Daniel Prim is a Latin Grammy-winning drummer, percussionist, and educator. Born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, Daniel specializes in jazz, Afro-Venezuelan, and Latin music. His studies began at home, where music was the center of family life. When he was eleven years old, he attended José Reyna Music School and continued his formal training at the Simón Bolívar Conservatory of Music, part of the National Youth and Children's Orchestras of Venezuela. Since then, Daniel has toured across the Americas and Europe and has taught master classes in Afro-Venezuelan music at colleges such as Berklee College of Music and Manhattan School of Music.

In 2020, Daniel was honored to play on PAUSA, Ricky Martin’s Billboard-topping EP, which featured other collaborators such as Bad Bunny and Residente. PAUSA went on to win Best Pop Vocal Album in the 21st Annual Latin American Grammy Awards. Daniel has also been a featured percussionist at Bosphorus Cymbal Fest and played drums and percussion at Lincoln Center’s American Songbook series for Ella Bric.

Along with Juan Diego Villalobos and Gabriel Chakarji, Daniel formed Caracas Trio, which mixes Venezuelan roots music with contemporary jazz. Caracas Trio has performed across New York City, alongside acclaimed saxophonist Miguel Zenón, on NPR, and in residency at Black Cat in San Francisco.

In February 2024 Daniel released his first album, Home, as Daniel Prim y Su Parampampan, with Adam O’Farrill, Juanma Trujillo, and Manuel Márquez. A unique blend of the Afro-Venezuelan folklore music of Daniel’s childhood and improvisational jazz, Home evokes the tensions of current-day Venezuela while celebrating the strength and vibrancy of the Venezuelan people.

A current resident of New York City, Daniel performs on any given night with Luis Perdomo, Stafford Hunter, Ella Bric, Etienne Charles, Roberto Quintero, Jorge Glem, Roy Wooten, Edmar Castañeda, Adam O’Farrill, Dayna Stephens, Yunior Terry, and others.

SELECT RECORDINGS

Daniel Prim & Juan Diego Villalobos

Marcela Lucatelli & Daniel Prim

Rafa Pino

Ricky Martin

Baden Goyo Trio

Gabriel Chakarji

Eric Chacón

Antonio Fernández Ríoss

Sisa Michalidesova

Jake Leckie

Spiral Pitch

Forever Farewell

1ra Edicion

“Daniel has put together a wonderful project here, along with an extremely talented crew of musicians. He is obviously connected with the roots of this music on a very deep level, and you can hear that in everyone’s playing as well as in Daniel’s adventurous arrangements. With this album, he is taking on the very important role of becoming an emissary for Afro-Venezuelan traditions and for having them reach a wider audience. But even more importantly, he is demonstrating once again how so many of these traditions in the Americas are interlocked at their deepest roots, and that the possibilities for experimentation and exploration are endless.”

— Miguel Zenón

HOME by DANIEL PRIM Y SU PARAMPAMPAN
on ears&eyes records

Full album now available on BANDCAMP
La Lavandera and Se Va el Hombre (singles) also now available on SPOTIFY, TIDAL, and APPLE MUSIC

Album release concert on March 7th, 2024

Home is Latin Grammy Award-winning drummer and percussionist Daniel Prim’s first album under his own name, Daniel Prim y Su Parampampan. Daniel grew up in Caracas, Venezuela, where his friends and family gathered at each other’s homes to eat and play music into the night. Music became the rhythm and language of his childhood. Home invites listeners to join Daniel in the parties, or parampampans, where he first learned the folklore songs that weave through the album, breathing new love and life into the heart, soul, and sounds of his homeland.

Adam O’Farrill, Juanma Trujillo, and Manuel Márquez collaborate with Daniel on the album, blending the Afro-Venezuelan traditions with improvisational jazz. Each track reimagines and transforms folklore songs, evoking a spirit of vibrancy and resilience.

Traditional Afro-Venezuelan songs feature tambor, melodic vocals, and sometimes other elements, such as the maracas. They are conversations constructed through beautiful melodies, which often take the form of question and answer. For this album, Daniel decided to bring those melodies and conversations alive, evoking the singer’s emotions and feelings via trumpet and guitar, alongside Daniel’s modified drum set. In this way, Daniel brings the music of his memories forward, while making sure the complex layers of its history are not left behind. Rich with the rhythms of the past and future, celestial traditions, and sublime moments, Daniel Prim y Su Parampampan encourages listeners to share in the joy, unity, and beauty of Venezuela, its music, and its people.