Dan Curro studied the cello first with Helen Holt and later with Matthew Farrell, Rosanne Hunt and Howard Penny. For seven years Dan was a member of one of the world’s most acclaimed youth orchestras, the Queensland Youth Symphony. Dan was principal cello of this orchestra for four years and toured with them to Japan, Korea, Austria, Germany and Italy.
Dan’s musical interests are eclectic and his activities diverse. At the Queensland Conservatorium he studied contemporary improvisation under John Rogers and Ken Edie. He has recorded two albums with his contemporary vocal group, Plub and reviewers described him as a “star performer” for a concert he gave with avante-garde/electronic musician Oxford Parker, in which he improvised on 6-string fretless bass guitar and completed Super Mario Bros. on the Nintendo Entertainment System, projected onto a screen for the audience in approximately six minutes.
He has also played baroque cello in many groups including the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra and the Badinerie Players. In 2005 Dan was invited to play in the Sydney Festival’s 12 Angry Cellos concert in which he performed alongside some of the country’s most highly regarded cellists. Dan has also worked extensively with the Queensland Philharmonic Orchestra and The Queensland Orchestra. In 2007 Dan was contracted to play full-time with The Queensland Orchestra (now the Queensland Symphony Orchestra) and in that year also made his debut as principal cellist with that orchestra. In 2009, Dan elected to return to his freelance former lifestyle and in that year performed in the Australian premiere of Louis Andriessen’s string quartet “Facing Death” at the Australian National Academy of Music.
Since that time Dan has performed in many and varied musical configurations and situations, in an abundance of musical styles including baroque/classical, latin, jazz, hip hop, contemporary and what has become his (not so) secret passion, the historically informed performance of 19th century western art music.
