Jeryl Johnston, PhD Student in Composition
Originally from Oregon, Jeryl has completed a Master of Music degree in composition from Brooklyn College, CUNY, and a Bachelor of Music Degree at the University of Oregon School of Music with dual majors in Piano Performance and Music Theory.
 In Oregon, she began studying Afro-Cuban music, an undertaking which has taken her on an adventure that has included multi-year freelance tenures in both Los Angeles and New York City. In Los Angeles she performed predominantly with “Orquesta Son Mayor,” “Johnny Polanco y su Conjunto Amistad” and others. As a member of these ensembles, she played regularly at venues such as The Conga Room, The Mayan, The Getty Center, and Los Angeles County Museum of Art.Â
After several years in LA, Jeryl packed up and moved to New York City. Since her arrival in New York, she has worked with the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, Charanga TĂpica ’73, Louis Bauzo, Ray Santos, The Rhythm Method string quartet and C4, the Choral Composer Conductor Collective, among others. Â
She has had the good fortune to study with composers, performers, and scholars Kofi Agawu, Ray Andersen, Sonny Bravo, Jack Boss, George Brunner, Gustavo Casenave, Jason Eckardt, Hulangonsodji (JB) Gnonlonfoun, Perry Goldstein, Robert Hurwitz, Stephanie Jensen-Moulton, Steve Larsen, Tania León, Arturo O’farrill, Ursula Oppens, Harold Owen, Margaret Schedel, Daria Semegen, Victor Steinhardt, and Dalit Warshaw. Dialogue with these advisors has resulted in the development of a portfolio of original chamber and orchestral compositions, works for large and small jazz and Latin jazz ensembles, and for NYC based West African and Cuban drumming ensembles. It has also resulted in research interests in women in Afro-Cuban music, and in West African timeline music, including a forthcoming publication in the journal Analytical Approaches to World Music about variation techniques in West African lead drumming, available in December 2023.
In addition, Jeryl is a committed teacher, having recently held a position as Head Music Teacher with the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance. She has also taught privately in the areas of piano, music theory and composition. Currently, she is on the faculty at Brooklyn College Conservatory of Music where she teaches jazz orchestration and arranging, and other courses in which she encourages students to engage with the topics of bias in music, and rhythm.Â
Jeryl is the musical director of the Afro-Cuban third-stream jazz ensemble “Yanine.” The inaugural release by this ensemble, called What She Said, is now available on all streaming platforms. An unrelated release of chamber music compositions entitled The Dance That Escaped is forthcoming. Currently, she is pursuing a PhD in composition as a Graduate Council Fellow at the State University of New York at Stony Brook.