 | |
|
| Q. | what does the future hold? |
| A. | the future is looking very musical and busy to say the least. this is what i think will happen 2007:
touring! there is nothing like getting out there and playing music for families. therefore, a lot of concerts in a lot of places! the confirmed schedule is up in the tour section (click here) of our website. i hope that we hear you singing along at the top of your lungs and see you out on the dance floor! p.s. we have a visit to london in april, so let you uk friends and family know.
a new cd in the works! ¡escuchen, todos! the next cd in my head and about to jump out of my it the recording machines. this next one is a family music record of the songs of the spanish speaking americas. i am digging up of a mix of 21 century all ages folk music, but in spanish. i am studying spanish and working on my pronunciation.
television! our friends at disney, sesame street and noggin continue to broadcast the music videos we made. we are working with disney to develop more musical television, so stay tuned!
ring tones! hello hello hello! coming soon! |
|
| Q. | how can i buy a dan zanes and friends cd? |
| A. | we're trying to get our cds into as many stores as possible. border's, barnes & noble and walmart are generally well stocked (call first) and we're also in a number of smaller local outlets. if you have any suggestions of places that would do well with dan zanes and friends please let us know. if you want to order online the dan zanes general store is now open!
(click here)
|
|
| Q. | did i see you on tv?
|
| A. | yes! we have several videos on the air these days. you can find many of them in the video section (click here) of our website
we had a wild time shooting four new videos for disney playhouse last spring. let's shake, malti catch that train and down in the valley with the ever so fun father of all geese, father goose.
earlier favorites that got their start on noggin have also found a new home on the disney channel: smile, hello, house party and all around the kitchen.
for sesame street, i made a video of "jump up" with the band (and my daughter on the banjo-ukulele!) it was shot by our friend and visual hero, arthur elgort. there is also an animated version of "go down emmanuel road" by the sandy girls from the "rocket ship beach" cd. the animation was based on donald saaf's paintings. i didn't think it was possible that a cartoon would make me so happily emotional but it did.
|
|
| Q. | can i suggest places for you to play in my town? |
| A. | please do! the grassroots approach to getting out into the country has worked very well for us. we really appreciate your thoughts and suggestions. these e-mails are read (always) and if they pertain to shows are then forwarded to our booking agents at pomegranate arts: info@pomarts.com. they try to work out as many as are humanly possible. we want to see you! please understand, though, that our schedule does not allow us to play private events or birthday parties. |
|
| Q. | where is cynthia? |
| A. | we were so lucky to have the amazingly talented cynthia hopkins in the band for as long as we did. cynthia and her band gloria deluxe are hard at work on her new (grown up) show, which is traveling around the country. we miss her, but are happy to see the direction things are going in for her. for more about cynthia, please visit her website www.gloriadeluxe.com (click here)
|
|
| Q. | did barbara have a baby? |
| A. | yes! the beautiful magdalena was born in august 2006. barbara will be joining us at a few of the shows on the tour this spring. |
|
| Q. | do you have a myspace? |
| A. | yes. i am glad you asked. it's been a great way to connect and communicate on another level with more parents. www.myspace.com/danzanes |
|
| Q. | how can i find out about your upcoming shows and activities? |
| A. | upcoming shows are listed on the website. however, i would recommend joining our mailing list. it's a much more interesting way to get the information. i send out a monthly letter with show updates and other late breaking news. (click here to sign up)
it takes me a long time to write these emails and the more people that sign up the more inspired i become!
|
|
| Q. | will you consider playing a benefit show? |
| A. | we always try to be as useful as we can out in the world. unfortunately we do have to turn down many requests given the balancing act with touring time, family time and recording time. please direct inquiries to info@pomarts.com |
|
| Q. | will you play at birthday parties? |
| A. | the answer is no, except for friends and family. I don't have the time, but I have a better idea for you. call your friends that play instruments and ask them if they will put a birthday band together for the occasion. three or four songs can go a long way and it's very inspiring for people to see friends gather together to make music. don' let the professionals have all the fun. |
|
| Q. | can you recommend some places to buy musical instruments? |
| A. | i like local independent music stores when ever possible if they sell instruments of quality (fortunately quality doesn't always mean expensive).
for online shopping and knowledgeable customer service i like elderly instruments: www.elderly.com (click here). they have many good instruments, videos, and books for sale.
