Russell Johnson (acoustician)
Encyclopedia
Frederick Russell Johnson (September 14, 1923 - August 7, 2007), a world renown architect
and acoustical expert. Johnson was the founder of Artec Consultants Incorporated
in 1970. Nicknamed the "guardian of the ear" by Jean Nouvel
in 1998 and an "acoustic guru" by others, Johnson was best known for works that included technical designs for the Jazz at Lincoln Center
in New York, New Jersey Performing Arts Center
, Centre in the Square
in Canada, Pikes Peak Center
in Colorado
, Chan Centre for the Performing Arts
in Canada and the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in Florida.
During his lifetime Johnson advanced the field of acoustic design and theater planning by developing adjustable sonic reflectors hanging from the ceiling of his halls to adjust sound depending upon the performer. The reflectors combined with a traditional soapbox shape design are consider trademarks of his firm. Since 1970 Artec
has collaborated in the designs for some of the most renowned concert halls, opera houses, theatres, and other performance spaces of the 20th century and have created technical designs for over 21,000 projects worldwide including the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
, Sala São Paulo
in Brazil, Culture and Congress Center in Switzerland, the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center
and Symphony Hall
in England.
In 2004, Time Magazine referred to Johnson as a "legendary" acoustician and his design of the acclaimed Esplanade complex—Theatres on the Bay
(concert hall plus opera theatre) in Singapore as "one of the best anywhere". Johnson was published for decades in the New York Times for his many concert hall designs. He was also praised in many publications that included the Wall Street Journal, The Independent
, Wired Magazine, Variety
, and the Los Angeles Times
.
, on September 14, 1923. His mother was a homemaker, and his father and grandfather worked at the American Car and Foundry Company
plant. Johnson was raised along with his sister Barbara in rural Berwick in the 1920s and '30s. As a kid, Johnson always had an interest in music. While in the children's choir of his church, he climbed into the pipe organ to see how it worked. By his teens, he began listening to opera broadcasts on the radio and became interested in being a recording engineer for classical music.
During World War II, Johnson served in the Army Signal Corps. After Army service, he studied architecture at what is now Carnegie Mellon University
and then transferred to Yale
, from which he graduated with a bachelor's degree in architecture in 1951.
. The firm was the country's first large commercial acoustical consulting firm and was founded by physicists trained at Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
. He worked there as founder and principal consultant of the Theatre Consulting Division, and as technical coordinator for concert hall and opera house design, including acoustics. In 1970, Johnson decided to start his own firm, initially called 'Russell Johnson & Associates', yet later renamed Artec Consultants Inc
.
Some of the early acclaimed facilities which Johnson worked on include the Orchestra Shell Renovation, Derngate Centre, Grand Theatre de Quebec
, Centennial Concert Hall
, Crouse-Hinds Concert Theater, Hamilton Place in Canada, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, and Place des Arts
.
As chairman Johnson also led Artec to projects such as the Harpa (concert hall)
in Reykjavik
, the Winspear Centre in Edmonton, Domaine Forget
in Charlevoix
and acoustical upgrade of the Roy Thomson Hall
. He also revolutionize the profession with new movable and often automatic technology that could create different environments for different groups.
In addition, he studied the history of concert hall design and concluded that the best halls were built between about 1840 and 1905. After this time demand arose for concert halls that could serve multiple purposes, hosting symphonies as well as music theater, choral societies and lectures. Smaller auditoriums gave way to venues that could hold 3,000 to 4,000 people. These trends, Johnson believed, led to acoustical nightmares. Therefore, he persuaded many owners and architects to return to the basic shape and dimensions of beloved older halls like the Musikverein in Vienna
, the Amsterdam Concertgebouw and Symphony Hall
in Boston
; all-of-which are shoebox-shaped and relatively small.
Johnson's talents helped make him the go to person for acoustic design and at time lead to has also worked in collaboration with some of great architects of the world including Cesar Pelli
, Jean Nouvel
, I.M. Pei, Moshe Safdie
, Barton Myers
, Bing Thom
, Michael Wilford
, Eberhard Zeidler
, Fred Lebensold, Sir James Stirling, Robert Venturi
, and Rafael Viñoly
.
