Marissa Mohammed

Survey of Jazz
Professor Wilkins
December 18, 2021

Johanna Burnheart

Introduction

Originating from a dark time in American history, jazz was born. To this day, jazz is

considered to be “America’s greatest contribution to the musical world” and has managed to

spread worldwide (Topic 1 - The Root of Jazz). Performers like Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis,

Duke Ellington, Sonny Rollins, and so many more talented musicians fell in love with jazz,

helped reform and expand musical barriers, and still inspire musicians today. Although many

‘original’ jazz artists have passed or retired, their legacy still lives on. A new jazz artist,

Johannah Burnheart, follows in their legacy to push boundaries and experiment with jazz music

to create new sounds and keep jazz alive.

Johanna Burnheart

Johanna Burnheart was born in Germany and grew up studying the violin, piano, vocals

(singing), and learned to compose throughout her childhood. Above all, she loves playing the

violin the most. Since she played the violin from the age of seven, many people expected her to

become a classical violinist but shocked everyone when she revealed she wanted to pursue her

passion for jazz. Even though the violin is still an uncommon jazz instrument, she wanted to

change that.

Johanna finds herself inspired by the works of Eberhard Weber (1940-), a famous double

bass player from Germany, and Zbigniew Seifert (1946-1979), a Poland jazz violinist. Current
techno music, mainly from Germany, has also contributed to her sound. She also studied the

famous horn player Charlie Parker (1920-1955). Although able to play it, she admitted to not

liking the bebop style Parker excelled in because she felt her musical style would get lost as

bebop is known to play as many notes as possible in a measure. Miles Davis (1926-1991) was

another one of her favorite artists due to the fact that “he played the least amount of notes

necessary” (May Johanna Burnheart: Techno jazz shines a light: New directions in Music

Article @ all about jazz).

Growing up in Berlin, Johanna was exposed to techno & as she continued to study the

violin, she wanted to combine the two, creating her own sound. However, before she decided to

share her passion with the world, she continued to educate herself. She studied at Northern

German musical schools, Wells Cathedral School (England), Berklee College of Music (Boston),

Guildhall School of Music and Drama (London), and even took monthly trips to Paris for two

years to learn from Didier Lockwood at his jazz school (About).

Her love for music, and jazz, continued to grow, and she soon resided in London, where

jazz continued to grow popular. During her time in London, she performed with many more

modern jazz artists and groups - “Misha, Yazz Ahmed, Jazz Jamaica, The BBC Orchestra,

Kinkjouse, Teatime, Susheela Raman, and Nardeyday.” However, as she tried to grow her band

called “Burnheart,” she became a member of the Rosie Turton Band and the Garage Orchestra in

2019, later touring with both groups, preparing her own album.

The bands toured many UK festivals like the “Glastonbury Festival, Boomtown Fair,

Love Supreme, and Jazz Re:Frest.” (About). After touring, Johanna Burnheart focused more on

her own sound and released an album with her band “Burnheart” on October 30th, 2020, with
Ropeadope Records. The album can be found on all streaming platforms (Apple, Spotify,

YouTube, etc.).

Johanna Burnheart refers to her music as “spiritual-jazz” and “electric jazz,” as it is a

modern-day take on jazz mixed with her love of techno. Her quartet band is more than

supportive and proud to be a part of a music revolution. The band members include “David Swan

on Wurlitzer and synthesizer, Jonny Wichman on double bass, and Boz Martin-Jones on drums

and percussion.” (May Johanna Burnheart: Techno jazz shines a light: New directions in Music

Article @ all about jazz). She met her future bandmates while studying music at Guildhall

(London), where they all share a similar love for jazz and experimenting with music. Their most

recent release and EP is “Burnheart Remix,” released in 2021, containing five songs. As the title

mentions, it is her most famous songs, just remixed with a different style than the original songs.

It can be found on multiple streaming services such as Spotify, YouTube, and her website,

johannahburnheart.com.

To this day, she continues to make music with her band and perform at many UK

festivals, where she continues to grow her audience. She is a frequent performer at the EFG

London Jazz Festival, where she sings and plays her violin live for her audience. She also

continues to perform with the “Rosie Turton Quintet, Blue Morning, Ann & Bones, and the

London Garage Orchestra” and tours with these groups through many festivals as well (About).

Her 2020 performance at the EFG London Jazz Festival can be found on YouTube, where she

performs her album “Burnheart,” which was released the same year (2020).
Conclusion

Johanna Burnheart, born in Germany, grew up with a musical background from an early

age, where she learned to sing and play multiple instruments. Her love for music continued to

grow as she embraced the techno sound Berlin had to offer and soon decided to pursue her

passion for jazz, but with a twist. She wanted to incorporate her favorite instrument, the violin.

Even though it is not a popular jazz instrument, she tried to change that stereotype by

incorporating her violin in her work and her love of techno, creating her sound.

However, before she shared her idea with the world, she continued to educate herself in

music and traveled the world, learning from the best instructors and schools. Soon she resided in

London and joined multiple groups where she maintained a background player image while

working on her own masterpieces. Then she called her old schoolmates and created her band,

“Burnheart,” where they released many singles, EPs, and now two albums and continue to

perform them at music festivals.

Although she has created her own name and band, she still performs with the groups she

did before she started her own. If you thought being one band was bad, imagine being five! Her

love of music and continuous curiosity to learn has kept her going, and she soon will be known

not only in London but also worldwide.

 References

“About.” Burnheart Release, https://www.johannaburnheart.com/biography.

“Johanna Burnheart at the Spice of Life, Soho.” EFG London Jazz Festival 2021,
https://efglondonjazzfestival.org.uk/events/johanna-burnheart

“Johanna Burnheart.” Spotify,

https://open.spotify.com/artist/2MqmzIcyi9PRCgeKBXEmHf.

“Listen & Watch.” Burnheart Release, https://www.johannaburnheart.com/listen.

May, Chris. “Johanna Burnheart: Techno Jazz Shines a Light: New Directions in Music
Article @ All about Jazz.” All About Jazz, 28 Oct. 2020,
https://www.allaboutjazz.com/johanna-burnheart-catch-a-rising-star-new-directions-in-jazz

“Topic 1 - The Root of Jazz.” FulknerPress.

Discography
Spotify - Johanna Brnheart, “Silence is Golden.” Burhheart Remix, 2021. Spotify,
https://open.spotify.com/track/5STtkiMiwMuwKiGpgNcwkL?si=dfddac25b30a4e29

Spotify - Johanna Brnheart, “Never Let Me Go.” Burhheart, 2020. Spotify,

https://open.spotify.com/track/6rOAQTiZWFvSMMe3Kj7zok?si=05546f17d0fa43f8

Spotify - Johanna Brnheart, “Forever Dance.” Burhheart, 2020. Spotify,

https://open.spotify.com/track/2tIq5B1xn46A9xp3psnypj?si=bb954bf3e68c430a