Author Archives: saundi

DAN SCHNEIDER – executive producer

Dan Schneider, our executive producer, has been practicing entertainment, corporate, new media, intellectual property (copyrights and trademarks) and real property law for more than 32 years in Manhattan and Woodstock, N.Y. A graduate of Vassar College (AB, 1979, Evans Fellow in Law) and Emory Law School (JD, 1982, Emory Scholar), he is admitted to the New York and Georgia bars, as well as to the U.S. District Court (Southern District, N.Y.). Mr. Schneider has been AV-rated by Martindale Hubbell. www.schneiderpfahl.com

A member of numerous non-profit Boards, Dan also serves as the Executive Director of the Florence Belsky Charitable Foundation (www.flobel.org).

DANIEL CHRISTOPHER – director

Daniel is a budding creative media-maker interested in content development in a variety of mediums, as well as new forms of distribution. Through experience in a variety of production environments (national and regional commercials, news gathering / political coverage, fashion shows, music videos, concerts, training DVDs, promotional web videos, non-profit outreach films), he has developed technical knowledge of digital video cameras and lens, lighting and grip equipment, video technology and delivery formats, audio recording, and editing [Apple Final Cut Pro Certified]. In terms of filmmaking, Daniel is driven to create works that are more than just visually and aurally stimulating –  films that do not just tell a story, but compel viewers to act. He will be pursuing an MFA starting this fall at the UC Santa Cruz’s Digital Arts and New Media (DANM) program. His mantra is “staying prolific.”

KARL H. BERGER- composer

Composer / Arranger / Conductor / Pianist / Vibraphonist / Educator 

Karl Berger is a six time winner of the Downbeat Critics Poll as a jazz soloist, recipient of numerous Composition Awards (commissions by the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, the Rockefeller Foundation, European Radio and Television: WDR, NDR, SWF, Radio France, Rai Italy. SWF-Prize 1994). Professor of Composition, Artist-in-Residence at universities, schools and festivals worldwide; PhD in Music Esthetics.

Karl Berger became noted for his innovative arrangements for recordings by Jeff Buckley (“Grace”), Natalie Merchant (“Ophelia”), Better Than Ezra, The Cardigans, Jonatha Brooke, Buckethead, Bootsie Collins, The Swans, Sly + Robbie, Angelique Kidjo a.o.; and for his collaborations with producers Bill Laswell, Alan Douglas (“Operazone”), Peter Collins, Andy Wallace, Craig Street, Alain Mallet, Malcolm Burn, and Bob Marlett.
He recorded and performed with Don Cherry, Lee Konitz, John McLaughlin, Gunther Schuller, the Mingus Epitaph Orchestra, Dave Brubeck, Ingrid Sertso, Dave Holland, Ed Blackwell, Ray Anderson, Carlos Ward, Pharoah Sanders, Blood Ulmer, Hozan Yamamoto and many others at festivals and concerts. His recordings and arrangements appear on the Atlantic, Axiom, Black Saint, Blue Note, Capitol, CBS, Columbia Double Moon, Douglas Music, Elektra , EMI, Enja, Island, JVC, Knitting Factory, In&Out, MCA, Milestone, Polygram, Pye , RCA, SONY, Stockholm, Vogue a.o.

He is founder and director of the Creative Music Foundation, Inc. dba The Creative Music Studio, a not-for-profit corporation, dedicated to the research of the power of music and sound and the elements common to all of the world’s music forms; and to educational presentations through workshops, concerts, recordings, with a growing network of artists and CMS members worldwide.

Dr. Berger has conducted CMS Residencies worldwide. In the 90s, he was Professor of Composition and Dean of Music Education at the Hochschule fuer Musik, Frankfurt / Germany. Chairman of the Music Department at UMass Dartmouth till 2006. Currently, Dr. Berger is re-establishing CMS programming, directing the CMS Archive Project, recording and producing. CMS is joining forces with Planet Arts, Inc., performing internationally with the Allstar Ensemble “In the Spirit of Don Cherry” and with numerous projects, collaborating with vocalist/poet Ingrid Sertso.

SAUNDI WILSON – composer

Saundi Wilson has been active in virtually every sector of the music industry. His work in film and television began at age 19, and he has since composed music for A&E, CBS, ABC, and Disney as well as numerous short films. Saundi has licensed music to more than fifteen different television shows, including MTV’s “Jersey Shore.”

Shortly after completing the masters program at NYU’s Steinhardt School, Saundi scored his first feature film, “Manito,” which garnered honors at several film festivals, including Sundance and South by Southwest. Since it’s theatrical release by Film Movement, it has been licensed to HBO, Showtime and the IFC.

Saundi then began to collaborate with Sebastian Bardin, and together, they created The Brüknahm Project. Their first LP was released on Knitting Factory Records to critical acclaim and they went on to complete two European tours, performing on some of Europe’s greatest stages (North Sea, Jazz a Vienne). Brüknahm was commissioned by Universal (France) to produce tracks for Algerian star Khaled, and two remixes for AIR on the LP On My Way (EMI/Capitol). Saundi also laid down his eclectic groove as a DJ in various locales in Europe as well as his monthly Brooklyn Zoo parties in Paris.

Shortly after recording the second Brüknahm album The City of Light (distributed on Believe Digital), Saundi moved back to the U.S., bouncing between Los Angeles and Brooklyn. He remains active with The Brüknahm Project, performing with them as the featured artist at the Shanghai International Jazz Festival. Currently, Saundi is licensing songs from his catalog through Stephen Arnold Music, producing/writing for his new project Red Claire, featuring country/bluegrass artist Claire Holley, and he recently co-produced Canadian singer Jessica Brooks’ debut album Our Place Now (Bungalow 7).