Captivating harmonies, pulsing melodies, intricately simple rhythms, and mastered songs that sub-consciously leave a listener humming the same music days later gives a partial description of what makes Dana “DAS” Solomon the music producer that he is today.
One of DAS close partners, JeMar Dixon, has a few words to describe his image as a producer, “What Dana brings to a project is a knowledge and love of music. While most so-called producers think that producing is “making a beat”, Dana knows the distinction. He is extremely competent when it comes to production duties. He clearly knows what he’s doing, and knows how to get the best out of an artist. He is versatile, and adds musicality to tracks that....
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Bio
Captivating harmonies, pulsing melodies and intricately simple rhythms symbolize Dana “DAS” Solomon’s work. On every project, the SESAC/NARAS-affiliated keyboardist and music producer creates an original, electrifying sound that has the listener humming days later.
Music always has played a huge role in this Georgia native’s life.
DAS (pronounced “Daz”) grew up on a steady diet of his father’s old vinyl collection, listening to the Motown and jazz legends of the time such as The Temptations, The Four Tops and Miles Davis. In elementary and high school, his musical interests bloomed and he played the drums, trumpet, trombone and baritone.
DAS went on to attend West Chester University, in suburban Philadelphia, as a music education major in piano and voice minor, with a classical music curriculum. It is in college he honed his craft, becoming an expert in music theory, harmony and composition.
“This formal training helps me everyday as a producer because I’m so disciplined when it comes to instrumental and vocal arrangements,” DAS said. “I’m very meticulous in recording and in taking a serious attitude in the quality of what I produce. I would never give anyone a piece of my work that I’m unsure of. If I don’t feel 100 percent confident in what I’ve done, then I couldn’t possibly expect anyone else to have much confidence in my product either.”
Since college, his professional career has taken an impressive path. DAS worked as an apprentice for Bill Jolly, who was keyboardist and composer for the late jazz legend Grover Washington Jr.
“Learning from him gave me vast experience in audio engineering, arranging, production techniques, and something that no single textbook can explain to you — how to deal with people,” said DAS, citing Quincy Jones, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Teddy Riley, L.A. Reid and Babyface, and Dave Foster as other musical influences.
Taking his skills to the next level, DAS produced and mixed a full 14-track album by independent South Jersey artist Ashley Greenwood. He also has done two major label dance remixes on spec: “Spanish Faster” by Geffen Records’ alternative rock group ‘Ringside’ and “Down Here in Hell” by Capitol Records’ R&B singer ‘Van Hunt’. Additionally, DAS has placed two instrumental tracks with HARPO Productions featured in “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” And not so long ago, DAS completed the score for an original independent film named “Behind These Doors”, produced and directed by Wilfredo Manzano, for Manzano Productions in Philadelphia, PA.
DAS uses a Macintosh computer with many pro audio applications as well as different hardware synthesizers and audio processing hardware for his production needs. He can arrange, record and edit any digital record project from his current South Jersey home office.
But despite all the technological advances, he never lets the computer do all the work. “As beneficial as these things can be, I always remember that I’m a musician first,” DAS notes. “All these devices can’t make good music by themselves. They’re just tools to help me create what I do best, and that is music.”