Daniel Bernard Roumain
Encyclopedia
Daniel Bernard Roumain (known by his initials, DBR) is a classically trained composer, performer, violinist, and band-leader noted for blending funk
, rock
, hip-hop and classical music
into an energetic and experiential sonic form. DBR is of Haitian-American heritage and he attended Dillard Center for the Arts
in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
. He received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University
's Blair School of Music
and earned a doctorate in musical composition from the University of Michigan
. He combines his classical music roots with a multicolored spectrum of contemporary black popular music. DBR's exploration of musical rhythms and pulsing sounds is frequently peppered by cultural references. His dramatic pieces range from orchestral scores and energetic chamber works to rock songs and electronica. He recently contributed a chapter to Sound Unbound: Sampling Digital Music and Culture (The MIT Press, 2008) edited by Paul D. Miller a.k.a. DJ Spooky
.
DBR is married and has a one year-old son.
, San Antonio, St. Louis, and most recently the Chicago Sinfonietta
, the Brooklyn Philharmonic
, the North Dutch Orchestra, and the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra have performed or commissioned his works, and Bill T. Jones and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s regularly collaborate with him---DBR is the Music Director of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company
and the Assistant Composer-in-Residence of the OSL. As Artist-in-Residence at Arizona State University
, DBR collaborated with Philip Glass
in Seen & Heard: Philip Glass and DBR Together on Stage, Screen and in Sound. He also serves as the Artist-in-Residence of the Seattle Theater Group sponsored by Starbucks
.
Current projects include his 2007 debut season at BAM’s Next Wave Festival featuring One Loss Plus (his fifth evening-length solo show) for violin, video, and chamber ensemble; 24 Bits: Hip Hop Studies and Etudes and Event Pieces performed by DBR on piano and laptop; and Call Them All: Fantasy Projections for Film, Laptop, and Orchestra, his latest orchestral work which received its world premiere at Carnegie's Zankel Hall by the American Composers Orchestra. In etudes4violin&electronix, DBR’s debut solo album from Thirsty Ear Records, he works with notable musicians including Philip Glass
, Ryuichi Sakamoto
, DJ Spooky That Subliminal Kid and Christian A. Davis (aka DJ Scientific). This hybrid album offers a series of lyrical and pulsing duets and solo works geared towards the iPod generation. In 2008 an excerpt from One Loss Plus was included on the compilation album Crosstalk: American Speech Music
(Bridge Records) produced by Mendi + Keith Obadike
.
for the Performing Arts. DBR performed at the Other Minds
festival in San Francisco with the Del Sol String Quartet and DJ Scientific, A Civil Rights Reader for Strings, Laptop & DJ.
. DBR’s 24 Bits: Hip Hop Studies and Etudes were highlighted at the group's sold out Joe’s Pub performance---“true to form, these vary greatly in style, from slow, introspective Neo-Classical ruminations to rhythmically complicated, riffy pieces that would not be out of place in a dance club,” (New York Times). In honor of Black History Month, the band’s SQ Unit culminated a nationwide tour of DBR’s string quartet program, A Civil Rights Reader, at Washington DC’s Library of Congress.
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
, rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
, hip-hop and classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
into an energetic and experiential sonic form. DBR is of Haitian-American heritage and he attended Dillard Center for the Arts
Dillard High School
Dillard High School is a historic public high school located in Fort Lauderdale of Broward County, Florida. Dillard is available to all of Broward County. This school was established in 1907...
in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, on the Atlantic coast. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 165,521. It is a principal city of the South Florida metropolitan area, which was home to 5,564,635 people at the 2010...
. He received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named for shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided Vanderbilt its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the...
's Blair School of Music
Blair School of Music
The Blair School of Music provides undergraduate conservatory-style education in music performance, theory, and history at Vanderbilt University, a major research university located in Nashville, Tennessee...
and earned a doctorate in musical composition from the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
. He combines his classical music roots with a multicolored spectrum of contemporary black popular music. DBR's exploration of musical rhythms and pulsing sounds is frequently peppered by cultural references. His dramatic pieces range from orchestral scores and energetic chamber works to rock songs and electronica. He recently contributed a chapter to Sound Unbound: Sampling Digital Music and Culture (The MIT Press, 2008) edited by Paul D. Miller a.k.a. DJ Spooky
DJ Spooky
Paul D. Miller , known by his stage name DJ Spooky, That Subliminal Kid, is a Washington DC-born electronic and experimental hip hop musician whose work is often called by critics or his fans as "illbient" or "trip hop". He is a turntablist, a producer, a philosopher, and an author...
.
DBR is married and has a one year-old son.
Composer
As a composer, DBR has collaborated with an array of orchestras and chamber ensembles; the orchestras of Dallas, Des Moines, MemphisMemphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, San Antonio, St. Louis, and most recently the Chicago Sinfonietta
Chicago Sinfonietta
The Chicago Sinfonietta is an American orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. The stated mission of the orchestra is to "serve as a national model for inclusiveness and innovation in classical music" and to "help America become a true cultural democracy, in which everyone can share fully in its...
, the Brooklyn Philharmonic
Brooklyn Philharmonic
The Brooklyn Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, commonly known as the Brooklyn Philharmonic, is an American orchestra based in the borough of Brooklyn, in New York City...
