Knossos

world fusion

Primarily a guitarist, Dann M. Torres has made the varied trek from ensemble musician, to session musician and now to solo artist. Studying the guitar early on, Dann was entranced by the harmonic capabilities of the guitar and its ability to capture a wide spectrum of tonalities. Always striving to create something new and unusual, he explored unconventionally with the instrument and began to write songs that were inspired by sonorous colors and drone-like harmony. With this, and a love for early music, he immersed himself into a complex study of alternate tunings and medieval music for a number of years. In 1992, Dann and Jeremiah Soto, of Solace, founded the group Eventide, a medieval / alternative ensemble that developed and performed a new music hybrid of original works that utilized a variety of instruments and early music aesthetics. The Arabic influence on early music could not be denied, and as Eventide's studies and music progressed, Dann and Jeremiah's fascination with the rhythms and melodic variants of the sound flourished. Their passions splintered; Jeremiah's into the complex rhythmic structures of eastern percussion and Dann's into the undulating intricacy of Middle Eastern strings. It was during this time that Dann discovered an overwhelming passion for the Arabic oud (a fretless, short-necked lute), the Turkish Saz (a long-necked lute) and world music in general. Unfortunately, after four years, extensive studio work, and a short tour, Eventide disba...