Faculty

Profile

Dan is Principal Tubist of the New York City Ballet Orchestra. He joined the Ballet in 2017 after seven years of playing the tuba/bass chair at Chicago the Musical. Dan received his Bachelor’s Degree in Performance from the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University where he studied with Scott Mendoker, and then completed a Master’s Degree in Orchestral Performance from the Manhattan School of Music, studying with Toby Hanks. Aside from the Ballet, Dan is an active freelancer and regular substitute with the New York Philharmonic, American Ballet Theater, and Orchestra of St. Luke’s. Dan also performs with the Classical Tahoe Music Festival in Incline Village, Nevada and teaches at the Mostly Modern Festival in Saratoga Springs, New York. Notable recordings include John Williams’ Cello Concerto on A Gathering of Friends (Sony Classical), with John Williams, Yo-Yo Ma, and the New York Philharmonic, and Florence Price’s Violin Concerto no.2 on Violin Concertos (Decca), with Randall Goosby, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Equally at home in the fields of experimental music and improvisation, Dan has a number of active projects. His tuba, bass, and percussion trio The Gate, with Tom Blancarte and Brian Osborne, has recorded ten albums and toured Europe three times. Earth Tongues is a trumpet, tuba, and percussion trio with Joe Moffett and Carlo Costa that has recorded five albums and toured domestically. Past collaborators include Anthony Braxton, Ingrid Laubrock, Premature Burial (a trio with Peter Evans and Matt Nelson) and Blood of the Stars (duo with violinist Erica Dicker), as well as multiple appearances on the Clean Feed, Firehouse 12 and ugEXPLODE record labels. Dan releases music of his own and other friends on his label, Tubapede Records.