Percussionist and UW professor Tom Collier and bassist Dan Dean celebrate their 50-year musical partnership with an evening of music from throughout their performance career, joined by drummer Ted Poor, UW artist-in-residence.
ARTIST BIOS
Thomas Collier, percussion
Director of percussion studies at the University of Washington School of Music since 1980, associate professor Tom Collier has performed and recorded with many important classical, jazz, and popular artists, in addition to recording and performing with his own jazz group. He is a veteran of more than 50 years in music -- his first public appearance was at age five, on xylophone, and his first professional performances were made as a nine-year-old marimba virtuoso.
Collier has also established a reputation as a jazz/percussion composer, with many of his compositions for jazz percussion ensemble published by Studio 4 Productions and distributed by Alfred Music. He has won 15 consecutive ASCAP Popular Panel Awards for his jazz and percussion compositions.
Collier has recorded several educational albums for Music Minus One and Studio 4 Productions, as well as presenting more than 300 jazz concerts in public schools around Washington for the Arts in Education Program, Washington State Arts Commission. The National Association of Jazz Educators presented him with an "Outstanding Service to Jazz Education" award in 1980.
A UW alumnus, Collier graduated from the School of Music in 1971 with a BA/BM in percussion performance.
Dan Dean, bass
Dan Dean has achieved national and international recognition as a bassist, producer, composer, and as an audio and recording engineer.
He has performed with the some of the finest musicians and musical organizations of our time, including: Shelly Manne, Howard Roberts, The Great Guitars (Herb Ellis, Charlie Byrd, Barney Kessell), Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson, B.B. King, Eddie Harris, Blue Mitchell and Harold Land, Buddy DeFranco, Donny Hathaway, Tom Scott, Dave Grusin, Don Grusin, Ernestine Anderson, Bill (William O.) Smith, Ernie Watts, the Seattle Symphony, Walt Wagner, Seattle Opera, Freddie Hubbard, Bill Mays, Della Reese, Emil Richards/Joe Porcaro and many others.
Dean also has been a major contributor to music education. He is the author of the widely successful Hal Leonard Series for Electric Bass Method Books 1, 2 and 3, Hal Leonard Electric Bass Studio Series Books 1, 2 and 3, Bass Trax and other related projects. He has been a member of the teaching faculties in Jazz studies and Electric Bass, of Western Washington University, Olympic College and Shoreline College. Dean received his B.A. in 1975 from the University of Washington where he majored in English Composition and Literature.