User talk:Dani Cortaza

Dani Cortaza is a Argentinian, Latin Jazz, Brazilian Jazz, South American folklore Guitarist, Arranger and composer.

Cortaza, while living in his native Argentine, was influenced by jazz musicians Wes Montgomery, George Benson, Lee Ritenour.

Dani Cortaza has three decades of artistic life to his credit. This talented musician specializes in Brazilian, Latin jazz and South America folklore, in both nylon and electric jazz guitar. In addition, he also performs, composes and arranges Latin American folk music.

He has appeared in many prestigious concert venues around the world, namely in Japan, Europe, South America and the United States.

After two decades of highly acclaimed worldwide performances with a variety of musicians and bands, a special Kennedy Center concert brought this Argentinean native to Washington DC in 2002, where he now resides. Dani is the founder of two dynamic musical groups specializing in Latin jazz and Brazilian music, which he directs.

He has appeared in concert with flautist Nestor Torres and jazz pianist Dick Morgan, and with his own band at Blues Alley, the Smithsonian Jazz Cafe, Silver Spring Jazz Festival and Gala Theater, just to name a few venues.

One of his present projects includes creating new compositions and arrangements of South American folk music combined with jazz elements. Based on this work, in August, 2012, he received a grant from FONDEC (Paraguayan National Endowment for the Arts) to produce his most recently released CD Together/Oñondivé, Cortaza, which includes some of his own compositions and arrangements of Paraguayan and South American folk music combined with elements of jazz.

In September, 2014, Dani and his group were invited by the US State Department to represent the United States at the Asunción Jazz Festival in Paraguay, including a tour of several cities. During the same trip, the group played the release concerts for the CD Together/Oñondivé in Asunción and Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Dani Cortaza owns a professional recording studio, InTune Recording based in Adelphi, MD. www.intunerecording.com

Life and career
Dani Cortaza was born in Buenos Aires]. As a forteen-year-old boy in Buenos Aires, Cortaza played Guitar with street musicians. He Formed the first own group in 1986, Trio Nostalgias [[ . He toured worldwide with his own group in 1996 Dani Cortaza has performed Latin jazz with [[], ---etc

Awards:

 * 2007 Maryland State Arts Council’s “Artistic Excellence” Awards,(Best Performers and Arranger in the Instrumental Music)
 * 2017 Maryland State Arts Council’s “Artistic Excellence” Awards, (Best Composer in the Word Music category)