Originally from Hinton, Alberta, Dr. Johnson holds a Doctorate in Piano Performance from the Université de Montréal and a Prize in Orchestral Conducting from the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal.
A recipient of grants from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, the Alberta Arts Graduate Scholarships, the Fonds de la Fondation les Amis de l’Art and the Bourses d’excellence from the Université de Montréal, he has also studied conducting at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa and the Pierre Monteux School in Maine. He was assistant conductor of l’Orchestre philharmonique des musiciens de Montréal (OPMEM) for the 2012-2013 season, and begins his guest conducting appearances nationally in 2014-2015.
As a pianist he has participated in masterclasses at the Banff Centre for the Arts, the Orford Arts Centre, and the Morningside Music Bridge in Calgary. He has performed across Canada, as well as in France and Japan. Highly in demand as a pedagogue, he joined the faculty of the McGill Conservatory in 2010, and the Université de Québec à Montréal faculty in 2013, as well as teaching a large studio of private students. He has also taught harmony, analysis, and chamber music, and translated a major treatise on harmonic analysis from French to English.
Dr. Johnson was recently selected as the recipient of the 2015 Jean-Marie Beaudet Award in Orchestra Conducting from the Canada Council for the Arts.
The 2015/2016 Season marks Adam Johnson’s third year with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, and his first Season as the CPO’s Associate Conductor. He served as Resident Conductor in the 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 Seasons.