Projects
The following is a list of well known concert halls and projects Johnson created:
One of the last halls masterminded by the Johnson was the César Pelli
-designed Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall
in Costa Mesa.
on August 18. A Memorial service was held in The Allen Room, Frederick P. Rose Hall, Home of Jazz at Lincoln Center
, New York City on November 7, 2007.
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
and acoustical expert. Johnson was the founder of Artec Consultants Incorporated
Artec
Artec Consultants Inc, formerly Russell Johnson & Associates, is an acoustic design and theater planning firm located in New York City. The company was founded by the late world renown architect and acoustician Frederick Russell Johnson in 1970...
in 1970. Nicknamed the "guardian of the ear" by Jean Nouvel
Jean Nouvel
Jean Nouvel is a French architect. Nouvel studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and was a founding member of Mars 1976 and Syndicat de l'Architecture...
in 1998 and an "acoustic guru" by others, Johnson was best known for works that included technical designs for the Jazz at Lincoln Center
Jazz at Lincoln Center
Jazz at Lincoln Center is part of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. JALC's performing arts complex, Frederick P. Rose Hall, is located at West 60th Street and Broadway in New York City, slightly south of the main Lincoln Center campus and directly adjacent to Columbus Circle. Frederick P....
in New York, New Jersey Performing Arts Center
New Jersey Performing Arts Center
The New Jersey Performing Arts Center , in downtown Newark, New Jersey, United States, is the sixth largest performing arts center in the United States...
, Centre in the Square
Centre In The Square
Centre In The Square is a live theatre and performing arts centre located on Queen Street in downtown Kitchener, Ontario.The Centre is home to the Raffi Armenian Theatre. This 2,047 seat hall is the largest in Waterloo Region as well as the main venue for Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony performances....
in Canada, Pikes Peak Center
Pikes Peak Center
The Pikes Peak Center is the concert auditorium in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It serves as an entertainment, cultural, educational, and assembly center for the citizens of El Paso County, the Pikes Peak region, and the surrounding area.- History :...
in Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, Chan Centre for the Performing Arts
Chan Centre for the Performing Arts
The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts is located on the campus of the University of British Columbia near Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is situated within the natural landscape of the campus and is surrounded by evergreens and rhododendrons...
in Canada and the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in Florida.
During his lifetime Johnson advanced the field of acoustic design and theater planning by developing adjustable sonic reflectors hanging from the ceiling of his halls to adjust sound depending upon the performer. The reflectors combined with a traditional soapbox shape design are consider trademarks of his firm. Since 1970 Artec
Artec
Artec Consultants Inc, formerly Russell Johnson & Associates, is an acoustic design and theater planning firm located in New York City. The company was founded by the late world renown architect and acoustician Frederick Russell Johnson in 1970...
has collaborated in the designs for some of the most renowned concert halls, opera houses, theatres, and other performance spaces of the 20th century and have created technical designs for over 21,000 projects worldwide including the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts is a large performing arts venue located on Broad Street, along the stretch known as the "Avenue of the Arts", in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is owned and operated by Kimmel Center, Inc., an organization which also manages the Academy of Music in...
, Sala São Paulo
Sala São Paulo
The Julio Prestes Cultural Center, which is located in the Julio Prestes Train Station in the old north central section of the city of São Paulo, Brazil, was inaugurated on July 9, 1999. The building has been totally restored and renovated by the São Paulo State Government, as part of the downtown...
in Brazil, Culture and Congress Center in Switzerland, the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center
Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center
The Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center is a concert hall located in the Arts District of downtown Dallas, Texas . Ranked one of the world's greatest orchestra halls, it was designed by architect I.M. Pei and acoustician Russell Johnson's Artec Consultants, Inc...
and Symphony Hall
Symphony Hall
Symphony Hall usually refers to:* Symphony Hall, Boston, Massachusetts, USAIt may also refer to:Concert Halls* Allentown Symphony Hall in Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA* Phoenix Symphony Hall in Phoenix, Arizona, USA...
in England.
