John Steinmetz, Biography

John Steinmetz, principal bassoonist of Los Angeles opera and an L.A. freelancer who plays everything from Madam Butterfly to Matrix Reloaded, has been composing music ever since junior high, when he and a friend made TV-theme medleys. His most recent compositions were commissioned by the South Bay Chamber Music Society (to commemorate their 40th anniversary) by the innovative Los Angeles Series Pacific Serenades, and by the oboe and bassoon teachers at Arizona State University. John's Quintet for winds has been released on a Helicon CD by the Borealis Quintet. Concerto for bassoon and orchestra was commissioned by the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, The Keene Chamber Orchestra, and the Santa Rosa Symphony.



John Steinmetz

Ever since junior high, when he and a friend made TV-theme medleys, composing has been part of John Steinmetz’s musical life. The march he wrote for his high school graduation was used for years, and after he and other students perpetrated the joke cantata Die Scheistersinger at California Institute of the Arts, its closing chorale became the school's alma mater. An etude he wrote for himself in the ‘70s appeared, three decades later, on a music school jury exam in Arizona.

His first widely performed piece was a Sonata for bassoon and piano (1981), now a staple at some music schools. (One spring it appeared on six different student recitals at the University of Michigan!) Since then his Quintet for winds has toured with professional ensembles and was released on CD by the Borealis Quintet.

His music has spread slowly, eventually reaching five continents (nothing in Africa or Antarctica yet), while John has focussed on a performance career. As principal bassoonist of Los Angeles Opera, Hollywood studio musician, and member of XTET and Camerata Pacifica, John fits the old-fashioned picture of a performing musician who also composes.

Some of his pieces are comic, some serious, some both. In Possessed a cellist speaks performers’ thoughts. What's Your Musical I.Q.? (A Quiz), lampoons magazine quizzes, standardized tests, and Music Appreciation. Praise is a choral setting of Marcia Falk’s poem. Suite from an Imaginary Opera carries English horn and piano from sadness to hope. Mixed Blessings, a quintet of double reeds, strings, and harpsichord, moves from raucous high energy to calm. War Scrap, for piano trio and percussion, reflects on war. One and Many was commissioned to give the Apple Hill Chamber Players a way to include local children, community members, and trained musicians in concerts wherever they perform. Recent commissions have come from Los Angeles' innovative Pacific Serenades, from faculty members at Arizona State University, from the South Bay Chamber Series (for a piece to celebrate its 40th anniversary), and from the three orchestras that commissioned the Concerto.

John wears other hats: educator, writer, conference speaker, facilitator. He has often been a guest faculty member at Apple Hill's summer program and at other music festivals. He invented new education events for the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, the Oregon Bach Festival, XTET, and others. His article "Resuscitating Art Music" and pamphlet “How to Enjoy a Live Concert” have circulated widely. As a consultant to Atari, Apple Computer, Walt Disney Imagineering, and Naxos Records, he developed learning avenues for children and adults. He is a board member of Chamber Music America and of the Pasadena Waldorf School.

Born in Oakland, California, John grew up in Fresno, moving to southern California to attend California Institute of the Arts, where in addition to studying the bassoon he performed music from South India and was a member of the African Music Ensemble. Now he lives in Altadena with his wife, violist Kazi Pitelka, and their two children.




Concerto for bassoon and orchestra (2003)

Notes by John Steinmetz

It seems to me that most of the famous and popular concertos depict a heroic soloist in a heroic struggle that eventually leads to a heroic triumph. Although playing the bassoon certainly requires heroism, our quiet-voiced instrument seems ill-suited for conquest. I think a bassoon concerto needs a different kind of scenario.

Maybe it's time for a different approach anyway. Our culture is so hypnotized by heroic individualism that we are in danger of conquering ourselves out of existence. I have been trying to imagine a concerto that depicts human beings as part of nature, connected to everything else.

This is not a new idea, of course. An ancient purpose of music is to connect us with a larger reality. (In fact, the word "concerto" comes from a word meaning "to join together." The earliest concertos were more about interaction than individualism, and recent music often has a similar attitude.) Perhaps a bassoon, with its flair for blending and its great variety of color and character, can sing a declaration of interdependence.

This is what I was thinking when I began to compose the concerto, but the music quickly took unexpected turns. That’s as it should be—after all, this is a piece of music, not a philosophical tract or self-help book, so I hope this concerto can be enjoyed, like any music, for its sounds and for its energies. The question of humans' relationship with the rest of nature seems to persist, both heard (in sounds like woodwind bird calls or rippling melodies), and felt (in emotions of longing, hope, and celebration.)

I always enjoy hearing about listeners' experiences with my music. Whether you see pictures, remember feelings, or have other kinds of associations, I invite you to tell me how the concerto affects you. This is a brand new piece, so all of us will be exploring its meaning together.

I am grateful to the many friends and colleagues who helped to bring this concerto into being, particularly bassoonists Kenneth Munday and Joy Flemming, and conductors Eric Stumacher and Jeffrey Kahane. I have enjoyed friendships and musical collaborations with these people over many years, and the Concerto couldn't have happened without their support. The piece was commissioned by the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, the Keene Chamber Orchestra, and the Santa Rosa Symphony, through the generosity of LACO's Sound Investment group, the Friends of the Keene Chamber Orchestra, and the Leland and Louise Levinger Fund for Music, Community Foundation of Sonoma County. The Los Angeles chapter of American Composers Forum, through its Subito program, helped to pay for copying the score and parts. It takes a village to compose a concerto!

Last Modified: Apr 28, 10:16