Johnny Reinhard (born 1956) is a
microtonal
Microtonality is the use in music of microtones β intervals smaller than a semitone, also called "microintervals". It may also be extended to include any music using intervals not found in the customary Western tuning of twelve equal interv ...
composer,
bassoon
The bassoon is a musical instrument in the woodwind family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuosity ...
ist, author and conductor.
Reinhard employs many
avant-garde
In the arts and literature, the term ''avant-garde'' ( meaning or ) identifies an experimental genre or work of art, and the artist who created it, which usually is aesthetically innovative, whilst initially being ideologically unacceptable ...
techniques in his bassoon performance such as
glissando
In music, a glissando (; plural: ''glissandi'', abbreviated ''gliss.'') is a wikt:glide, glide from one pitch (music), pitch to another (). It is an Italianized Musical terminology, musical term derived from the French ''glisser'', "to glide". In ...
and
multiphonics, as well as uses
just intonation
In music, just intonation or pure intonation is a musical tuning, tuning system in which the space between notes' frequency, frequencies (called interval (music), intervals) is a natural number, whole number ratio, ratio. Intervals spaced in thi ...
and other
microtonal
Microtonality is the use in music of microtones β intervals smaller than a semitone, also called "microintervals". It may also be extended to include any music using intervals not found in the customary Western tuning of twelve equal interv ...
tuning systems. Notable compositions by Reinhard include "Dune" (1990), "Cosmic rays" (1995), "Middle-Earth" (1999), "Talibanned Buddhas" (2000), and "Semantics of tone" (2007). He reconstructed and performed
Charles Ives
Charles Edward Ives (; October 20, 1874May 19, 1954) was an American modernist composer, actuary and businessman. Ives was among the earliest renowned American composers to achieve recognition on a global scale. His music was largely ignored d ...
'
''Universe symphony'' in 1996. The European premiere of this work was to be performed in Cologne in May 2020.
In 2024, Johnny's book "The Ives Universe - A Symphonic Odyssey" came out on CE Books (Composer's Edition).
Biography
Reinhard, the son of Mortimer Reinhard and Francine Zakos, grew up in the Midwood section of Brooklyn. He attended
John Dewey High School, and earned a Bachelors of Music degree at the
North Carolina School of the Arts in
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Winston-Salem is a city in Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the List of municipalities in North Carolina, fifth-most populous ...
. He earned a Masters of Music degree at the
Manhattan School of Music
The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory
A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music a ...
and was offered a fellowship in ethnomusicology at
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
. Reinhard later taught at
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...
.
Reinhard's work with
microtonal music led him to create The American Festival of Microtonal Music, Inc. (AFMM) in 1981. This organization has created an ongoing concert series intended βto showcase past and contemporary microtonal music and to introduce microtonality to the listening public.β As the founder of the AFMM, Reinhard has helped organize more than three decades of concerts around the world, including the organization's yearly Microfests. The AFMM continues to be active today. Reinhard has recently donated the organization's records to
Furman University
Furman University is a private university in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Founded in 1826 and named after Baptist pastor Richard Furman, the Liberal arts college, liberal arts university is the oldest private institution of higher l ...
, which will make a collection from these materials in their Special Collections and Archives.
On the album ''Odysseus'', Reinhard collaborated with pioneering microtonal guitarist
Jon Catler.
He is also a member of Trio on the Cuff, the world's only
bassoon
The bassoon is a musical instrument in the woodwind family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuosity ...
(Reinhard),
didgeridoo
The didgeridoo (;()), also spelt didjeridu, among other variants, is a wind instrument, played with vibrating lips to produce a continuous Drone (music), drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing. The didgerido ...
(
Ulrich Krieger), and miscellaneous
percussion
A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...
(
Yoshiaki Ochi) trio.
Discography
* Johnny Reinhard et al. : Raven, 1999.
* Live at the DOM / Alternativa Festival, 2000.
* Johnny Reinhard : Odysseus, Pitch Records P-2002-1, 2004.
* Johnny Reinhard : Bassoonist, 2010.
* Johnny Reinhard : The Universe Symphony, 2011.
* Johnny Reinhard and Michael Hafftka : True, 2013.
* Johnny Reinhard and Philip Corner : Ear Gardens, 2016.
More information on some of Reinhard's performances and compositions can be found on his Bandcamp page.
Johnny Reinhard's Bandcamp Page
Bibliography
* ''Bach and Tuning'', Peter Lang, (2016)
* ''8th Octave Overtone Tuning and Bassoon Fingerings in 128'' (2016)
* ''The Transcendental Tuning of Charles Ives''. Vision Edition. (December 2023)
* ''The Ives Universe - A Symphonic Odyssey''. Vision Edition. (July 2024)
* ''Circular Reasoning - Secrets of Baroque Tuning,'' co-authored with Witold Maciak. Vision Edition. (June 2025)
References
External links
Johnny Reinhard's Bandcamp Page
Johnny Reinhard's page at the Stereo Society
American Festival of Microtonal Music
Furman University Special Collections and Archives
Press Release about Furman University AFMM Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reinhard, Johnny
1956 births
Living people
American classical bassoonists
Microtonal musicians
American contemporary classical music performers
Columbia University alumni
John Dewey High School alumni
21st-century American musicians
Ives scholars