John Tennison

Class of 1986


John Tennison is a third year medical student at Stanford Medical School, in Stanford California. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in psychology from Johns Hopkins University. Now an MD who specializes in psychiatry.  who practices in San Antonio, TX...he is married to a psychiatrist

"I was born and grew up in Texarkana, a city that lies on the border of Arkansas and Texas. Before coming to Stanford, I lived in Los Angeles for three years where I tried to learn as much as I could about the music industry while I was working as a consultant to professional musicians, producers and local studios. I also took courses on the legal aspects of the music industry at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA)."

Nonjohn performs music for both the mind and the body. Nonjohn's left-handed ostinato juggernaut and right-handed pyroclastics create a contrapuntal, polyrhythmic, trance-inducing texture that takes Boogie Woogie piano places it has never been before. Because of his driving, high-energy Boogie Woogie grooves, Nonjohn has been called "The Texarkana Train." Harmonically and melodically, Nonjohn's music usually has a strong sense of tonality (musical key), and has been influenced by the melodies and phrasing of both Bluegrass and the classical music of India. However, Nonjohn also ventures into experimental and dissonant harmonies that might sound odd to some ears. Nonjohn's intense percussive style has been influenced by African, Arabic, Indian, and Samba drumming. "Fricking" (an acronym for FingeR pICKING) is the word used by Nonjohn to refer to his hammer-on style of solo guitar playing. Nonjohn's lyrics focus on social critique, timeless philosophical issues, and often have a satirical edge. Overall, the spirit of Nonjohn's music is conveyed by the freedom implied by the African Bantu word, "Mbuki Mvuki," which means to remove one's clothes in order to better dance or perform.
Photo of John and Wife Andrea at Yosemite Natl Park (2002) above

Read more about NonJohn and his amazing life