Daniel Hersog

Daniel Hersog, acclaimed by All About Jazz as “a major new compositional voice in jazz,” is a distinguished composer and performer and the winner of the Jazz Times Magazine poll award for best composer in 2020. His debut album, “Night Devoid of Stars,” received considerable praise, and his 2023 follow-up, “Open Spaces (Folk Songs Reimagined),” was lauded by Downbeat Magazine for “finding opportunity in virgin land.” Jazz Times highlighted Hersog’s talent in this album, stating, “Daniel Hersog has a gift for expressive orchestral writing… directly in the lineage of great jazz composers like Gil Evans… He is a great talent and this album is a remarkable work.” Jazzwise acknowledged Hersog’s ensemble as being able to “handle musical freedom just as readily as the tightest, most subtly nuanced arrangement.” Furthermore, The Vancouver Sun praised Daniel for “breathing new energy into the big-band sound.” The Guardian listed Daniel Hersog in the company of distinguished composers Steve Lehman, Henry Threadgill, and Maria Schneider.

Hersog is not only a performer and composer but also an educator. As a graduate of the New England Conservatory and the recipient of the Gunther Schuller Medal, Hersog holds the positions of academic coordinator and instructor in the jazz studies program at Capilano University, and also has a faculty appointment at the VSO School of Music.

In addition to his recorded music, Hersog has been a part of large and small ensembles performing at notable venues such as the Vancouver International Jazz Festival, Frankie’s Jazz Club, The Zinc Bar (New York City), Shape Shifter Lab (New York City), The Lilypad (Boston), and The Rex (Toronto