Praised as “technically and interpretively impeccable and passionately communicative” (Boston Musical Intelligencer), Graeme Steele Johnson is an artist of uncommon imagination and versatility. The clarinetist, curator and “musical detective” (New York Classical Review) recently garnered international attention for his rediscovery and reconstruction of a 125-year-old Octet by Charles Martin Loeffler, profiled in a full-page spread by The Washington Post. Released on his debut album Forgotten Sounds, Johnson’s world-premiere recording of the work was named one of The New York Times’ Best Classical Music Albums of 2024 and nominated for a Gramophone Classical Music Award. Johnson led the Octet’s first present-day performances at the Library of Congress, Morgan Library, Harvard Musical Association, Phoenix Chamber Music Festival, Emerald City Music, Chamber Music Northwest, La Jolla Music Society and more. Other recent appearances include the Ravinia, Bridgehampton, Moab, Rockport and Orcas Island Chamber Music Festivals. Driven by his interest in shedding fresh perspective on familiar music, Johnson has appeared as a TEDx speaker comparing Mozart and Seinfeld, and authored chamber arrangements heard around the world. He earned degrees from The University of Texas at Austin, Yale School of Music and a doctorate from the CUNY Graduate Center, where his research won the Elebash Dissertation Award. His principal teachers include David Shifrin, Charles Neidich, Nathan Williams and Ricardo Morales.