In 2004, Time Magazine referred to Johnson as a "legendary" acoustician and his design of the acclaimed Esplanade complex—Theatres on the Bay
The Esplanade (Bangkok)
The Esplanade is a shopping and entertainment complex on Ratchadaphisek Road in Din Daeng district, Bangkok, with a second branch on Rattanathibet Road in Nonthaburi.-History:Anchored by the Esplanade Cineplex, the shopping mall opened in December 2006...
(concert hall plus opera theatre) in Singapore as "one of the best anywhere". Johnson was published for decades in the New York Times for his many concert hall designs. He was also praised in many publications that included the Wall Street Journal, The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, Wired Magazine, Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
, and the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
.
Background
Johnson was born in Berwick, PennsylvaniaBerwick, Pennsylvania
Berwick is a borough in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, 22.6 miles southwest of Wilkes Barre. Berwick is one of two principal cities of the Bloomsburg–Berwick Micropolitan Statistical Area, a micropolitan area that covers Columbia and Montour counties and had a combined population of 82,387...
, on September 14, 1923. His mother was a homemaker, and his father and grandfather worked at the American Car and Foundry Company
American Car and Foundry Company
American Car and Foundry is a manufacturer of railroad rolling stock. One of its subsidiaries was once a manufacturer of motor coaches and trolley coaches under the brand names of ACF and ACF-Brill. Today ACF is known as ACF Industries LLC and is based in St. Charles, Missouri...
plant. Johnson was raised along with his sister Barbara in rural Berwick in the 1920s and '30s. As a kid, Johnson always had an interest in music. While in the children's choir of his church, he climbed into the pipe organ to see how it worked. By his teens, he began listening to opera broadcasts on the radio and became interested in being a recording engineer for classical music.
During World War II, Johnson served in the Army Signal Corps. After Army service, he studied architecture at what is now Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
and then transferred to Yale
YALE
RapidMiner, formerly YALE , is an environment for machine learning, data mining, text mining, predictive analytics, and business analytics. It is used for research, education, training, rapid prototyping, application development, and industrial applications...
, from which he graduated with a bachelor's degree in architecture in 1951.
Career
After Yale, Johnson entered the field of acoustics and theatre planning. From 1954 to 1970, he worked for Bolt, Beranek and Newman in Cambridge, MassachusettsCambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
. The firm was the country's first large commercial acoustical consulting firm and was founded by physicists trained at Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
. He worked there as founder and principal consultant of the Theatre Consulting Division, and as technical coordinator for concert hall and opera house design, including acoustics. In 1970, Johnson decided to start his own firm, initially called 'Russell Johnson & Associates', yet later renamed Artec Consultants Inc
Artec
Artec Consultants Inc, formerly Russell Johnson & Associates, is an acoustic design and theater planning firm located in New York City. The company was founded by the late world renown architect and acoustician Frederick Russell Johnson in 1970...
.
Some of the early acclaimed facilities which Johnson worked on include the Orchestra Shell Renovation, Derngate Centre, Grand Theatre de Quebec
Grand Théâtre de Québec
The Grand Théâtre de Québec is an arts complex in Quebec City, Canada. It was conceived to commemorate the Canadian Centennial of 1967 and the Quebec Conference, 1864, one of the key meetings leading to the Canadian Confederation of 1867....
, Centennial Concert Hall
Centennial Concert Hall
The Centennial Concert Hall, as part of the Manitoba Centennial Centre, was built as a Canadian Centennial project. With seating for over 2,300 people, the Concert Hall is the performing home of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the Manitoba Opera and the Royal Winnipeg Ballet.The concert hall cost...
, Crouse-Hinds Concert Theater, Hamilton Place in Canada, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, and Place des Arts
Place des Arts
right|frame|View of the Place des Arts esplanade. The Musée d'art contemporain is on the left; behind it is the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, with the Théâtre Maisonneuve on the rightPlace des Arts is a major performing arts centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada....
