Today we’d like to introduce you to Daniel Morris.
Hi Daniel, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I was born in Pine Bluff, Arkansas and grew up on a farm in Oklahoma. The second oldest twin in a family of thirteen children, my heart was full of passion for music from a young age. While most kids roll their eyes at attending music lessons and are bribed by parents to practice instruments, I absolutely adored music, all on my own. I taught himself to play the piano at the age of six. At thirteen years old, I saw a string trio playing at church and became inspired to play a stringed instrument. I had private lessons on viola from a professor at the University of Oklahoma, Dr. Hong Zhu. I studied under Dr. Zhu’s classical training for six years and was offered a full scholarship at OCU. At this time, choosing to play it safe I decided to help my father and brothers start a family construction business as many people in my life told me it was one in a million chance that I would make it in music. So I spent the next years building the family business.
After years of going in a totally different direction than music, I realized that my heart and soul were made to create and share music and I burned with a desire to be able to pursue my dream. Laying aside my steady job, I began pursuing music as a career. With no steady place to live or “gig,” I worked hard — playing my viola on busy street corners, at outdoor malls, and underground in subways, and often sleeping in my truck’s tiny cab, just so that I could do what I loved. I moved out to LA in 2014 and began playing on Santa Monica Pier. That’s when everything started to really take off for me. I made an album and began to build an audience and fan base around LA. After years of grinding out at Santa Monica Pier and other places, I’ve been able to grow my career and clientele immensely. It’s been a real blessing to be able to share my passion with people. When Covid happened all my big events where canceled so I had to get creative and change things up, I started going to people’s front doors and doing personal serenades to cheer people up and help them celebrate special occasions during such a dark time. Videos of some of the serenades have gone viral and really touched people around the world. This has helped to grow my audience and fan base even more!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. I sacrificed so much especially at the beginning sleeping in my truck and spending hour and hours street performing. Seeing how far I’ve come makes me so glad I took the plunge and followed my dream.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m a professional viola player. I perform for any and all types of events. One of the biggest things I’m known for is my personal serenades that I started at the beginning of Covid. People feel my music in their soul and it brings emotions and feelings that create memories to last a lifetime.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
I grew up on a farm in Oklahoma and I absolutely loved having so much space to explore and feel free. Also, I’m a twin and my twin brother plays violin, we grew up practicing and playing together. I’ll always remember and cherish forever those times playing and working on our craft together.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.danielmorrismusic.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/danielmorrismusic?utm_medium=copy_link
- Facebook: http://facebook.com/imdanielmorris
- Youtube: http://youtube.com/danielmorrismusic
- Other: https://vm.tiktok.com/TTPdAfkYRH/
Image Credits
Jonathan Volk
