Dan Nieckarz:
Bay Area Solo Guitarist  

Dan Nieckarz is a veteran Bay Area jazz guitarist with more than thirty-five years of experience.  

Dan has been studying music since early childhood, starting out with piano lessons at age eight.  Soon he was playing multiple instruments in school band and orchestra programs.  When he got into his teens, he bought an electric guitar and started playing in bands with friends from high school.  After high school, Dan became interested in jazz and decided to study music at San Jose State.  As a jazz guitar major, he studied the art of improvisation and developed his guitar skills through private studies with guitarist Steve Erquiaga. 

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After graduating from San Jose State, Dan divided his time between working in the computer industry and playing gigs.  Working a computer job and keeping up with a music career was becoming too demanding, so he decided to focus on music and work as a guitar instructor.  This afforded him more time to develop as a guitarist and complete his first recording project, The Jazz Years.  

After teaching for ten years and needing a break, Dan began working as a show band guitarist with the cruise lines. Dan backed up entertainers in the theatre, performed with various ensembles, and worked as a soloist for over a period of about eight years.  

After traveling the world, Dan decided to spend more time writing, recording and playing his own music.  Currently he is playing locally, writing music for future projects, and working on his solo guitar repertoire.  

Dan enjoys outdoor activities like hiking and bike riding in his free time.