.
As chairman Johnson also led Artec to projects such as the Harpa (concert hall)
Harpa (concert hall)
Harpa is a concert hall and conference centre in Reykjavík, Iceland. The building is in the final stages of construction. The opening concert was held on May 4, 2011. Harpa was designed by the Danish firm Henning Larsen Architects in co-operation with Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson...
in Reykjavik
Reykjavík
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...
, the Winspear Centre in Edmonton, Domaine Forget
Domaine Forget
Domaine Forget is an international music festival as well as music and dance academy located near La Malbaie in the Charlevoix region of Quebec.-History:...
in Charlevoix
Charlevoix
The Charlevoix region, located in Quebec, includes parts of the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River and the Laurentian Mountains region of the Canadian Shield...
and acoustical upgrade of the Roy Thomson Hall
Roy Thomson Hall
Roy Thomson Hall is a concert hall located at 60 Simcoe Street in Toronto, Ontario. It is the home of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir. Opened in 1982, its circular architectural design exhibits a sloping and curvilinear glass exterior. It was designed by Canadian...
. He also revolutionize the profession with new movable and often automatic technology that could create different environments for different groups.
In addition, he studied the history of concert hall design and concluded that the best halls were built between about 1840 and 1905. After this time demand arose for concert halls that could serve multiple purposes, hosting symphonies as well as music theater, choral societies and lectures. Smaller auditoriums gave way to venues that could hold 3,000 to 4,000 people. These trends, Johnson believed, led to acoustical nightmares. Therefore, he persuaded many owners and architects to return to the basic shape and dimensions of beloved older halls like the Musikverein in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, the Amsterdam Concertgebouw and Symphony Hall
Symphony Hall
Symphony Hall usually refers to:* Symphony Hall, Boston, Massachusetts, USAIt may also refer to:Concert Halls* Allentown Symphony Hall in Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA* Phoenix Symphony Hall in Phoenix, Arizona, USA...
in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
; all-of-which are shoebox-shaped and relatively small.
Johnson's talents helped make him the go to person for acoustic design and at time lead to has also worked in collaboration with some of great architects of the world including Cesar Pelli
César Pelli
César Pelli is an Argentine architect known for designing some of the world's tallest buildings and other major urban landmarks. In 1991, the American Institute of Architects listed Pelli among the ten most influential living American architects...
, Jean Nouvel
Jean Nouvel
Jean Nouvel is a French architect. Nouvel studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and was a founding member of Mars 1976 and Syndicat de l'Architecture...
, I.M. Pei, Moshe Safdie
Moshe Safdie
Moshe Safdie, CC, FAIA is an architect, urban designer, educator, theorist, and author. Born in the city of Haifa, then Palestine and now Israel, he moved with his family to Montreal, Canada, when he was 15 years old.-Career:...
, Barton Myers
Barton Myers
Barton Myers, FAIA is an American and Canadian architect and president of Barton Myers Associates, Inc. in Los Angeles, California....
, Bing Thom
Bing Thom
Bing Wing Thom, CM is a Canadian architect and urban designer.Born in Hong Kong, he immigrated to Vancouver, Canada with his family in 1950.-Career:...
, Michael Wilford
Michael Wilford
Michael Wilford CBE is an English architect from Hartfield, East Sussex. Wilford studied at the Northern Polytechnic School of Architecture, London, from 1955 to 1962, and at the Regent Street Polytechnic Planning School, London, in 1967...
, Eberhard Zeidler
Eberhard Zeidler
Eberhard Heinrich Zeidler, OC, O.Ont is a Canadian architect.he studied at the Technische Hochschule, Karlsruhe, Germany....
, Fred Lebensold, Sir James Stirling, Robert Venturi
Robert Venturi
Robert Charles Venturi, Jr. is an American architect, founding principal of the firm Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates, and one of the major figures in the architecture of the twentieth century...
