Dave Feder

Featured artist, 2001

Magic happens when a person finds the one thing in life he or she was meant to do.  Such is the case with Upper Keys musician David Feder.  Somehow it’s hard to imagine Feder doing anything other than creating and playing music.

Feder began taking piano and guitar lessons when he was four years old and was writing songs for the guitar at age ten!  In fact, he says that some of the pieces he plays today are variations of songs he wrote as a child.  “I believe we all have one song inside of us,” commented Feder, “and everything we write ends up being a version or another expression of that one song.”

However, he took a somewhat circuitous route before finally succumbing to his lifelong love of music.

Originally from Niagara Falls, New York, Feder studied engineering at Rochester Institute of Technology.   And even though he often performed at coffeehouses while at school, without music as an integral part of his life, Feder says he was “pretty miserable.”  So after graduation, he enrolled in the music education program at the State University of Buffalo.  Interestingly, Feder says school almost ruined him, musically.  “It’s hard to play and improvise when you’re being taught to try and justify everything,” he said.  “It takes the art out of it.”

So he left school and began performing with bands playing saxophone and guitar, and supplementing his income with a variety of jobs.  But Feder became disenchanted with the music scene because of the destructive life styles so often associated with musicians.  “I just wasn’t into that,” remarked Feder. He decided to leave music and concentrate on electronic design.

However, the road ahead still had a few twists and turns in store for Feder.  As a favor, he agreed to help out a friend by playing the guitar in his jazz band.  According to Feder, once he started performing again, he knew this was what he wanted to do.  Says Feder, “Even a bad night playing music is better than working!”

While he doesn’t think of playing music as being “work,” he does think of it as a business and feels strongly that musicians should get paid fairly for their talent.  However, he admits that it’s sometimes difficult for musicians, or any artists, to put a price on their work because it’s so personal.

Another thing Feder feels strongly about is helping others.  When I met him, he had just rescued an injured bird and was trying to make it comfortable until he could get help.  He performs a dozen benefit concerts a year in the Upper Keys, and just recently appeared at two different benefits on the same day!  On all of his CDs you’ll find the line, “Please adopt a homeless animal.”  Words he lives by, since all of his dogs have been adopted from shelters.  One of the principal organizers of BayJam, which raises money for art and music scholarships, Feder says, “If using my name helps to raise some money for a good cause, I’m all for it!”

While he’s basically known as a jazz and blues musician, Feder embraces all types of music.  His band, the Saltwater Blues Band, includes musicians from Argentina, Colombia, Spain, and Puerto Rico, and Feder enjoys the interpretations these musicians bring to the pieces they play. He’s currently interested in Cajun and bluegrass sounds, and has gone back to their roots by studying and experimenting with Celtic music.

Feder feels Americans place too much emphasis on categorizing music and likes playing in Europe where attitudes toward musical styles are more liberal.  Fluent in French, he often plays in the south of France, and his music has been used in French movies, environmental videos, and radio commercials.  He likes playing at corporate events, weddings, and private parties.

The range of styles in his CDs exemplifies his diverse interests.  His first album, Waiting for Sara, combines soft jazz with a slight Latin influence, while his second CD, The Reason Why, is pure funk and blues.  His soon-to-be-released album, Leila’s Dream, contains all original songs inspired by children under the age of ten.  And he’s currently working on an album for children featuring original music, and possibly some traditional children’s songs, played in different styles.

Feder is a devoted husband and father: wife Suzi and son Nyan take center stage in his life.  In fact, four-year-old Nyan is already playing the guitar and even accompanied Dad on two songs on The Reason Why.

With his son standing next to him on stage, David Feder has come full circle in a life inexorably intertwined with music. 

(David Feder’s CDs Waiting for Sara and The Reason Why are available online at www.davidfeder.com.)