Since moving to New York in 1985, David Berkman has been an important part of the jazz community. He is an award-winning composer/bandleader (2000 Doris Duke/Chamber Music America New Works Creation and Presentation Grant), a recording artist whose 4 Palmetto recordings have appeared on numerous best records of the year critic's lists (the New York Times, the Village Voice, Downbeat, JazzIz, Jazz Times and others) and anaward-winning jazz clinician (Homer Osborne Award from the Wichita Jazz Society) who has performed and taught at numerous jazz camps, universities and conservatories around the United States, South America and Europe. He published his first book with Sher Music Publishing earlier this year, The Jazz Musician's Guide to Creative Practice. He has played in countless bands including those of Cecil McBee, Tom Harrell and the Vanguard Orchestra and has performed with and/or recorded and/or arranged for numerous jazz luminaries, including: Sonny Stitt, Brian Blade, Joe Lovano, Dave Douglas, Ray Drummond, Billy Hart, Dick Oatts, Tony Malaby, Chris Potter, Scott Wendholt, Lenny White, Scott Colley, Craig Handy, Steven Bernstein, Bill Stewart, Dave Stryker, Fathead Newman, Hank Crawford, and Jane Monheit. Now appearing more and more often as a bandleader, David Berkman has performed solo and with his quartet, quintet and sextet at festivals and clubs in the United States, Europe and Japan, most recently at the North Sea Festival, the Edinburgh Festival, The Glasgow Festival, the Belfast Festival and the Cork Festival. Recent tours include: clubs and concert performances in Germany, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, Sao Paulo, Japan and around the United States. Recent projects include piano/trumpet duo performances with Dave Douglas (2006 Jazz Composers Symposium in Tampa Florida and the 2005 International Trumpet Guild Convention in Bangkok) and Tom Harrell (Italy). David Berkman teaches at Queens College in New York and directs the jazz theory program and is a visiting professor at the Prince Claus Conservatory in Groningen, the Netherlands.www.davidberkman.comdberkman@earthlink.netwww.myspace.com/davidberkmanquartet