Get Rhythm

Keeping rhythm is critical in any musical ensemble—and when you immerse yourself in the Sioux Falls jazz scene, you’re likely going to need to have the ability to strike that very delicate balance as well. Daniel Heier is already an old pro at that.

Collaborating with countless ensembles throughout the community and beyond, the consummate percussionist finds himself a part of a variety of musical pursuits, from live entertainment, to professional recordings.

“When I moved here, I was the bottom of the barrel, really,” Heier said. “There was such a high talent level, and it drove me to get better.”

Growing up in Roscoe, S.D., Heier’s exposure to music started like many—in the school’s fifth-grade band program.

It was a couple years later when his Christmas present that year arrived—a drumset—that things really kicked off.

“That kind of just totally changed everything for me,” he said. In his early high school years, he began to take private lessons from an instructor in nearby Aberdeen, with a drive to learn technique and meet accomplished drummers.

“I loved every minute of it—I just took it all in.”

By the time his family moved to Sioux Falls when he was a sophomore, the opportunities multiplied exponentially. “You go from a tiny town and come to Lincoln High School, and the marching band is larger than my hometown.”

Thanks to instructors throughout high school and college, Heier’s love of an array of music genres took shape. Drummers like Steve Smith and Steve Gadd helped him develop an obsession with educating himself.

“All of the sudden, I’m buying all these method books, drum instructional DVDs and hanging out on DrummerWorld.com,” Heier said. “I just really enjoyed learning about all these different types of drummers.”

Downtown restaurant and haven for local jazz lovers Touch of Europe proved a natural fit for the young Heier, who found himself hanging out there on a regular basis.

“I started going every weekend,” he said, “and that’s how I started meeting up with musicians like Andrew Reinartz, Jim Speirs and Joel Shotwell.”

Though he ducked out to the Twin Cities for a period to attend college, he gigged with those local players frequently, and even found himself dabbling in country and rock performances. But jazz always kept calling him back.

This exploration led Heier and his family to move to Nashville for a short period before returning to Sioux Falls in 2015. His connection with Speirs proved a jumping-off point for his second phase of Sioux Falls performing. He played his first gig with local ensemble JAS Quintet the day after he moved back, and the rest is history.

“They were starting to formulate and compose their own songs,” Heier said. “When I came back we just all really got along, and I think there are just a lot of creative similarities and differences, and we’re able to use that.”

The group started composing music and doing original jazz tunes locally and throughout the state. That is until COVID-19 halted and reshaped their regular performing schedule.

“Right now we’re just hoping for music venues to open back up,” Heier said. “We’re able to play a little bit here and there—including recently at the Old Courthouse Museum.

“Our long-term hopes are another album—I’d say we’re in the very early prep stages of that. Another dream of ours—we all want to tour Europe. That’s an aspiration for us.”

JAS Quintet released its most recent record, Bird Ritual Interrupted, in 2019.

But while Heier, along with many other musicians across the country, wait out the pandemic, he’s taking the time to revisit fundamentals, a passion that has never left him.

“I decided to take most of this time to improve on my craft and to focus on my private teaching,” he said. “I guess the thing about music is it seems like we live in a life of constant change, which is probably true of anyone who is self-employed. I personally decided to not let this life of constant change get me down and to try to find a silver lining in everything.”

Of late, many local young musicians have kept themselves occupied with regular monthly jam sessions at R Wine Bar, put on by Sioux Falls Jazz & Blues and hosted in part by Heier.

“The Sioux Falls Jazz & Blues Society has been awesome in supporting and developing local talent,” he said. “There’s a healthy jazz community—both working pros and a really good young crop of musicians hungry to learn more. 

“I hope to impart some wisdom like people have done for me.”

Find out more about JAS Quintet on the group’s website JASQuintet.com.