Healing power of music at San Quentin

June 26, 2024

Staff psychiatrist Dr. Graham Johnson and incarcerated violinist John Zeretzke perform at San Quentin Rehabilitation Center.

The healing power of music was on full display at San Quentin Rehabilitation Center as a psychiatrist and an incarcerated person played violins.

An unusual sound greeted visitors to the infirmary as notes of spirited violin music drifted through the halls of the floor housing a Correctional Treatment Center and Psychiatric Inpatient Program.

The sound was accompanied by an unusual sight: two violinists playing a duet, one wearing a bow tie and one wearing spotless prison blues.

The two violin players were Dr. Graham Johnson, a staff psychiatrist who began his CDCR career in December 2023, and incarcerated person John Zeretzke, incarcerated since 2021.

They played a set list of 14 songs, approximately 30 minutes, featuring such classics as Amazing Grace and Ave Maria. They first performed on the hospital side and then the mental health side. The performers allowed the acoustics of the room to carry the sounds throughout the hallways to the patient rooms.

Resource Team taps into healing power of music

This is the latest strategy from San Quentin’s Resource Team, the group tasked with leading the California Model charge. As a team, they create innovative ways to rehabilitate and inspire. The event’s goal was to tap into the healing power of music while bringing entertainment to the unit. Like other interventions the team has tried, this provided an experience uniting the incarcerated and staff due to its commonality.

“We all started talking about which instruments we played when we were kids,” said Dr. Morgan. “(The performance was) creating an unspoken connection without having to be friends.”

Registered Nurse Keith Chen said the event was unique.

“It was the first time you saw staff and patients experiencing something together,” he said.

And indeed, the audience for the concerts included officers, nurses, doctors, porters, healthcare facility maintenance workers, psych techs and the many other employees comprising the care teams on the floor.

While the operations of the hospital continued, many stopped to listen for a few minutes, or a few songs. Some simply turned in the direction of the virtuosos, angling their bodies to appreciate the sights and sounds. Many said while they’d been to concerts before, never had they been this close to the performers.

Benefits of the California Model

Of the California Model and events like it, Officer Valbuena sees the benefits. The officer has worked for CDCR for 22 years.

“If it takes the negative stuff away, not having the focus on violence against staff, why not?”

Learn more about the California Model on the CDCR website.

In fact, there had been an incident the day before in which a patient caused significant damage and there had been tension in the unit prior to the concert. Officer Martin noted the music brought, “a different atmosphere, peace and calm, and lessened the tension on the floor.”

Johnson said he’d been playing the violin since he was 8 years old.

“I had hoped I’d be able to incorporate this passion into my work. I wanted to do it, but I didn’t know how. It wasn’t until the captain spoke to me about this; it was the spark,” Johnson said. “It has been a privilege to play here, and I am thankful for having had the avenue to do it.”

For Zeretzke, who has played since he was 10 years old, the performance enabled him to contribute to the institution’s rehabilitative mission.

“(I gave this performance) to rehabilitate and transform, to inspire and bring hope, but also give us hope and belief in change and the better parts of human expression,” he said.

The two men practiced for six hours and played for just over an hour. For all listeners, they gave new associations to Vivaldi’s “Spring,” most heard in soundtracks for movies indicating the presence of royalty or high society. For staff and patients, this often-played opening will remind them of the time they experienced their first classical concert in prison.

Story by Rosalinda Rosalez, Associate Warden, ADA