Clarence Johnson III

Positive Vibrations HeartBeat Award (Culture Bearer):

- Geraldine Wyckoff

“I ’m not necessarily just trying to play music, I’m using music to imitate life,” says the ever-soulful and spiritual saxophonist Clarence Johnson. “Guys like Wayne Shorter, they’ll go in the backyard and listen to the hummingbirds because everything around you is music. That holistic philosophy and thought is not just how I play music, it’s how I live my life.”

A native of New Orleans, Johnson, 43, hit this city’s modern jazz scene as a teenager impressing listeners with his already individualistic sound. Actually, by that time, Johnson had been blowing sax for quite a while, beginning on alto in grade school, adding tenor while performing in the marching, concert and stage bands at Brother Martin High School and later taking up the soprano while attending Loyola University.

It’s somewhat surprising to learn that Johnson was a drum major during his senior year in high school and also that he found holding that position to be significant in his development.

“The main thing was that it gave me an opportunity to be a leader and be responsible for a large percentage of my peers’ musical product,” Johnson explains. “That kind of paved the way for me to lead my own bands and be a leader in other areas such as in big bands and musical productions.”