Double bassist MEREDITH JOHNSON enjoys an active career of performance and teaching. He is the principal bassist of the Winnipeg Symphony orchestra, a position he has held since 2004. He was also the principal bassist of the Manitoba Chamber orchestra from 2004-2013. In 2012, he was invited to be an inaugural member of the All Star Orchestra, an ensemble which, since its inception, has garnered many educational and artistic accolades, including nine Emmy Awards.
In addition to his orchestral schedule, Johnson is an enthusiastic chamber musician and teacher. Praised for his playing of “resonant, lyrical beauty”, he has had the privilege of collaborating with some of the finest chamber musicians in Canada and the US. He is the double bass instructor at the University of Manitoba and maintains a professional association with Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador. He has given masterclasses at several universities across Canada and the United States and is also the founder of Bassitoba; an intensive three-day training and performing symposium that takes place bi-annually in Winnipeg at the University of Manitoba.
Johnson has a wide variety of musical interests. He is the bassist and vocalist for the Winnipeg based crossover quartet, The neWSOunds, and has recorded with the Nashville based old time band, The Bashful Mountain Broadcasters as well as Winnipeg-based Heavy Bell, on their debut album, By Grand Central Station. He has also been involved in the commission of several pieces of contemporary music, most recently assembling a group of bassists and cellists from around the world to commission Parlour Games, an exciting new duo for bass and cello by Canadian composer Michael Oesterle. The piece was completed in 2022 and premiered in January 2023 in Winnipeg.
His hobbies include riding bikes, cooking and tennis and he lives in Winnipeg with his wife, violinist Susan McCallum, their three children, and the faithful family dog. Johnson has been a member of the EMF bass faculty since 2001.