Jack Hotop

Jack Hotop’s passion for jazz, classical music, and emerging music technology guided a remarkable career as both a performer and innovator within the synthesizer industry. Growing up in a musical family, Jack was inspired by his father, who appeared on several Broadway cast recordings, while many members of his mother’s family were pianists. He studied arranging and composition at Berklee College of Music and further explored electronic music through studies at the Boston School of Electronic Music. Jack became one of the pioneering engineers and sound designers at Korg USA during the explosive growth of synthesizers and digital workstations in the 1980s and beyond. Joining Korg in 1983, he contributed to the development, voicing, programming, demonstrations, and sound design of more than 100 products, including landmark instruments such as the M1, Wavestation, Poly-800, Triton, OASYS, Kronos, and M3. Jack was among the innovative minds connected to the creation of the groundbreaking Korg M1, widely regarded as the world’s first successful MIDI music workstation. During his long tenure at Korg, he frequently collaborated with fellow engineer and product manager Jerry Kovarsky on several influential projects.

In addition to his engineering and product-development work, Jack became a familiar and enthusiastic presence at NAMM Shows, where he demonstrated the latest Korg technologies for musicians from around the world. His expertise and artistry were featured in publications including Keyboard and Electronic Musician magazines. As a performer, Jack toured and recorded with artists and groups including Gloria Gaynor, The Drifters, Silver Convention, The John Entwistle Band, Leslie West, and The Robin Zander Band. His music and sound design work also appeared in films, television productions, and multimedia projects. Throughout his career, Jack remained an ardent advocate for synthesizers and evolving music technology while continuing to perform as a keyboardist and composer.