Bonzai Beat with Jonathan Feist
The Bonzai Beat presents author, composer, songwriter, editor-in-chief of Berklee Press, and instructor Johnathan Feist. Feist connects with Mr. Bonzai from the studio of his historic home to discuss his foray into education, music notation, and his role at Berklee Online.
Jonathan Feist is an instructor at Berklee Online and the editor-in-chief of Berklee Press, the book-publishing division of Berklee College of Music. In addition, he is also a composer and songwriter, having scored the 2022 film, The Holding Room, earning a nod for Best Original Score at the Delphi International Film Festival.
As the editor-in-chief of Berklee Press, Feist has helped produce hundreds of music education products for the global market. He is an award-winning author who wrote Project Management for Musicians and Music Notation and Score Preparation Using Finale, two publications utilized in courses he instructs at Berklee Online. Feist has also written Berklee Contemporary Music Notation, Music Industry Forms, and has co-authored titles like Essential Songwriter and The Berklee Practice Method Teacher’s Guide, along with countless other articles and photographs.
As one of the three founding staff members of Berklee Online, Feist initially served as its Senior Writer/Editor. Since the launch of Berklee Online, Feist has helped develop approximately 40 online courses. Feist still instructs two of these courses, which host well over 1,000 students, with signs pointing toward continued growth.
Mr. Bonzai is an award-winning photographer, author, and interviewer. He has written more than 1,000 articles for outlets in the United States, Europe, and Asia. He has published numerous books, including Studio Life (Mix, 1984), Hal Blaine and The Wrecking Crew (Mix, 1992), The Sound of Money (Focal, 2000), Faces of Music (Cengage, 2006), Music Smarts (Berklee Press, 2009), and John Lennon’s Tooth (BookBaby, 2012). His photos and articles have appeared in Rolling Stone, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Billboard, Mix, EQ, Keyboard, Daily Variety, Hollywood Reporter, Los Angeles Magazine, Disney Channel Magazine, Sound & Recording, and Relix, among others. http://www.mrbonzai.com.