INDUSTRY UPDATE

US: RHODE ISLAND John Atkinson

I was saddened to learn that Jack Renner, renowned recording engineer and cofounder of Telarc Records, died on June 19, 2019, age 84, at his home in Rhode Island. Mr. Renner is survived by his wife, Barbara, three children, and six grandchildren.

Renner trained as a trumpet player and received a BSc in Music Education from The Ohio State University. In 1990, he was recognized as an outstanding alumnus. He was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he taught for 30 years.

I first saw Jack’s name with the Cleveland Orchestra conducted by Lorin Maazel, which was featured on ’s very first four-color cover, in March 1977.1 Telarc rapidly became a major force in the classical recording world, not least because of Renner’s skill with microphone placement and purist attitude to recording. Of the 1200 recordings released by the label, more than 50 won Grammy Awards. Jack was nominated 25 times for Classical Engineering and won 11 Grammys before he retired in 2006.