Born in Oakland in 1955, Dan Brubeck was a highly energetic child who found his calling at the trap set. Mentored by two consummate polyrhythmic masters, Joe Morello and Alan Dawson at the Berklee College of Music, he was working professionally before he was out of his teens.

Over the years Dan was featured on nearly a dozen albums with his father, the great Dave Brubeck, and toured widely with the Dave Brubeck Quartet, including many appearances with the world’s leading orchestras. He’s been an integral part of the various Brubeck bands, including the Darius Brubeck Ensemble, Two Generations of Brubeck, and the New Brubeck Quartet. He’s toured internationally and recorded three widely played albums with his electric jazz group, The Dolphins, and co-led the Brubeck LaVerne Trio with his brother Chris and pianist Andy LaVerne. A stylistically versatile musician, he’s toured with acts ranging from The Band and David Benoit to Gerry Mulligan and Paul Desmond. He’s recorded with jazz guitar legend Larry Coryell, singer/songwriter Livingston Taylor, jazz-pop singer Michael Franks, and pioneering blues guitarist Roy Buchanan.

Dan’s drumming style is both mesmerizing and unparalleled, and his astonishingly textured drum solos have received standing ovations all over the world. His uncanny sense of timing and use of odd time signatures, combining melodic phrases with polyrhythms that often stretch far beyond the bar line, has earned the respect of jazz critics worldwide.

Dan continues to perform and record with his siblings—Chris Brubeck, a bassist, trombonist, and noted composer, in the Brubeck Brothers Quartet, and pianist/composer Darius Brubeck in Brubecks Play Brubeck. Dan also plays with the Vancouver-based Dan Brubeck Quartet (DBQ), featuring vocal powerhouse Adam Thomas. The DBQ recently released Celebrating the Music and Lyrics of Dave and Iola Brubeck, which showcases his father’s music and little-known lyrics of his mother. This recording was nominated for a coveted Juno Award in 2016.

This is the Dan Brubeck Quartet’s first appearance on the Litchfield Jazz Festival. Bandmates include Dan and Tony Foster, piano, Steve Kaldestad, saxophone, and Adam Thomas on bass and vocals.