, the North Dutch Orchestra, and the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra have performed or commissioned his works, and Bill T. Jones and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s regularly collaborate with him---DBR is the Music Director of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company
Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company
The Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company is an American dance company based out of Harlem in New York City. Founded in 1983 by Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane, the company made its debut performance at the Brooklyn Academy of Music with the world premiere of Intuitive Momentum with lauded drummer...
and the Assistant Composer-in-Residence of the OSL. As Artist-in-Residence at Arizona State University
Arizona State University
Arizona State University is a public research university located in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area of the State of Arizona...
, DBR collaborated with Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass is an American composer. He is considered to be one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century and is widely acknowledged as a composer who has brought art music to the public .His music is often described as minimalist, along with...
in Seen & Heard: Philip Glass and DBR Together on Stage, Screen and in Sound. He also serves as the Artist-in-Residence of the Seattle Theater Group sponsored by Starbucks
Starbucks
Starbucks Corporation is an international coffee and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 17,009 stores in 55 countries, including over 11,000 in the United States, over 1,000 in Canada, over 700 in the United Kingdom, and...
.
Current projects include his 2007 debut season at BAM’s Next Wave Festival featuring One Loss Plus (his fifth evening-length solo show) for violin, video, and chamber ensemble; 24 Bits: Hip Hop Studies and Etudes and Event Pieces performed by DBR on piano and laptop; and Call Them All: Fantasy Projections for Film, Laptop, and Orchestra, his latest orchestral work which received its world premiere at Carnegie's Zankel Hall by the American Composers Orchestra. In etudes4violin&electronix, DBR’s debut solo album from Thirsty Ear Records, he works with notable musicians including Philip Glass
Philip Glass
Philip Glass is an American composer. He is considered to be one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century and is widely acknowledged as a composer who has brought art music to the public .His music is often described as minimalist, along with...
, Ryuichi Sakamoto
Ryuichi Sakamoto
After working as a session musician with Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi in 1977, the trio formed the internationally successful electronic music band Yellow Magic Orchestra in 1978. Known for their seminal influence on electronic music, the group helped pioneer electronic genres such as...
, DJ Spooky That Subliminal Kid and Christian A. Davis (aka DJ Scientific). This hybrid album offers a series of lyrical and pulsing duets and solo works geared towards the iPod generation. In 2008 an excerpt from One Loss Plus was included on the compilation album Crosstalk: American Speech Music
Crosstalk: American Speech Music
Crosstalk: American Speech Music is a compilation album of speech-based music by various composers, poets, visual artists and DJs.- Track listing :# "Declaratives in First Person" – 5:04# "Electroprayer 5.0" Crosstalk: American Speech Music is a compilation album of speech-based music by various...
(Bridge Records) produced by Mendi + Keith Obadike
Mendi & Keith Obadike
Mendi Obadike and Keith Obadike are a married Igbo Nigerian American couple who create music and art. They were both born in 1973. Their music, live art, and conceptual Internet artworks have been exhibited internationally. Mendi is a poet and Keith is a composer and sound designer...
.
Violinist
As a violinist and performer, DBR performed his arrangements of Cassandra Wilson’s Glamoured with the jazz vocalist and her quintet while conducting the Seattle Symphony Orchestra and Buffalo Philharmonic; rocked with DJ Spooky at the Lincoln Center Summer Festival and premiered a ground-breaking fusion of incompatible cultures and instruments with DJ Scientific in DBR’s Sonata for Violin and Turntables at the Melbourne Arts Festival and Vancouver’s PuSh International Performing Arts FestivalPuSh International Performing Arts Festival
The PuSh International Performing Arts Festival is held in Vancouver, British Colombia each year. Produced over 20 days each January, the PuSh Festival presents work in the live performing arts: theatre, dance, music and various hybrid forms of performance...
for the Performing Arts. DBR performed at the Other Minds
Other Minds
Other Minds is a San Francisco based private 501 not-for-profit organization, founded in 1992 by Charles Amirkhanian and Jim Newman...
festival in San Francisco with the Del Sol String Quartet and DJ Scientific, A Civil Rights Reader for Strings, Laptop & DJ.
Band Leader
As a band leader, he presents lively, genre-jumping shows with DBR & THE MISSION; nine young, multi-cultural musicians including an amplified string quartet, drum kit, keyboard, DJ, and laptops. Described as “an evening of chamber music with the accessible feel of a rock concert,” the band’s multi-disciplinary performances have been applauded at Washington D.C.'s Kennedy Center, Miami’s Caleb Auditorium, NYC’s Cutting Room, Chicago’s Northwestern University, Arizona State University's Gammage Auditorium, Montclair’s Kasser Theater, Reno’s ArtTown Festival, and as part of Boston’s Bank of America Celebrity SeriesCelebrity Series of Boston
The Celebrity Series of Boston is a non-profit performing arts presenter established in Boston, Massachusetts by Boston impresario Aaron Richmond in 1938 as Aaron Richmond's Celebrity Series....
. DBR’s 24 Bits: Hip Hop Studies and Etudes were highlighted at the group's sold out Joe’s Pub performance---“true to form, these vary greatly in style, from slow, introspective Neo-Classical ruminations to rhythmically complicated, riffy pieces that would not be out of place in a dance club,” (New York Times). In honor of Black History Month, the band’s SQ Unit culminated a nationwide tour of DBR’s string quartet program, A Civil Rights Reader, at Washington DC’s Library of Congress.
Discography
- etudes4violin&electronix (2007).
- Pulsing (2006).
- I, Composer (2004).
- String Quartet (2004).