Daniel Duncan's music education began a bit late at the age of 13 with the cornet. By the age of 14 he was 1st chair cornet in his area junior district band. Daniel was in the Kentucky All State Orchestra in high school and received the John Phillips Souza Band Award.
He continued the cornet exclusively until entering college, studying with James Bursen at the University of Evansville in Indiana where he was a concerto competition winner, soloist with the wind ensemble, and winner of the University's prestigious Gumberts Award. He was also a student conductor of the wind ensemble. During this time he was 3rd/Asst. Principal Trumpet of the Evansville Philharmonic and 2nd Trumpet with the Owensboro Symphony and Symphony Brass Quintet.
Daniel worked with Leon Rapier at the University of Louisville for his Masters. While at Louisville Daniel performed 3 highly praised solo recitals, was a finalist in the concerto competition, performed and recorded with the Louisville Orchestra, won a position with the Lexington Philharmonic, and continued performing with the Owensboro Symphony.
As a teaching assistant in the Doctorate program at the University of Southern Mississippi, Daniel performed and toured with the faculty brass quintet, the Southern Arts Quintet, and performed with the Meridian, and Gulf Coast Symphony.
Daniel moved to Boston and became a freelancer traveling to Miami to sub with the New World Symphony, becoming a finalist for the Concerts Atlantique European Touring program of New York, a finalist for the 3rd/Asst. Principal trumpet in the San Diego Symphony audition, and the only finalist for the artist diploma at Boston University that year, and started his first brass quintet the Boston Brass Guild. Daniel decided to pursue a graduate diploma at the New England Conservatory of Music studying with Charles Schlueter and Timothy Morrison and receiving distinction in performance, and was one of 9 students at the NEC recommended for an exchange program with the Birmingham Conservatory and Birmingham Symphony working with Simon Rattle. Daniel was a Tanglewood fellow winning the Andre Come Memorial Fellowship. Continuing to freelance after NEC, Daniel became Principal Trumpet of the Key West Symphony for their first 4 years, recording 6 CD's with the Orchestra, subbing with the Boston Symphony, the Baltimore Symphony on tour, the Palm Beach Opera, touring throughout the US as Principal Trumpet with the 75th Anniversary presentation of the Opera Porgy and Bess, performing with the touring Bolshoi and Royal Ballets, and playing regularly with local orchestra's like the Boston Philharmonic, the Portland Symphony, and the Rhode Island Philharmonic.
He started his second brass quintet, Brass Domain, that collaborated with the composers group (Composers in Time) giving contemporary performances in Boston. One of the composers of this group, Steven Stalzer, wrote an unaccompanied solo work for trumpet specifically for Daniel, who gave it's premiere in Boston.
In 2009 he was a finalist for the Principal Trumpet position in the Calgary Philharmonic. During this time Daniel performed many shows with the Boston Lyric Stage, the Seacoast Repertory Theatre, the Ogunquit Playhouse, and many other theaters in New England. After moving to Connecticut, Daniel has established himself as a performer and teacher. He currently has his own private studio, previously teaching at the Neighborhood Music School in New Haven, coaching the New Haven Youth Orchestra brass section, and conducting a brass ensemble at Neighborhood Music School.
Daniel freelances as a performer giving solo recitals, playing lead trumpet with the Westport Country Playhouse, Curtain Call Theatre in Stamford, and the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, subbing with the New Haven Symphony, and performing with various brass quintets. Daniel spends his free time with his wife Beau, an accomplished spiritual councilor, Executive Administrator for the Dean of Arts Sciences at Yale, former compliance officer, lawyer, and writer; and their son, Sam, champion dancer and budding actor; dragging them into his love of history, genealogy, and graveyards. Aren't they lucky!
Daniel has performed under the baton of major conductors, Simon Rattle, Seiji Ozawa, Yuri Temirkanov, Lorin Maazel, Robert Spano, James Conlon and James Robertson. He has performed in most of this country's finest performance halls including Carnegie Hall, Boston Symphony Hall, Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth, and Jordan Hall in Boston among others. While at Tanglewood he was part of the orchestra used for the Wynton Marsalis Sony Series "Marsalis on Music" as well as the first orchestra to rehearse and perform at the newly build Seiji Ozawa Hall. At the opening of this hall Daniel performed Bernstein's Opening Prayer, that opens and ends with the trumpet, with Met star Sherill Milnes singing from the balcony, with Seiji Ozawa conducting.
Daniel moved to Boston and became a freelancer traveling to Miami to sub with the New World Symphony, becoming a finalist for the Concerts Atlantique European Touring program of New York, a finalist for the 3rd/Asst. Principal trumpet in the San Diego Symphony audition, and the only finalist for the artist diploma at Boston University that year, and started his first brass quintet the Boston Brass Guild. Daniel decided to pursue a graduate diploma at the New England Conservatory of Music studying with Charles Schlueter and Timothy Morrison and receiving distinction in performance, and was one of 9 students at the NEC recommended for an exchange program with the Birmingham Conservatory and Birmingham Symphony working with Simon Rattle. Daniel was a Tanglewood fellow winning the Andre Come Memorial Fellowship. Continuing to freelance after NEC, Daniel became Principal Trumpet of the Key West Symphony for their first 4 years, recording 6 CD's with the Orchestra, subbing with the Boston Symphony, the Baltimore Symphony on tour, the Palm Beach Opera, touring throughout the US as Principal Trumpet with the 75th Anniversary presentation of the Opera Porgy and Bess, performing with the touring Bolshoi and Royal Ballets, and playing regularly with local orchestra's like the Boston Philharmonic, the Portland Symphony, and the Rhode Island Philharmonic.
He started his second brass quintet, Brass Domain, that collaborated with the composers group (Composers in Time) giving contemporary performances in Boston. One of the composers of this group, Steven Stalzer, wrote an unaccompanied solo work for trumpet specifically for Daniel, who gave it's premiere in Boston.
In 2009 he was a finalist for the Principal Trumpet position in the Calgary Philharmonic. During this time Daniel performed many shows with the Boston Lyric Stage, the Seacoast Repertory Theatre, the Ogunquit Playhouse, and many other theaters in New England. After moving to Connecticut, Daniel has established himself as a performer and teacher. He currently has his own private studio, previously teaching at the Neighborhood Music School in New Haven, coaching the New Haven Youth Orchestra brass section, and conducting a brass ensemble at Neighborhood Music School.
Daniel freelances as a performer giving solo recitals, playing lead trumpet with the Westport Country Playhouse, Curtain Call Theatre in Stamford, and the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, subbing with the New Haven Symphony, and performing with various brass quintets. Daniel spends his free time with his wife Beau, an accomplished spiritual councilor, Executive Administrator for the Dean of Arts Sciences at Yale, former compliance officer, lawyer, and writer; and their son, Sam, champion dancer and budding actor; dragging them into his love of history, genealogy, and graveyards. Aren't they lucky!
Daniel has performed under the baton of major conductors, Simon Rattle, Seiji Ozawa, Yuri Temirkanov, Lorin Maazel, Robert Spano, James Conlon and James Robertson. He has performed in most of this country's finest performance halls including Carnegie Hall, Boston Symphony Hall, Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth, and Jordan Hall in Boston among others. While at Tanglewood he was part of the orchestra used for the Wynton Marsalis Sony Series "Marsalis on Music" as well as the first orchestra to rehearse and perform at the newly build Seiji Ozawa Hall. At the opening of this hall Daniel performed Bernstein's Opening Prayer, that opens and ends with the trumpet, with Met star Sherill Milnes singing from the balcony, with Seiji Ozawa conducting.
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