Jeri Lynne Johnson

Jeri Lynne Johnson (born 1972 ) is an African-American female conductor. She is the Founder and artistic director of the Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra, a professional ensemble in Philadelphia.

Childhood and education Johnson started piano lessons at the age of four. Her interest in orchestral literature and creating large-scale music beyond the piano developed after attending a performance of a Beethoven Symphony when she was seven years old. She was the assistant conductor of the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia from 2000 to 2004. In 2005, she received the Taki Concordia Conducting Fellowship, making her the first African-American female to win an international award for conducting. She was heavily influenced by her mentors of Simon Rattle, Marin Alsop, and Daniel Barenboim. She had the opportunity to perform her own commissions for the See Hear! concert series at Kimmel Center and the computer visual music ensemble of Arts in Motion. She was named a 2010 Philly 360 Creative Ambassador by the Greater Philadelphia Tourism and Marketing Corporation, a 2010 British American Project Fellow and a 2011 Woman of Distinction by the Philadelphia Business Journal. Johnson has been recognized for her accomplishments on 20/20, The Tavis Smiley Show on NPR and on the NBC Today show alongside Marin Alsop and Joann Falletta.