Brooklyn-born Dan Levine grew up in a musical family steeped in old standards, classical music and jazz. His teachers include Charles Levine , Donald Yaxley, Buddy Baker, Roy Main,and Ralph Sauer . He toured the world as lead trombonist of the Ray Charles band. Upon returning to New York City he became one of the most active players in the Broadway, studio, and live performance scenes. Dan has performed everywhere from CBGB's and the Blue Note to The Hollywood Bowl and Carnegie Hall., and has toured the world and recorded with They Might be Giants, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Liza Minnelli, Frank Sinatra, and Blood Sweat and Tears. TV and Radio appearance include, Letterman, The Tonight Show, Conan, This American Life, The Today Show, CBS This Morning, Good Morning America, and Prairie Home Companion. He can be heard on numerous TV shows, commercials, and CD’s As a "gun for hire", he has also appeared with James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Don Henley, Natalie Cole, Levon Helm and The MidnightRamble, Bon Jovi, and many others. Dan can be heard on recordings with Bjork, Rufus Wainwright, David Byrne, Jay-Z, Natalie Merchant, Tori Amos, Natalie Cole, Bruce Springsteen, Jonathan Coulton, Miss Velvet and The Blue Wolf, They Might be Giants, Coheed And Cambria, Darlene Love, and Phillip Glass. His arranging, composition, music production can be heard on PBS, A&E, NPR All Things Considered, Playhouse Disney, Sesame Street, Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, David Byrne, Fatboy Slim.
Dan is a Yamaha performing artist and proudly endorses Pickett Mouthpieces.
Hear what Dan has to say about his great new models:
(1) The “Live 1” model small-shank tenor mouthpiece...This has been my staple for rock, and pop as well as demanding lead parts. The efficiency is unreal, but never at the expense of a fat, brilliant, and rich sound. It has an unabashedly aggressive power curve… It hooks up with the brighter rock-oriented trumpet and sax sounds. When playing in a loud big-band or rock environment, you will hear yourself and be heard.
(2) The “STUDIO ” is also a small-shank tenor mouthpiece. Clear, dense, precise fat sound with projection and efficiency and wonderful flexibility and response in all ranges. This is the mouthpiece I used on the Blood Sweat and Tears Tours, and it’s my go-to for most work around town. It’s designed to be versatile and meet the demands of whatever piece of music is put on the stand!
(2) The “DBLR” Bass trombone mouthpiece. For years I wondered if a bass trombone mouthpiece could be made to address the unique demands of doubling between tenor and bass trombone. It needs to be efficient AND sound great, with no sacrifice in clarity or ease in any register. Another goal was to create a mouthpiece that facilitates ease of the quick-switching which is demanded in a Broadway pit: the mouthpiece needs to have a bit of “purchase” on the face…..not feel too huge or slip around. Pickett did it. This mouthpiece is not huge, yet there is zero panic getting out the (normally) challenging low C’s and B’s. Again, the efficiency is unreal. The sound is an alive, focused, and fat bass voice at ALL volumes. You don’t have to blow the walls down to be heard!
The 6.7 series for tenor trombone are designed for the player who uses a medium-sized mouthpiece in the 6 1/2 A size range, but would like something that is more modern, consistent, and efficient.
The 6.7M is designed specifically for mid-bore .525 trombones such as the Bach 36, Yamaha 646, and Conn 78. It absolutely brings these horns to life. A fat, centered and clear tone, effortless attacks and articulation, and never “tubby”. The efficiency is by far the best I have ever experienced with a mouthpiece in this size range. A perfect match.
The 6.7S utilizes the same rim and cup, making it the perfect companion mouthpiece to the 6.7 for those who switch back and forth between medium and smaller horns. The difference is that throat and back-bore are optimized for small tenors in the .500 bore range such as the King 2b and 3b, Yamaha 891z, Bach 8,12,16, Conn 6H, etc.
This provides a big and focused sound on the smaller horns, but again: never tubby or dull.
