Jazz at Lincoln Center and the U.S. Department of State Bureau
of Educational and Cultural Affairs presents The Rhythm Road
The DANA LEONG BAND has been selected for The
Rhythm Road: American Music Abroad program.
Dana Leong isn't your average cellist. Sometimes referred to as a "hi-def Yo-Yo Ma," Dana has revolutionized the classic cello with cutting-edge techniques, jazz and hip-hop textures, and signature improvisations. In a way, Dana's hybrid artistic vision represents the melding of all kinds of music in one unique form.
ASIANCE MAGAZINE: Dana Leong Interview By Tanya Sangpun Thamkruphat June 2008
Innovative, eclectic, and superb are just a few words to describe the amazing musical concoctions that New York musician, Dana Leong, creates. At only the age of 28, his music has caught the attention of music lovers and music professionals alike. He has been able to captivate an assortment of music genres and skillfully blend them together.
NEW YORK MAGAZINE: Saturday Night Live
(A SearchFor New Party Music)
May 11, 2008
The catholic taste of Dana Leong and his collaborators was on full
display at BAMcafé, with a live
Stevie Wonder remix, a cover of
indie band Firewater, and plenty
of rapping. Equally impressive
was the diverse crowd it got
moving—a mix of gray curls, flowing caftans, dapper
Fonzworth Bentley–style suits, and quite a few zip hoodies.
"Cellist and composer Dana Leong is all about melting-pot.
He is of both Chinese and Japanese descent. And his music mixes
jazz with funk, hip-hop and electronica. He brings his band for
a live performance in the studio."
THE WASHINGTON TIMES: Jazzing up America's image abroad
By Jenny Mayo
April 11, 2008
New York City-based musician Dana Leong's quartet does a little bit of both these uniquely American styles [Hip Hop and Jazz] and had the chance to play a State Department tour of Southeast Asia last year. "Most of the people we met had never been outside their city or country before," he says.
ALL ABOUT JAZZ:Dana Leong: No Boundaries
By Franz A. Matzner
February 26, 2008
"Whether on the cello, trombone or laptop, whether playing
straight-up jazz, classical, or the many hybrid concoctions
his work has already produced, Dana Leong seems to
acknowledge no boundaries."
AsiaExpress.com:
Anthems of Life Review
Top 5 Albums of the Year By Joe Nguyen
January 2008
"Cellos and trombones aren't exactly instruments that are
typically associated with hip-hop, but Dana Leong isn't one to
stay inside the box. Top 5 albums of 2007!"
ALL ABOUT JAZZ:
Anthems of Life Review By Lyn Horton
December 2007
"The songs find their origins in hip-hop, but this is no
surprise. It is actually comforting that an artist of this generation
has instilled his poetry with universal vision; a vision that
permeates the state of art, music, race and the world to life
them up and bring them to an attention that is broad, and not
simply for a select few."
"Dana Leong is here to rescue you from your jaded cynicism
about the US3s and Groove Collectives of the world. Jazz can still
be funky and danceable, and hip-hop can most certainly still be
artistic and built around--dare we say it--song structure...If
the federal government's stamp approval doesn't cut it for you,
take ours: Dana Leong is one to watch."
MP3.COM VIDEO INTERVIEW Dana recently visited MP3.COM's offices in San Francisco to talk with editor Jim Welte. Check out the links below and find out more about Dana's new album Anthems of Life, the wide array of artists he's worked with, and much more. Watch Part 1 & Part 2 Now!
