Daniel Rodriguez Media Archives

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May 22, 2013 11:51 am  •  Diane Poulton | Times Correspondent

Opera Tenor Daniel Rodriguez mesmerizes audience

 

MUNSTER | The 2012–2013 Northwest Indiana Concert Association series ended recently on an emotional note as Daniel Rodriguez and his wife Marla Kavanaugh led the audience in singing “God Bless

America,” the song he sang as a New York City policeman at the in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Rodriguez, an operatic tenor, met Cavanaugh, a New Zealand born soprano, while on tour. “When I saw her face I knew my world would never be the same,” Rodriguez said. “She was walking along the same road that I was and we decided to walk that road together.”

Rodriguez has since retired from law enforcement to launch his singing career, performing at concerts around the world.

Rodriguez began his performance with “The Impossible Dream.” He told the audience he began his first 107 city concert tour four years ago in Munster and Friday’s Munster concert fittingly marked the last stop in a 40-city tour.

Accompanied by pianist Jesse Lynch, one of the performers in the 2013-2014 concert series, the couple’s duets included selections from “Phantom of the Opera,” “West Side Story,” and “One Hand One Heart.”

Other selections were: “On the Street Where You Live,” “Stranger in Paradise,” “Ave Maria,” “If I Loved You,” “Be My Love,” “Summertime,” Billy Joel’s “Lullaby,” and “Time to Say Goodbye.”

During intermission, Rodriguez and Kavanaugh mingled with concert goers and signed their CD’s. Rodriguez asked “our heroes, our veterans” to stand which elicited a rousing round of applause from the audience.

“Thank you from the bottom of our hearts,” Rodriguez said to the veterans.

As East coast residents the couple expressed their concern for victims of the Boston Marathon bombing. They are collecting funds for the families of the deceased and for the victims who are struggling to recover, Rodriguez said.

Season subscription information for the 2013-2014 concert series is available at www.munsterconcerts.orgor by contacting Christine Small at (219) 923-7879 or Babs Zandsra at (219) 924-2890.


From Police Officer to Salsa Singer -Daniel Rodriguez found his law in music 

AARP Espanol.com review by Ernesto Lechner, June 13, 2013

A few years ago, Daniel Rodriguez was a police officer in New York, known throughout the United States as the "singing policeman." His voice caused a sensation when he participated in several tributes after the tragedy of September 11, 2001.

But before and after being a lawman, Rodriguez was always a singer who was proud of his Puerto Rican origins and inspired by the voices of his father and grandfather. In his new album, Por Ti Volare, Rodriguez creates a surprising combination: a selection of Latin hits such as Perfidia and Siboney, interpreted by a salsa orchestra, but with the overwhelming voice of a classical tenor.    

"As a child, I heard my grandfather and my father singing Granada, and the two had tenor voices. I always thought the tropical music I listened to when I was little was tenor territory, like Broadway songs or classical music," says Rodriguez from his home in New York. "Today, people are accustomed to hearing thin and light voices. It was time to return to a tenor to sing these themes of old."      Malagueña Salerosa, Besame Mucho and well-known Armando Manzanero ballad, Somos Novios are some of the songs that stand out on the disk. But the most emotional moment is, without doubt, is En Mi Viejo San Juan, played as a duet between Rodriguez and his father José.      

"For me, it was a dream come true," said José Rodriguez, who, when he was young, listened to the boleros of Tito Rodriguez and songs of Mexican trios like Los Panchos. "It was wonderful to sing a duet that brings so many memories of Puerto Rico, and I think it worked out pretty well."       

Daniel Rodriguez also shares memories of his father. "My father is not a professional, but has always been singing. When I was a kid and we had a gathering, the party did not start until Jose Rodriguez arrived, "says the tenor. "He's the youngest oldster you’ll ever met in your life. When we recorded the duet, my dad had never been in a recording studio. He put on the headphones, sang the melody for the first time, and it came out perfect."       

As if it were a testimonial, the album starts with Por ti Volare, a salsified version of the Italian song famous for the version by Andrea Bocelli. The experiment works thanks to Rodriguez's voice and orchestrations by veteran producer Robert Navarro, who has worked with luminaries of salsa such as Celia Cruz, Ray Barretto and Eddie Palmieri.       

"The first thing I did was align myself with people who know Latin music," said Rodriguez, speaking a nice mixture between English and Spanish—mastering of both languages to perfection. "Robert Navarro, who is currently working with Conjunto Clásico, was instrumental in this regard because he has worked with all the legends. And my cousin, executive producer William Melendez advised me that we should look in Miami and Puerto Rico for the musicians who know the real salsa. When I heard the arrangements, they were tremendous."     

When listening to the album, it is a little unfair that Rodriguez has won the attention of the public through his work as a police officer. Beyond the work that occupied him for some years, it is clear that his work is music."I have been a professional singer since I was 11 years old," admits Rodriguez, "but that's life, sometimes you have to take different paths to reach the desired goal. I get asked all the time if I miss the police department. My answer is yes, I miss it every time I get stopped for an infraction on the road." After sharing that, loud laughter follows. 

"At 19, I stopped singing because I started a family. I worked as everything from cook to truck driver to postman. In the church I attended, I met a detective and through that I ended up joining the police. But my life was always connected to the music; that never changed. "
      
But for Rodriguez, the most important thing of all is that this new work is an opportunity to maintain the deep connection with his family ties. "The producer of the disc is a cousin of mine," specifically. "The conga player is a friend, and some of the choruses were sung by a godmother who was in the studio. My dad participated in the duet, and the project accounting was done by my cousin. This is the music of my cultural heritage. One way to show the respect I feel for my family."
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"Por Ti Volare" media appearances


 

April 24, 2013 Daniel receives Humanitarian Award 

Flushing, N.Y., Feb. 21, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- "America's Beloved Tenor" Daniel Rodriguez , will entertain guests at a fundraising gala on Thursday, April 25, 2013, at historic Flushing Town Hall, Flushing, NY.  The gala is to support the mission of Flushing House, the not-for-profit retirement residence. 

 


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