Daniel Kaminski

Daniel Kaminski, DMA, is the co-principal timpanist, soloist, of the National Philharmonic Orchestra in Warsaw, Poland. Daniel holds Master of Music degrees from the F. Chopin Music Academy in Warsaw and the University of Akron School of Music. He received his Doctorate from the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.

As a soloist Daniel has won the 2nd Prize at the National Percussion Competition in Warsaw (2000) and was the finalist of the Contemporary Music Interpretation Competition in Warsaw (2001). He was also a semi-finalist of the International Timpani Competition in Paris (2001). He participated in numerous international festivals and masterclasses with such esteemed artists as John Beck, Cloyd Duff, Steve Reich, Peter Erskine, Marta Ptaszyńska, Frederic Macarez, Christopher Lamb, Klaus Tresselt, Katarzyna Myćka and Momoko Kamiya.

Daniel has worked with the best orchestras in Poland, among them National Opera, Sinfonia Varsovia, Polish Radio Orchestra, Warsaw Chamber Opera and numerous international ensembles – Akron Symphony Orchestra, Ohio Ballet, Wooster Symphony Orchestra, Rio Hondo Symphony, Colburn School of Music Orchestra, Debut Symphony Orchestra, American Youth Symphony, Intimate Opera Company, California E.A.R. Unit and Trondheim Sinfonieorkester. He has recorded film music at Sony, Paramount and Warner Brothers studios and performed for PBS. In 2008 Daniel participated in the World Première of Frank Zappa’s musical Joe’s Garage with the Open Fist Theatre in Hollywood.

In 2011 Daniel was appointed the co-principal timpanist of the National Philharmonic Orchestra in Warsaw and currently holds the soloist position. He is also an active educator.

“Some years ago the original Herbert timpani mallets were the reason I started seriously thinking about becoming a timpanist as they allowed me to develop the necessary awareness of sound quality on the instrument. Now that I am a professional timpanist, I still rely on those mallets and have since adopted several other JGpercussion models to complement my sound palette. I have used many different mallets from different manufacturers but so far none were able to match the quality and versatility of JGpercussion mallets. Thank you Jason for creating some of the best mallets on the market and for being so open to suggestions and customization of your products.”

OrchestraWarsaw National Symphony OrchestraTitlePrincipal Timpanist