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Biography
Daniel Padrón (pronounced pah-DRŌN) was born in Caracas,
Venezuela in 1966. When he was merely 3 years old, his mother discovered
that he had perfect pitch when from another room he correctly identified
notes she played on the piano.
During childhood Daniel was exposed to jazz and Latin music by his
father, though he also credits his American mother for influencing his
musical style. When he was young, he clearly preferred Latin music over
jazz, because one can often dance to Latin music more easily. Later on,
he acquired a much greater liking for jazz, and now incorporates both
into his musical style.
At age 13, Daniel began studying piano. He later went to Georgia State
where he studied piano with Dr. Geoff Haydon while getting his B.A. in Music
Theory. Perfection of his piano technique was furthered by friend and
colleague You-Ju Lee. Daniel's talent as a composer emerged during his
college years, and some of his jazz works were performed by Georgia
State students.
Shortly after graduating from college, Daniel formed a jazz trio named Wild
Rice. The band has evolved over the years, adding Daniel's Latin jazz
compositions to their repertoire and eventually growing to a seven piece
jazz band. Wild Rice (now Tito Gato) has performed at venues all over
Atlanta, including the 2003 Atlanta Jazz Festival.
As a piano soloist, Daniel has performed for restaurants, lounges, and
private parties. He has also performed with many artists in Atlanta
including Dave Bass, Rebecca Windham, Sam Skelton, and was a member of
the band The Solutions during the mid-1990's.
One of Daniel's recently completed composition projects is a collection
of nocturnes for solo piano using all 24 major and minor keys, in the
tradition of the preludes composed by Bach, Rachmaninoff, and Chopin.
Publication of the nocturnes in print is planned for 2004. The first
five nocturnes may be heard on the upcoming CD release (see Recordings),
along with other solo piano compositions. |
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