Jason Danielson will be joined by Kansas City-based percussionist John Kizilarmut. Two monsters of the midwest in their own right, these musicians frequently collaborated in many bands before Kizilarmut moved to KC a few years back. Come sit back & enjoy two masters of their art perform in a duo setting.
Jason Danielson has studied with Dr. Robert Washut at the University of Northern Iowa and Susie Miget in Des Moines. Jason has performed with Aretha Franklin, Claudio Roditi, Dick Oatts, The Mingus Dynasty, Paul McKee, Frank Perowsky, Pat Harbison, and the Jimmy Dorsey Big Band; he also opened for B.B. King, Jason Lindner, and The Manhattan Transfer, and has performed two solo shows with Iowa Public Television. He has been a member of the orchestra pit for the national tours of “West Side Story,” “The Producers,” “Wicked,” and “Jersey Boys” at the Des Moines Civic Center and has also played and conducted local productions of “Jingle Bell Bash,” “The Wiz,” and “Little Shop of Horrors.” Locally, he is pianist, arranger, and musical director for Fred Gazzo, with weekly gigs at Sam and Gabe’s Italian Bistro as well as festivals, weddings, and parties. Locally, Jason performs with such artists as the Des Moines Big Band, Dave Rezek, Scott Davis, Tony Valdez, Susie Miget, Jim Oatts, Dave Camwell, and others, and has been a performer, clinician and/or judge for the Coe College, Hoover, NEIBA, and Indian Hills jazz festivals, as well as a faculty member at the Simpson College Jazz Camp. Jason’s recording credits as a player include “Let’s Play One” and “Landmark” with the Des Moines Big Band, Scott Davis’s “Skywalk,” and “At Dusk,” “Leap of Faith,” and “West Coasting” with Northern Iowa’s Jazz Band One. As pianist, arranger, and musical director, Jason has collaborated with Fred Gazzo on “All the Way,” “The Good Life,” and “Christmas Dreams.” Jason also has an MA in History from Iowa State University and researches and writes on the music of the Civil Rights Movement; he has also given presentations for Des Moines Public Schools’ professional development workshops and the National Council for History Educators’ annual conference on the music of the Civil Rights Movement and the use of music as a primary source in the social studies classroom.
Mr. John Kizilarmut holds a BSEd in Instrumental Music Education from Northwest Missouri State University and a MM in Percussion Performance-Jazz Emphasis from the University of Texas at Austin. He has recorded with a wide range of artists, from jazz pianist Anthony Belfiglio to the Grammy Award winning DJ Starscream. John has also worked professionally with several jazz luminaries, including Branford Marsalis, Ron Westray and Slide Hampton.
In May 2006, John presented a clinic entitled "Jazz Vibraphone for the College Percussionist" and performed with drummer Greg Bissonette at the East Central University Day of Percussion. He has also been active in DCI, both as an instructor and arranger for several Drum Corps.