JJ Appleton - Early Life

Early Life

Appleton was born in Norwich, Vermont, on April 4, 1976, the son of Georganna Towne and Jon H. Appleton, a composer and professor of electro-acoustic music at Dartmouth College. Professor Appleton was also one of the co-inventors of the Synclavier digital music synthesizer and recording system and which JJ would later use as a producer in New York City to record his own and other artist's music. In his capacity as a performer and a teacher, Jon Appleton was able to bring his family with him around the world where they would sometimes live for extended periods of time.w "Wherever the Appletons went, Jon had a musical agenda, which afforded JJ the rare opportunity to immerse himself in the indigenous music of such exotic places as Tonga, Sweden, Israel and Turkey." Of his Mother's support for his developing interest in music, JJ has said, "She definitely encouraged my musical pursuits. She would tape record me singing twenty minute songs about Viking battles and spaghetti when I was 6".