David E. Finck (born August 26, 1958) is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

bassist. He plays both

bass guitar The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...

and

double bass The double bass (), also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched string instrument, chordophone in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding rare additions ...

Early life and education

Finck was born in

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

, while his father was attending graduate school at the

University of Rochester The University of Rochester is a private university, private research university in Rochester, New York, United States. It was founded in 1850 and moved into its current campus, next to the Genesee River in 1930. With approximately 30,000 full ...

. Raised in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, he graduated from Cheltenham High School. He studied under Sam Goradetzer and Michael Shahan of the

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription concerts, n ...

, and graduated from

Eastman School of Music The Eastman School of Music is the music school of the University of Rochester, a private research university in Rochester, New York, United States. Established in 1921 by celebrated industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman, it was the ...

in 1980.

Career

Finck played with

Woody Herman Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) was an American jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roo ...

in 1980 and 1981 and then moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, where he played with Joe Williams, Annie Ross, Mel Lewis,

Al Cohn Al Cohn (November 24, 1925 – February 15, 1988) was an American jazz saxophonist, arranger and composer. He came to prominence in the band of clarinetist Woody Herman and was known for his longtime musical partnership with fellow saxophonist ...

, Ernestine Anderson, Rosemary Clooney,

Tom Harrell Tom Harrell (born June 16, 1946) is an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, composer, and arranger. Voted Trumpeter of the Year of 2018 by ''Jazz Journalists Association'', Harrell has won awards and grants throughout his career, including mul ...

, Jerry Dodgion, Phil Woods,

Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American Swing music, swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948� ...

, and Al Grey in the 1980s. He worked with Paquito D'Rivera and

Steve Kuhn Steve Kuhn (born March 24, 1938) is an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, bandleader, and educator. He is the composer of the jazz standard " The Saga of Harrison Crabfeathers". Biography Kuhn was born in New York City, New York, to S ...

in the 1990s, as well as

Freddie Hubbard Frederick Dewayne Hubbard (April 7, 1938 – December 29, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played bebop, hard bop, and post-bop styles from the early 1960s onwards. His unmistakable and influential tone contributed to new perspectives fo ...

, Makoto Ozone, and Eddie Daniels. Finck also featured accompanying

André Previn André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...

on the 1998

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

album release ''We Got Rhythm: A Gershwin Songbook''. Finck's debut release as a leader, ''Future Day'', was released in 2008 on Soundbrush Records. The album features Joe Locke, Tom Ranier, and Joe LaBarbera, as well as guest appearances from Jeremy Pelt and Bob Sheppard.

Discography

As leader

*''Future Day'' (Soundbrush, 2008) *''Low Standards'' (Soundbrush, 2017) *''Bassically Jazz'' (Primary Wave Music, 2019) *''Over the Rainbow'' (Macharso Records, 2019) *''Bassic Instinct'' (Primary Wave Music, 2021) *''A Beautiful Friendship'' (Burton Avenue Music, 2023)

As sideman

With Jon Benjamin *'' Well, I Should Have...*'' (Sub Pop, 2015) With

*''Looking Back'' (Concord, 1990) *''Years Later'' (Concord, 1992) *'' Remembering Tomorrow'' ( ECM, 1995) *'' Dedication'' (Reservoir, 1997) *'' Countdown'' (Reservoir, 1998) *'' The Best Things'' (Reservoir, 1999) *'' Promises Kept'' (ECM, 2000) *'' Mostly Coltrane'' (ECM, 2008) With Tisziji Munoz *''Incomprehensibly Gone'' (Anami Music, 2010) *''Beauty As Beauty'' (Anami Music, 2013) *''Realization of Paradox: Melting the Mind of Logic'' (Anami Music, 2014) *''Songs of Soundlessness'' (Anami Music, 2015) *''Atoms of Supersoul'' (Anami Music, 2016) *''Scream of Ensoundment'' (Anami Music, 2017) With Paquito D'Rivera *''Tico! Tico!'' ( Chesky Records, 1989) *''Havana Cafe'' (Chesky Records, 1992) With Badi Assad *''Echoes of Brazil'' (Chesky Records, 1997) With Mark Murphy * '' Lucky to Be Me'' ( HighNote Records, 2002) With

* '' We Got Rhythm: A Gershwin Songbook'' (

, 1998) * '' We Got It Good and That Ain't Bad: An Ellington Songbook'' (Deutsche Grammophon, 1999) * '' Live at the Jazz Standard'' (

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, record label * Decca Gold, classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, musical theater record label * Decca Studios, recording facility in West ...

, 2001) With André Previn and

Sylvia McNair Sylvia McNair (born June 23, 1956) is an American opera singer and classical recitalist who has also achieved notable success in the Broadway and cabaret genres. McNair, a soprano, has made several critically acclaimed recordings and has won t ...

* ''Sure Thing: The Jerome Kern Songbook'' (

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), simply branded Philips, is a Dutch multinational health technology company that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, its world headquarters have been situated in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarter ...

, 1996) * ''Come Rain or Shine: The Harold Arlen Songbook'' (Philips, 1996) * ''Thrivin'' With Marian Petrescu (Résonance 2010)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Finck, David American jazz double-bassists American male double-bassists American jazz bass guitarists 1958 births Living people Guitarists from New York (state) Musicians from Rochester, New York American male bass guitarists 20th-century American bass guitarists 21st-century American double-bassists 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Jazz musicians from New York (state)