John Kinzie
Instructor, MM, Percussion
TRVH 118 | 303.871.6972
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Biography

John Kinzie is currently the Director of Percussion Studies of the Lamont School of Music at the University of Denver . He teaches percussion and timpani performance as well as percussion ensemble, master classes, and percussion pedagogy and repertoire. Mr. Kinzie is the principal percussionist of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, a position he has held since 1985. Prior to his appointment with the CSO, Mr. Kinzie was principal percussionist with the Toledo Symphony Orchestra, a position he won at the age of 19. He also performs with the CSO chamber group “Once Upon a Time,” a group formed to inspire the imaginations of young schoolchildren and to excite them about music.

Mr. Kinzie was born in Pittsburgh and began his musical studies on the piano at the age of five. When band was introduced in the schools, he quickly switched to the drums. Mr. Kinzie received scholarships to the University of Toledo and the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he studied with Robert Bell, Richard Weiner, and Paul Yancich. He has appeared with the Colorado , Strings in the Mountains, National Repertory Orchestra, and the Grand Teton music festivals, and has been a featured soloist with the Toledo Symphony, Colorado Music Festival, Yale School of Music, Grand Teton Music Festival and the Colorado Symphony Orchestra on numerous occasions.

Mr. Kinzie most recently performed the premiere recording of Libby Larsen's “Marimba Concerto: After Hampton.” He can also be heard on Bridge Records with a new recording of George Crumb's “Music for a Summer Evening,” which he performed on tour, including Carnegie Hall. John is married to Karen, a violinist with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra. They have three boys, Ryan, Karl, and Grant.

Short version

John Kinzie, is the Director of the Percussion Studies and Instructor of Classical percussion at the Lamont School of Music. John has been a member of the Colorado Symphony since 1985 and joined Lamont  in 1996. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Toledo and a Master of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music. Before joining the CSO, John was Principal Percussion with the Toledo Symphony. He was Principal Percussion with the Colorado Music Festival from 1985 to 1991. He is currently performing at the Grand Teton Music Festival in the summers.