Bill and Dan
Chouinard
Jazz Concert & Cocktail Hour
Thursday, July 6
Hilton Minneapolis
Bill Chouinard
Bill Chouinard has been in demand as a bassist in the Twin Cities for nearly four decades, performing frequently both live and in studio with many album credits for electric and upright bass. Among the national artists backed by Mr. Chouinard are Michael Johnson, Michael Bolton, Dave Samuels, Howard Levy, Marian McPartland, Sam Cooke, Donnie Osmond, Trisha Yearwood, Jordin Sparks, and Celine Dion.
In addition to nightly regular show performances at a Minneapolis premiere music and entertainment venue, Rupert's nightclub, Bill was selected as bassist for the Minnesota Public Radio live weekly national broadcasts of The Good Evening Show with Noah Adams, which evolved throughout a 2-year span. Live broadcast recordings with the Grammy Award-winning vocal ensemble Chanticleer were released on their CD On the Air: Live Radio Highlights.
Mr. Chouinard is Organist and Music Coordinator at St. Andrew's Lutheran Church in Mahtomedi, Minnesota, a position held since 1988 where he presides over the IV/108 1927 Casavant/Schantz organ, a storied instrument which was installed in 2001 in a project that was initiated and guided by Chouinard. His accomplishments also include performing with the Minnesota Orchestra in both solo and ensemble roles as well as touring as soloist with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. He has recorded both organ and harpsichord for several choral compact discs, and his solo recording of the St. Andrew's organ, Bill Chouinard Premieres, is available on the Pro Organo label. As a collaborative organist, he is a frequent performer with regional instrumental and vocal ensembles, appearing in roles ranging from soloist to accompanist, and has recorded on two recent compact disc projects.
Dan Chouinard
For nearly four decades, Dan Chouinard has been pianist and accordionist of choice for a Who’s Who of performers in the Twin Cities area. He is also an enabler of community singalongs and a writer of hit shows for public radio, concert hall and theater. A native of Minneapolis, he grew up playing piano and various instruments along with his five siblings. Dan attended St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota, and taught French and Italian at the University of Minnesota for four years. Beginning in 1994, his radio series The Singer’s Voice was broadcast live from the Dakota Jazz Club every week over six years.
Through 2015 he was an occasional guest on Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion. He’s the founder of a classic country band, Lush Country, comprised of Prairie Home Companion alumni, and he currently accompanies Garrison Keillor on concerts around the U.S.