John Edward Zeretzke is an American teacher, flute player, composer, and convicted

sex offender A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abuser) is a person who has committed a sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and legal jurisdiction. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convictions for crime ...

. After conducting flute making workshops with school children for many years, he was accused of

lewd conduct Sexual misconduct is misconduct of a sexual nature which exists on a spectrum that may include a broad range of sexual behaviors considered unwelcome. This includes conduct considered inappropriate on an individual or societal basis of morality, s ...

with children in 2017 and other sex charges in 2019. Many of the charges are related to his flutes.

Teaching

Zeretzke taught music to children and young adults for over 30 years through the

Los Angeles Music Center The Music Center (officially named the Performing Arts Center of Los Angeles County) is one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States. Located in downtown Los Angeles, The Music Center is composed of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion ...

. He also taught summer programs through the

Segerstrom Center for the Arts Segerstrom may refer to *Segerström (surname) * C.J. Segerstrom & Sons, a real estate company in Orange County, California, U.S. *Segerstrom Center for the Arts Segerstrom may refer to *Segerström (surname) *C.J. Segerstrom & Sons, a real estate ...

Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...

Flutes Across the World

In 2009, Zeretzke founded and directed Flutes Across the World, a humanitarian and educational organization. It is a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...

charitable organization that registered in 2013. For the program, Zeretzke taught students to make flutes out of PVC piping, corks and hot glue. Each student decorated two to send to children in the least developed countries. These flutes wound up in the Philippines, Central America and Haiti.

Film scoring

Zeretze composed the soundtracks for: * ''Subspecies'' *''Bloodstone: Subspecies II'' *''Subspecies: The Awakening'' *'' Leapin’ Leprechauns!'' *'' Spellbreaker: Secret of the Leprechauns''

Awards

*1995 Horton Award for Music for Dance for ''Light'' (with Laura Dean) *In 1999, Zeretzke's work with children was recognized with the Professional Artists in Schools Award. *Zeretzke was given the 2009 Lifetime Achievement in the Arts Award by the City of

Ojai Ojai ( ; Chumash: ''’Awhaỳ'') is a city in Ventura County, California. Located in the Ojai Valley, it is northwest of Los Angeles and east of Santa Barbara. The valley is part of the east–west trending Western Transverse Ranges and is ...

Criminal charges

Zeretzke was arrested in 2017 by Los Angeles County police and federal postal inspectors, who accused him of

with children, coercing a girl to produce

child pornography Child pornography (also called CP, child sexual abuse material, CSAM, child porn, or kiddie porn) is pornography that unlawfully exploits children for sexual stimulation. It may be produced with the direct involvement or sexual assault of a chi ...

, attempting to entice another person to send him sexually explicit images, receiving child pornography over the internet, and traveling to the Philippines to engage in sex with minors. He pleaded not guilty to all charges and was held in the Orange County Jail. The California state attorney general announced on July 8, 2020, that he was sentenced in Orange County Superior Court to 18 years in state prison after pleading guilty to six counts of committing lewd acts against five girls under 14 by tainting their flutes with his semen. The acts were committed between January 1 and April 30, 2017.

References

External links

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OVN In Depth John Zeretzke
Interview from 2011 about Ojai World Music festival
Flutes Across the World
Video by John Zeretzke about Flutes Across the World {{DEFAULTSORT:Zeretzke, John Living people American film score composers American flautists American composers American male criminals 20th-century American criminals Criminals from California American people convicted of child pornography offenses 1960 births