Damon Denton

Damon Denton was born in Charleston, South Carolina and grew up in Severna Park, Maryland. He is a graduate of the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University and the Juilliard School where he received a Master of Music degree studying under Russian pianist, Oxana Yablonskaya. He has been a faculty accompanist at the University of Georgia since 2010.

During his career Damon has performed concerts in England, Ireland, Mexico, Germany, South Africa and throughout the United States. Venue highlights have included: Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall; Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall; The University of South Africa; The State Theater of Pretoria; The Royal Dublin Society in Ireland; The Lyric Theater in Baltimore Maryland; The Leighton House Museum in London; The Arlington Theater in Santa Barbara; The United Nations; Le Theatre de Queretaro in Mexico, among others. Denton has performed as collaborator with Fred Mills (UGA professor and former member of the Canadian Brass), with members of the New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Boston, Atlanta, Dallas and San Francisco Symphony Orchestras as well as with soloists from the St. Lukes Orchestra, New York’s “Winds of New Amsterdam”, and the Orpheus Chamber Ensemble. Damon was also a close friend and studio pianist in New York City for the late Metropolitan opera star, Anna Moffo.

Early career honors have included prizes at the Annapolis and Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s Young Soloist Competitions, the Peabody “Concours”, the Kosciuszko Foundation’s Chopin Competition in NYC, the Music Academy of the West (“A brilliant performance…” Santa Barbara Press) and Aspen Music Festival’s Concerto Competitions, the First National Young Keyboard Artist’s Competition in Grand Rapids Michigan; the Fourth International Piano Competition in Pretoria, South Africa. In South Africa, Denton’s performance of Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 3 was nationally broadcast by the SABC from Pretoria’s State Theater: “He has a huge range of tone and articulation……. an exquisite performance by the American pianist....” (The Pretoria News). Orchestral performances within Georgia have included opening the UGA Thursday Scholarship Series with the Gershwin Concerto in F as well being a featured artist on the Macon Symphony Orchestra’s Masterworks Series performing Rachmaninoff’s Concerto No. 2: “….Denton has a warm straightforward interpretation ….a magical tone…drove the final movement to a thundering climax…” (The Macon Telegraph).  

Damon’s compact disc recordings include: Shostakovich's Piano Concerto No.1 with the ARCO Chamber Orchestra and Fred Mills, on the Phoenix label; THE BASSOON WORKS OF EUGENE BOZZA for bassoon, piano and chamber players, on the Mark Records label (Amy Pollard, bassoon); COLLECTED DREAMS  for Euphonium (Adam Frey) and synthesized keyboards. Collected Dreams are a collection of ambient arrangements of English, Irish and American folk songs and hymns.

Beyond his classical projects Damon also tours as keyboardist for the Athens, Georgia project PYLON REENACTMENT SOCIETY who are fronted by Pylon’s original singer, Vanessa Briscoe Hay. On October 20, 2017 PRS released a six song vinyl EP of a session originally recorded for Los Angeles public radio station KXLU-FM. The EP has received consistent praise from international blogs, Indie radio and U.S. national press. Denton’s performances have garnered special attention from critics such as Blurt and Paste magazine for being  “dynamic and ethereal”. PRS have headlined at U.S. festivals from the west to the east coast over the last three years. Upcoming engagements include performances in Chattanooga, Nashville, at the Savannah Stopover Festival and  the Sarasota Film Festival.