, and Rafael Viñoly
Rafael Viñoly
Rafael Viñoly is an Uruguayan architect living in the United States.-Biography:He was born in Montevideo, Uruguay to Román Viñoly Barreto, and Maria Beceiro ....
.
Projects
The following is a list of well known concert halls and projects Johnson created:
- Orchestra Shell Renovation
- Derngate Centre
- Grand Theatre de QuebecGrand Théâtre de QuébecThe Grand Théâtre de Québec is an arts complex in Quebec City, Canada. It was conceived to commemorate the Canadian Centennial of 1967 and the Quebec Conference, 1864, one of the key meetings leading to the Canadian Confederation of 1867....
- Centennial Concert HallCentennial Concert HallThe Centennial Concert Hall, as part of the Manitoba Centennial Centre, was built as a Canadian Centennial project. With seating for over 2,300 people, the Concert Hall is the performing home of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the Manitoba Opera and the Royal Winnipeg Ballet.The concert hall cost...
- Crouse-Hinds Concert Theater
- Hamilton Place in Canada
- Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center
- Place des ArtsPlace des Artsright|frame|View of the Place des Arts esplanade. The Musée d'art contemporain is on the left; behind it is the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, with the Théâtre Maisonneuve on the rightPlace des Arts is a major performing arts centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada....
- Meyerson Symphony Center with I.M. Pei
- Jazz at Lincoln CenterJazz at Lincoln CenterJazz at Lincoln Center is part of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. JALC's performing arts complex, Frederick P. Rose Hall, is located at West 60th Street and Broadway in New York City, slightly south of the main Lincoln Center campus and directly adjacent to Columbus Circle. Frederick P....
in New York - New Jersey Performing Arts CenterNew Jersey Performing Arts CenterThe New Jersey Performing Arts Center , in downtown Newark, New Jersey, United States, is the sixth largest performing arts center in the United States...
- Centre in the SquareCentre In The SquareCentre In The Square is a live theatre and performing arts centre located on Queen Street in downtown Kitchener, Ontario.The Centre is home to the Raffi Armenian Theatre. This 2,047 seat hall is the largest in Waterloo Region as well as the main venue for Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony performances....
in Canada - Pikes Peak CenterPikes Peak CenterThe Pikes Peak Center is the concert auditorium in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It serves as an entertainment, cultural, educational, and assembly center for the citizens of El Paso County, the Pikes Peak region, and the surrounding area.- History :...
in ColoradoColoradoColorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains... - Chan Centre for the Performing ArtsChan Centre for the Performing ArtsThe Chan Centre for the Performing Arts is located on the campus of the University of British Columbia near Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is situated within the natural landscape of the campus and is surrounded by evergreens and rhododendrons...
in Canada, along with Bing ThomBing ThomBing Wing Thom, CM is a Canadian architect and urban designer.Born in Hong Kong, he immigrated to Vancouver, Canada with his family in 1950.-Career:...
. - Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in Florida.
- Carnival Center for the Performing Arts in Miami with Cesar PelliCésar PelliCésar Pelli is an Argentine architect known for designing some of the world's tallest buildings and other major urban landmarks. In 1991, the American Institute of Architects listed Pelli among the ten most influential living American architects...
. - Kimmel Center for the Performing ArtsKimmel Center for the Performing ArtsThe Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts is a large performing arts venue located on Broad Street, along the stretch known as the "Avenue of the Arts", in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is owned and operated by Kimmel Center, Inc., an organization which also manages the Academy of Music in...
, Philadelphia - Sala São PauloSala São PauloThe Julio Prestes Cultural Center, which is located in the Julio Prestes Train Station in the old north central section of the city of São Paulo, Brazil, was inaugurated on July 9, 1999. The building has been totally restored and renovated by the São Paulo State Government, as part of the downtown...
, Brazil - Culture and Congress Center, Lucerne, Switzerland
- Morton H. Meyerson Symphony CenterMorton H. Meyerson Symphony CenterThe Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center is a concert hall located in the Arts District of downtown Dallas, Texas . Ranked one of the world's greatest orchestra halls, it was designed by architect I.M. Pei and acoustician Russell Johnson's Artec Consultants, Inc...
