Dave Pietro (born February 10, 1964) is a

saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pro ...

woodwind Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and re ...

artist, bandleader, sideman, composer and educator. A native of

Southboro, Massachusetts Southborough is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It incorporates the villages of Cordaville, Fayville, and Southville. Its name is often informally shortened to Southboro, a usage seen on many area signs and maps, though ...

, he has been on the

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

music scene since 1987. From 1994–2003 Dave played lead alto saxophone and recorded six CDs with the

Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Orchestra Toshiko is a feminine Japanese given name. Possible writings *敏子 "agile/clever, child" *俊子 "genius, child" *淑子 "graceful/polite, child" *寿子 "longevity, child" *年子 "year/age, child" *歳子 "age/time, child" *稔子 "humble, ch ...

. He has toured and/or recorded with the bands of

Woody Herman Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) was an American jazz clarinetist, saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading groups called "The Herd", Herman came to prominence in the late 1930s and was active until his dea ...

, Lionel Hampton, Maynard Ferguson,

Maria Schneider Maria Schneider may refer to: * Maria Schneider (politician) (born 1923), East German politician * Maria Schneider (actress) (1952–2011), French actress * Maria Schneider (musician) Maria Lynn Schneider (born November 27, 1960) is an Americ ...

, The Village Vanguard Jazz Orchestra,

John Fedchock John William Fedchock (born September 18, 1957) is an American jazz trombonist, bandleader, and arranger. Early life and education Fedchock was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He studied at Ohio State University and the Eastman School of Music at the ...

Mike Holober Mike Holober (born April 21, 1957) is an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and educator. Holober moved to New York in 1986, and worked as a composer and sideman pianist. After working with baritone saxophonist Nick Brignola in the late ...

, Anita Brown, Pete McGuinness, Jim Widner and Arturo O'Farrill. Pietro has also performed with may other well known musicians such as Paul Anka, Louis Bellson, Blood Sweat & Tears, Bobby Caldwell, Ray Charles, Rosemary Clooney, Harry Connick Jr., Michael Feinstein, Chaka Khan, Liza Minnelli, James Naughton, John Pizzarelli and

Dave Matthews Band Dave Matthews Band (also known by the initials DMB) is an American rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1991. The band's founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer and bac ...

. Dave also studies East Indian music and has performed with various groups led by Indian tablist

Sandip Burman Sandip Burman is a tabla player from Durgapur, West Bengal, India. After his initial training with Shri Sudhir Roy, he began a long discipleship with Pandit Shymal Bose. Sandip's performances are marked with spontaneous innovation and tonal ...

. As a leader, Dave has released six CDs with musicians such as Dave Holland, Kenny Werner, Ben Monder, Bill Stewart, Brian Blade, Scott Colley, Scott Wendholt, Duduka De Fonseca, Helio Alves and Pete McCann. ''Now Becoming Then'' (1999 A-Records) was called a "rich feast for listeners" by Bill Bennett of Jazz Times. ''Standard Wonder-The Music of Stevie Wonder'' (A-Records) was voted one of the top 10 jazz CDs of 2001 by Bob Blumenthal of the Boston Globe and Bill Milkowski of Jazz Times and received 4 stars from Downbeat magazine. Pietro's fifth CD ''Embrace: Impressions of Brazil'' (2004 A-Records) "is a triumph ... one of the most satisfying Brazilian jazz mixes since the first bossa nova tsunami" according to Judith Schlesinger of AllAboutJazz.com. Dave was selected as a semi-finalist for the first two

Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz The Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz is a non-profit music education organization founded in 1986. Before 2019, it was known as the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, but was then renamed after its longtime board chairman, Herbie Hancock. The i ...

International Saxophone Competitions (1991 & 1996) and was a finalist in the 1995 '' JAZZIZ Magazine'' "Woodwinds on Fire" talent search. In 1996 he was the recipient of a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. In 2005 and 2007 he received grants from Chamber Music America's New Works Programs to compose and perform his new extended work ''The Chakra Suite'' (2008-Challenge). Featuring Gary Versace, Rez Abbasi, Todd Isler, Johannes Weidenmueller and Adam Cruz it was voted one of the top CDs of 2008 by All About Jazz Pietro received a bachelor's degree in music education from

North Texas State University The University of North Texas (UNT) is a Public university, public research university in Denton, Texas. It was founded as a nonsectarian, coeducational, private Normal school, teachers college in 1890 and was formally adopted by the state 11 y ...

where he toured and recorded four albums with the school's

One O'Clock Lab Band One O'Clock Lab Band is an ensemble of the Jazz Studies division at the University of North Texas College of Music in Denton, Texas. Since the 1970s, the band's albums have received seven Grammy Award nominations, including two for ''Lab 2009''. ...

. He has a Master of Arts degree in

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

composition from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

where he currently holds the position of Music Assistant Professor of Jazz Studies. Dave has given hundreds of workshops and concerts at schools around the country and is sponsored by Rico Reeds and the Conn-Selmer Instrument Company.

External links

All Music AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

br>Dave Pietro's websiteInterview on The World Music Foundation Podcast
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pietro, Dave American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists University of North Texas College of Music alumni Jazz musicians from Massachusetts Living people 1964 births 21st-century American saxophonists 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians ArtistShare artists