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One of New York’s hottest saxophonists is coming to Mountain Home on July 9.
Daniel Bennett, who has been hailed as one of the most original and unpredictable musical voices of his generation, and The Daniel Bennett Group will be playing through their ‘Oceans of Possibilities’ concert series to celebrate the release of their upcoming album at the Baxter County Library at 7 p.m.
Daniel Bennett will be joined by master percussionist Koko Bermejo (drums/keyboard) and renowned bassist Kevin Hailey. Bennett has been featured in Timeout New York, NPR and the Boston Globe.
The UK Jazz Journal called Bennett, “an outspoken voice of hope,” during the Covid 19 pandemic, and The Daniel Bennett Group was recently voted ‘Best New Jazz’ in Hot House Magazine.
Bennett is the associate director of the New York Jazz Academy in Times Square and recently played woodwinds in ‘Blank! The Musical,’ the first entirely improvised musical to launch on a national stage. The New York Times called the show, “Witty, Likable and Ludicrous!”
Bennett’s theatrical works have strongly influenced his eclectic sound and musical storytelling abilities as a bandleader, with The Boston Globe describing Bennett’s music as, “a mix of jazz, folk and minimalism.”
His genre-bending sound has captivated audiences worldwide.
Daniel Bennett was born in Rochester, New York and first picked up the saxophone at the age of 10 before playing professionally in 1998. At that time Bennett was an undergraduate music student at Roberts Wesleyan College.
Throughout his career, Bennett has worked with Rochester jazz artists like bassist Ike Sturm, pianist Joe Santora, Sean Jefferson, and drummer Ted Poor. In 1999, Daniel Bennett was introduced to the music of Steve Reich and Philip Glass.
He then began to write music for larger ensembles that infused jazz and minimalism, leading to collaborations with new music artists in Rochester, as well performances at major Rochester venues like Six Flags Darien Lake, the Rochester Lilac Fest, Shewan Hall, and the George Eastman House.
In 2002, Daniel Bennett moved to Boston to receive his Masters in Saxophone Performance at the New England Conservatory. Daniel Bennett studied saxophone with Jerry Bergonzi, as well as classical saxophonist Ken Radnofsky. During that time, he also met drummer Bob Moses, who encouraged Bennett to pursue his own path towards “folk jazz” music.
In 2004, Daniel Bennett met folk guitarist Chris Hersch. Hersch was performing full-time in bluegrass groups around Boston. The two began performing Bennett’s original compositions in clubs and various hall around Boston. The duo released a self-titled EP in March 2005.
Three months later they added bassist John Servo to the group. After a year of travel, the Daniel Bennett Group released A Nation of Bears, on the Bennett Alliance label. The album was released in April 2007. Bennett used repetitious melodic ideas over shifting, odd-metered chord structures.
In the summer of 2010, Daniel Bennett moved to New York City, where he enlisted a new cast of musicians that included guitarist Mark Cocheo, bassist Mark Lau, and drummer Brian Adler. In the winter of 2011, the Daniel Bennett Group organized the popular “Jazz at the Triad” concert series at the Triad Theatre on Manhattan’s Upper West Side.
In 2015, The Daniel Bennett Group was voted “Best New Jazz Group” in the New York City Hot House Jazz Awards.
For more information about the concert, call (870) 580-0987.