, Dallas - Symphony HallSymphony HallSymphony Hall usually refers to:* Symphony Hall, Boston, Massachusetts, USAIt may also refer to:Concert Halls* Allentown Symphony Hall in Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA* Phoenix Symphony Hall in Phoenix, Arizona, USA...
, Birmingham, England - The Esplanade (Bangkok)The Esplanade (Bangkok)The Esplanade is a shopping and entertainment complex on Ratchadaphisek Road in Din Daeng district, Bangkok, with a second branch on Rattanathibet Road in Nonthaburi.-History:Anchored by the Esplanade Cineplex, the shopping mall opened in December 2006...
—Theatres on the Bay, Singapore - Roy Thomson HallRoy Thomson HallRoy Thomson Hall is a concert hall located at 60 Simcoe Street in Toronto, Ontario. It is the home of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Toronto Mendelssohn Choir. Opened in 1982, its circular architectural design exhibits a sloping and curvilinear glass exterior. It was designed by Canadian...
renovation, Toronto, Ontario, Canada - Fox Cities Performing Arts CenterFox Cities Performing Arts CenterThe Fox Cities Performing Arts Center is a performing arts center in downtown Appleton, Wisconsin, USA. The Center is the home of the Broadway Across America – Fox Cities series, the Boldt Arts Alive! series, the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Education Series, and the Fox Valley Symphony...
, Appleton, Wisconsin, USA - Orange County Performing Arts CenterOrange County Performing Arts CenterThe Orange County Performing Arts Center is a performing arts complex located in Costa Mesa, California, United States.The Center offers the world’s leading dance companies, Broadway shows, award-winning classical, jazz and cabaret artists, family entertainment, special events and year-round...
in Costa Mesa
One of the last halls masterminded by the Johnson was the César Pelli
César Pelli
César Pelli is an Argentine architect known for designing some of the world's tallest buildings and other major urban landmarks. In 1991, the American Institute of Architects listed Pelli among the ten most influential living American architects...
-designed Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall
Orange County Performing Arts Center
The Orange County Performing Arts Center is a performing arts complex located in Costa Mesa, California, United States.The Center offers the world’s leading dance companies, Broadway shows, award-winning classical, jazz and cabaret artists, family entertainment, special events and year-round...
in Costa Mesa.
Honours
Johnson was the recipient of several prestigious honours:- United States Institute for Theatre TechnologyUnited States Institute for Theatre TechnologyThe United States Institute for Theatre Technology is a membership organization which aims to advance the skills and knowledge of theatre, entertainment and performing arts professionals involved in the areas of design, production and technology, and to generally promote their interests...
Award (for life-long commitment to excellence in architectural acoustics and theatre planning for performing arts spaces), 1996; - Wallace Clement Sabine Medal from the Acoustical Society of AmericaAcoustical Society of AmericaThe Acoustical Society of America is an international scientific society dedicated to increasing and diffusing the knowledge of acoustics and its practical applications.-History:...
in recognition of his lifetime contribution to advancing the knowledge of architectural acoustics, 1997; - the International Citation of Merit from the International Society of Performing Arts, 1998;
Death
On August 9, 2007, Johnson passed away in his New York City apartment. A funeral service was held in Berwick, PennsylvaniaBerwick, Pennsylvania
Berwick is a borough in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, 22.6 miles southwest of Wilkes Barre. Berwick is one of two principal cities of the Bloomsburg–Berwick Micropolitan Statistical Area, a micropolitan area that covers Columbia and Montour counties and had a combined population of 82,387...
on August 18. A Memorial service was held in The Allen Room, Frederick P. Rose Hall, Home of Jazz at Lincoln Center
Jazz at Lincoln Center
Jazz at Lincoln Center is part of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. JALC's performing arts complex, Frederick P. Rose Hall, is located at West 60th Street and Broadway in New York City, slightly south of the main Lincoln Center campus and directly adjacent to Columbus Circle. Frederick P....
, New York City on November 7, 2007.