|
|
| Q. | my child seems very interested in learning an instrument, but i'm not sure where to start and on what instrument...any ideas? |
| A. | for children (and grown-ups for that matter)who want to learn a stringed instrument i usually suggest a good ukulele. it's the perfect instrument for little and big hands. ukes have a very rich history (always a plus in my book) and you can usually be playing songs sooner on a uke than on other larger stringed instruments.
i'm quite partial to "the fluke" and "the flea", which are plastic and wood hybrids, are very playable, and relatively inexpensive. they're handmade here in the usa by my friends the magic fluke company. i am such a fan of their products that i asked them to create a limited edition model dz flea!
whereever you are there are music teachers and players of instruments who have much to offer on this subject. ask them all! who wouldn't go out of their way to see an instrument in the hands every child and (and adult). |
|
| Q. | am i too young - or too old to play music? |
| A. | i'm not sure if there is a right age for beginning to play ( i got my first guitar at 8 and wrote my first song at 9. it was called "walking down the road" it had two chords) but one thing i do feel strongly about is that there is a place for everyone, young and old, when it comes to music making. usually the biggest obstacles are in the mind. grown-ups have been known to tell themselves that they aren't musical or that the sound of their voice is less than pleasing. these thoughts must be banished and replaced with the wild uninhibited spirit that we see so often in our children. everyone has a voice and there's always a way into the family and neighborhood band! |
|
| Q. | where can i find the lyrics and chords to play and sing along to your songs? |
| A. | you can find them in the lyrics and chords section (click here) of our website.
|
|
| Q. | do you have a favorite songbook? |
| A. | in my humble opinion "rise up singing" is the ultimate songbook. never run out of words again! 1200 of the most sung songs are here with chords. www.singout.org (click here). click "buy stuff." then click "rise up singing." make sure to get the spiral binding. get one for the car too! |
|
| Q. | i lost my del fuegos album - are the records still available? |
| A. | yes, there is one del fuegos recording in print, it's called "the del fuegos: the slash years" it's an english import which has most of the songs from first two records on it. it's available on amazon (click here) and my mother says it's great. for a real blast from the past, there's even a video or two up on youtube.com. |
|
| Q. | what's you favorite food? |
| A. | i have to admit that i eat a lot of organic corn chips out of a wooden bowl. why? i just love them. |
|
| Q. | what music do you listen too? |
| A. | a. lately i have been listening to country (jibaro) music of puerto rico |
|
| Q. | how does your hair get like that? |
| A. | i wash it with baking soda, could that be it? |
|
| Q. | how many different colored suits do you have? |
| A. | well i have a purple one, a yellow one, raspberry, a red one, a green one and i just found a pink corduroy suit. that makes six. they are actually pretty hard to find. i had a few made by mr. ned in manhattan. |
|
| Q. | what does the festival five folk series have to do with family music? |
| A. | everything! my guess is that as a society we play less music together now than at any point in recent history. my hope for all of the cds that we release is that they are a starting point for people to make their own music. people of all ages. if you've been to a show than you've probably heard me mention family bands or neighborhood bands. my message is that communal music making is not only wildly enjoyable but it's easy. it brings us together. it connects us with our past and points toward a brighter future. it's how we can learn about each other and it's available to everyone.
the festival five folk series, which began with "sea music" and continued with "parades and panoramas", is a way for me to spread songs that i love. i've included chords and lyrics in the cd books because these are tremendously social songs, made to be played. when dinner is over and it's time to get out your instruments or when you're at a beach party and sense a responsibility as a guest to supply some memorable musical moments, i hope that the festival five folk cds have in some way helped to fill your songbag and give you plenty of soulful ideas that are right for young and old folks alike.
as far as the themes in the songs of "sea music" and "parades and panoramas" there are some slightly different ones than you'll find in the dan zanes and friends family music cds. drowning, drunkenness, homesickness, all-out merrymaking, monkey's weddings, midnight trains, talking fish, and unrequited love all figure into these cds somewhere along the way. in other words they're no more inappropriate for family listening than, for example, a clancy brothers record.
|
|
| Q. | how can i ask you a question? |
| A. | you can ask me your question by sending me an email to dan@danzanes.com or going to the contact page (click here) on the website. every email comes to me on my home computer and i read everything right away. i have fallen way behind on answering but now my friend jerry is answering the emails for me. it is so inspiring to hear from you, so don't hesitate to send me you thoughts.
|
dz & friends
bios 