Biography:

Dom Minasi ( born March 6 , 1943 in New York City ; † August 1 , 2023 ^[1] ) was an American jazz guitarist , composer , band leader and music producer in the field of modern creative and improvised music .

Life and work 

Dom Minasi began his career backing vocal groups on rock and roll shows; he also founded his first jazz trio at the age of fifteen and worked as a music teacher from 1964. In 1973 he would get the opportunity to record for Blue Note Records . But the new United Artists management of the post- Alfred Lion era wanted to release him as a fusion musician; therefore he left the label after two albums.

From 1976 to 1993, Minasi worked mainly as a freelance musician, played a.o. with pianist Dennis Moorman and his organ quartet with Dr. LonnieSmith . He has also worked on a number of off-Broadway shows, written two books on jazz theory and one on improvisation. During this time he continued his studies at Lehman College . In 1990 he obtained a degree in composition theory . Since then he has written over 300 vocal and instrumental compositions and has taught creative writing and songwriting workshops.

In 1993 he began to perform more as a musician, working with the Manhattan Improvisational Chamber Ensemble (MICE) and on his own projects. Since then he has played in various projects with his wife Carol Mennie, Michael Jefry Stevens , Nobu Stowe , Blaise Siwula , Michael Bisio , trio with Ken Filiano and Jackson Krall ( Takin’ the Duke Out , 2002), ensemble DDT+2 with Tomas Ulrich , Ken Filiano, Jay Rosen and Carol Mennie, his organ quartet with Mark Whitecage , Kyle Koehler (organ) and John Bollinger, demJon Hemmersam/Dom Minasi Quartet with Ken Filiano and Kresten Osgood and the Dom Minasi String Quartet Jason Kao Hwang , Tomas Ulrich and Ken Filiano.

To realize his various projects, he founded the CDM Records label and the non-profit organization CDM, Inc. (Can Do More, Inc.) with his wife. The label’s first release was a live album of Ellington edits ( Takin’ The Duke Out ); In 2003 Time Will Tell followed by the formation DDT + 2. Inspired by the novel cycle Chronicles of the Vampires by Anne Rice , he wrote the work The Vampire’s Revenge in 2006 , which he performed with his trio and guest musicians such as Joe McPhee , Matthew Shipp , Steve Swell , Borah Bergman and Perry Robinson recorded.

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