John Reed-Torres (b. 1991), a South-Central Los Angeles native, recalls hearing ragtime for the first time as a child when he heard an ice cream truck creeping along to the strains of Scott Joplin's "The Entertainer".
Right then and there the ragtime bug bit him and sparked his love for a wide range of antiquity.
Primarily self taught, John worked up performances of Scott Joplin rags and classical pieces. In 2009, John began studies at Pasadena City College and the Neighborhood Music School in Boyle Heights, where he was finally, after many years of perseverance, able to begin formal piano lessons through the generosity of scholarship donors. He has since performed at various venues in and around the city of Los Angeles, the states of California and Missouri, and even internationally in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
John has written over a dozen rags to date, and has collaborated on compositions with fellow ragtime friends Vincent Johnson and Reginald Robinson. Currently a college junior and law office clerk, John aspires to perform, compose, and educate continually.
Being of a diverse ethnic heritage, John believes music is a universal language — a link that connects us all. He wants to teach the history of ragtime to his generation and those that follow so everyone will recognize ragtime's important place in the development of culture and music.