Professional guitarist, bassist & singer based in Brooklyn. Available for high quality electric, acoustic, and synth guitar; electric bass; & vocal tracking. I have 23 years of experience as a multi-instrumentalist and singer with a degree in Jazz Studies: Guitar. Are you a songwriter? Let me help flesh out your song and realize your vision.
“Who is the guy that immediately grabbed my undivided attention, and how dare he! If you take the vibey charisma and execution of Michael Franks’ vocal qualities and interweave them with some smooth soul-filled, Karate-esque jazz guitar, there you have it”
-Mike Abiuso, Behind the Curtains Media
Dan Saulpaugh's music defies genre, merging folk with modern jazz and classical guitar.
A graduate of City College's Jazz Studies program, and having studied classical guitar at SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music, Dan studied with many innovators in modern jazz and classical guitar, including Lage Lund, Brad Shepik, Pete McCann, Kenny Wessel, Paul Meyers, and Doug Rubio. He was a finalist in The Greene Space's 2015 Battle of the Burroughs - Bronx. His debut EP, Before the Fire Is Gone, is available for purchase on all platforms including Bandcamp, iTunes, and Amazon.
When not leading his own projects Dan collaborates with several New York City-based and international artists as a sideman and session player. He has recorded, performed and toured with artists such as Sammy Rae & The Friends, Ali Aslam & The Storytellers, Jenny Kern, Mari Solberg, Gabrielle Marlena and Tatyana Kalko, among others. He also co-hosts the monthly jam session Jamhattan at Harlem’s Silvana with drummer Luke Markham.
Tell me about your project and how I can help, through the 'Contact' button above.
Credits
AllMusic verified credits for Sammy RaeLanguages
- English
11 Reviews - 1 Repeat Client
Endorse Dan Saulpaugh
check_circleVerifiedI love working with Dan, he's an amazing guitarist and a real professional. I always love working with talented musicians who contribute so much to a project of mine. Thank you Dan!
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Dan is a real joy to work with. I have worked with Dan in the past and will continue to do so! Thank you Dan for yet another gem
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Working with Dan was an extremely smooth experience. I hope to work with Dan much much more in the future, as he is a great artist that contributed depth to my record. Thank you Dan!
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Dan is a joy to work with. Talented and committed to getting the job done!
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Dan is professional and easy to work with. He was able to complete the project with short time notice.
check_circleVerifiedThe bass Dan created for my track was perfect. Very tasteful and was exactly what the song needed. He's very easy to work. I'd definitely recommend him!
Dan came up with the goods even though the brief was probably not his usual thing! He persisted until I had the vocal take I needed. Definitely will be using Dan again👊🏻💥
Dan is a fantastic guitar and bass player and an even better human! He is highly professional and communicative. Ive worked with Dan over the last few years and have always been thrilled with the work he has done!
I hired Dan to play guitar on my debut EP and besides being a great guy to hang out with for a 10 hour recording session, he delivered exactly what I wanted. Dan is wonderfully flexible as a session player in terms of stylistic range and attitude and committed to making the music work for everyone. I didn't have specific parts written out so I was really looking for a guitarist who could improvise and discover the parts as we go and Dan did that brilliantly. He's equally versatile and professional for live performances.
Having worked with Dan over the past several years, I can confidently say he is a pleasure to work with. Not only is Dan a very talented musician and songwriter, but he is also hard-working, diligent, and a caring individual. He always brings his very best, and consistently strives to bring out the best in you. Highly recommended!
I have had the pleasure of employing Dan as a session player for both bass and guitar. He has a great attitude and is full of ideas that enhance that track and recording every time. I always love working with him!
Interview with Dan Saulpaugh
Q: What are you working on at the moment?
A: Aside from session work, I'm writing music for my next release as a bandleader. It's a genre bending album of instrumental guitar music.
Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?
A: Luke Markham - drums, Kyle Tupper - drums
Q: Analog or digital and why?
A: Both. Every kind of technology has possibilities and limitations. Exploring what those are with whatever tools you have is where true artistry comes from.
Q: What do you like most about your job?
A: The people I get to work with. I also love getting to experience so much different music and see it other people's eyes (or rather hear it through their ears). It keeps music fresh for me.
Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?
A: What music do you love? What artist or song do you think of when you think about the song you're working on? Why?
Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?
A: Becca Stevens - The way she writes her songs and each of the parts that make up those songs is like a tapestry. Her musical language encapsulates various folk music styles, contemporary jazz, and RnB/pop. I would love to collaborate with her and get under the hood of her creative process.
Q: What's your strongest skill?
A: Being a songwriter and bandleader myself I understand what the creative process is like from that side. I'm also classically trained, have a degree in jazz guitar, and 8 years of sideman & session experience in NYC. So, my greatest strength is understanding the process of bringing a song to life from both ends, as the artist and as the session player.
Q: What do you bring to a song?
A: I bring an openness to what each song wants paired with a deep theoretical background and experience playing across several genres to help fully realize the artist's vision.
Q: What's your typical work process?
A: I like to listen to my client's song(s) once and, based on their musical needs, choose some reference tracks. I then listen to those and go back to re-listen to the client's track(s). At that point I have a pretty clear idea of what the music wants and I play through the song(s) a few times. At that point I record my parts, edit them, and send them out. Sometimes there are follow-up edits after that.
Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?
A: My telecaster, a Vox AC30, my Line6 DL4, an AKG 414, and my computer
Q: What type of music do you usually work on?
A: I usually work across the whole range of the singer-songwriter genre. I play with more Americana and folk-oriented artists as well as songwriters on the more pop/rnb/neo-soul end of the spectrum.
Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?
A: Guitarists like Blake Mills and Cory Wong inspire me. I like how artists like that always play to serve the song, but also bring their own individual artistry to projects.
Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.
A: I often work with singer-songwriters to flesh out their songs with electric guitar and bass parts. Sometimes I also add additional acoustic guitars, synths, and background vocals.
I was the Songwriter, Guitarist, Singer, Co-Producer in this production
- Electric GuitarAverage price - $100 per song
- Acoustic GuitarAverage price - $100 per song
- Bass ElectricAverage price - $100 per song
- Singer - MaleAverage price - $100 per song
- Sufjan Stevens
- Radiohead
- Vulfpeck
- Guitars: Fender Telecaster
- Fender Stratocaster (HSS w/Roland GR-3 midi synth pickup & GR-20 synth module)
- Ibanez Artcore semi-hollow body
- Taylor acoustic
- & Kamouraska classical; Bass: Fender Jazz; Marshall and Roland Amps; Shure & AKG mics
