Damien Masterson
Damien Z. Masterson (born August 11, 1970 in Berkeley ) is an American harmonica player who fuses jazz and world music .
Live and act
Masterson grew up in a total of 22 children's homes. At the age of 14 he discovered Sonny Boy Williamson , Little Walter and Sonny Terry and began to play the blues harp himself . At the age of 16 he was given an alto saxophone and took lessons. He transferred the knowledge gained to the chromatic harmonica . Two years later he went to Laney College, where he studied with Elvo D'Amante, Ed Kelley and Jay Lehman. Then he attended California State University-Hayward , where he took part in an exchange program and studied with Maurício Einhorn in Brazil . He developed his own style, a danceable, Brazilian-influenced jazz funk , which he perfected back in California. In 1996 his debut album was released. At the same time he visited Cuba several times and included the local music in his playing. From 2009 he traveled repeatedly to Africa, where he was particularly fascinated by the Senegalese Mbalax . He can also be heard in the soundtrack of the film Psychonauts and on albums by Kitty Margolis , Rad., Gerald Beckett, The Coup , Spacetime Continuum , Anna Estrada and Marco Diaz. He built a studio in Dakar , where he now lives with his family.
Discographic notes
- Intercambio (1996)
- Cubacambio (1997, ed. 1999)
- Scrapbook (2004)
- Blue World Order (2005)
- All Over the Map (2009)
Web links
- Web presence
- Beyond the blues
- Damien Masterson at Allmusic (English)
- Damien Masterson at Discogs (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Birth entry (archived) ( Memento from January 28, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Masterson, Damien |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Masterson, Damien Z. |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American harmonica player |
| DATE OF BIRTH | August 11, 1970 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Berkeley |