Jim Donica is a bassist, composer, teacher, sideman, and bandleader who has performed and recorded with some of the finest artists in the world.
Donica can be heard on landmark recordings such as Maynard Ferguson’s, “Big Bop Nouveau”, the soundtrack recording of "Permanent Record” and "Trash City", with Punk Rocker Joe Strummer and with MCA recording artists The David Becker Tribune, on “Long Peter Madsen” and “Siberian Express”. His long standing and ongoing gig as bassist for the legendary, Chita Rivera has taken him around the world playing for audiences who just can’t get enough of Broadway royalty.
Donica is now accepting students and able to offer socially distant music lessons (zoom) for bass players both upright and electric, and jazz tap dancers. As a teacher , Jim has mentored many fine musicians who have gone on to have careers in music themselves. He helps students of all abilities increase their enjoyment of the music. Through his friendship with jazz tap dancer Heather Cornell, Jim has learned he enjoys working with jazz tap students on musicality, time feel, and repertoire. He is presently teaching students from all over the country and internationally.
Donica completed a Jazz Studies degree and received the coveted Performance Certificate from the Jacobs School of Music at IU, Bloomington in 1995. While there, he played in the 20th Century Be Bop Band for Jazz Legend, David Baker. Afterwards, Donica set out for New York where he continued his professional pursuit of Jazz and improvisation creating his own groups and collaborations such as, Urban Survival that produced two recordings and toured nationally as well as the Jim Donica Group (Apria Records), featuring, Peter Erskine, Randy Brecker, Bruce Barth, Frank Kimbrough, and Tim Armacost and the group, Quantum Mechanics.
On Broadway, he’s held the bass chair in Chita Rivera’s, “The Dancers Life’; Kander and Ebb's, “The Visit” and in “Allegiance” with George Takei and Lea Salonga. Donica has also performed with orchestras in the pit on the Broadway productions of “Avenue Q”, “Evita”, “If Then”, and “Cats’.
Donica lives in the upstate NY hamlet of Rosendale, with his wife and trusty hound. He loves and is inspired by the beautiful Hudson Valley. He is an official endorser of Overwater Basses, UK.
Jim Donica is a bassist, composer, teacher, sideman, and bandleader who has performed and recorded with some of the finest artists in the world.
Donica can be heard on landmark recordings such as Maynard Ferguson’s, “Big Bop Nouveau”, the soundtrack recording of "Permanent Record” and "Trash City", with Punk Rocker Joe Strummer and with MCA recording artists The David Becker Tribune, on “Long Peter Madsen” and “Siberian Express”. His long standing and ongoing gig as bassist for the legendary, Chita Rivera has taken him around the world playing for audiences who just can’t get enough of Broadway royalty.
Donica is now accepting students and able to offer socially distant music lessons (zoom) for bass players both upright and electric, and jazz tap dancers. As a teacher , Jim has mentored many fine musicians who have gone on to have careers in music themselves. He helps students of all abilities increase their enjoyment of the music. Through his friendship with jazz tap dancer Heather Cornell, Jim has learned he enjoys working with jazz tap students on musicality, time feel, and repertoire. He is presently teaching students from all over the country and internationally.
Donica completed a Jazz Studies degree and received the coveted Performance Certificate from the Jacobs School of Music at IU, Bloomington in 1995. While there, he played in the 20th Century Be Bop Band for Jazz Legend, David Baker. Afterwards, Donica set out for New York where he continued his professional pursuit of Jazz and improvisation creating his own groups and collaborations such as, Urban Survival that produced two recordings and toured nationally as well as the Jim Donica Group (Apria Records), featuring, Peter Erskine, Randy Brecker, Bruce Barth, Frank Kimbrough, and Tim Armacost and the group, Quantum Mechanics.
On Broadway, he’s held the bass chair in Chita Rivera’s, “The Dancers Life’; Kander and Ebb's, “The Visit” and in “Allegiance” with George Takei and Lea Salonga. Donica has also performed with orchestras in the pit on the Broadway productions of “Avenue Q”, “Evita”, “If Then”, and “Cats’.
Donica lives in the upstate NY hamlet of Rosendale, with his wife and trusty hound. He loves and is inspired by the beautiful Hudson Valley. He is an official endorser of Overwater Basses, UK.
