri Lynne Johnson, founder and music director of the Philadelphia-based Black Peal Chamber Orchestra, the first and only multi-ethnical professional orchestra dedicated to bringing new music to the stage.