Dan is a very talented pianist, the music sounded amazing and he played a large variety of songs for my event. He was very nice and likable too - which helps when you're having a large event. I feel very fortunate to have found Dan from reading all of his high reviews :) thank you so much, Dan!!!! read more

Dan is an amazing pianist and super professional to work with. If you need a pianist for an event, he's the guy. He can even play Chick Corea's Spain!!! :-) read more

We had a great experience with Dan and team. We wanted a jazz trio for my daughter's wedding. And we specifically needed a saxophone player for a particular entrance song. In addition to being a tremendous piano player, Dan assembled the right sax player as well as a bass player to make the trio complete. They wowed the crowd and even added a couple songs my daughter and son-in-law requested for entrance music. Very professional, talented, on-time and fairly priced. We hope to use them again for another event. read more

Dan performed beautifully during our daughter's Bat Mitzvah celebration and added a classy, unique element and atmosphere. She loved having him play! He solicited our suggestions and came prepared with some meaningful and playful specific songs for us, but our trust in him to improvise and "read the room" was also well placed. I found Dan a pleasure to communicate with and a real pro, well worth the investment to have a skilled live musician at our event! read more

The absolute best! Also a very charming personable human being. True talent. I have used him for many years.

Dan kind of saved our wedding. I sought a pianist to play while the wedding party walked down the aisle and throughout the cocktail hour and dinner. I definitely had a vision of what I wanted--complete with sheet music for the wedding ceremony. Dan delivered. Originally, I hired another pianist, whose increasing demands and fees forced me to look for a replacement one week before the wedding. Not what I needed! I found Dan on Yelp, and he was professional, responsive, and just an overall nice guy. On our wedding day, he arrived on schedule and sightread the music for the wedding ceremony without any issues. Our wedding was outdoors at a winery, so Dan played his keyboard during the wedding ceremony and cocktail hour and used the winery's piano in the dining room during dinner. While the other pianist added a $100 fee to move his keyboard from the wedding ceremony area to the patio where we held the cocktail hour (yes, really), Dan didn't impose any ridiculous surprise fees--just a quote to play music. Even excluding the $100 fee, his quote was a little lower than the other pianist. After the wedding, I received many compliments from guests, including how much they enjoyed the music. I don't know what we would have done if Dan weren't available. (His original commitment that day fell apart.) I was so desperate that I started asking a few acquaintances who played piano if they were available to hire; none were comfortable providing entertainment for a wedding, and honestly, it wouldn't have gone well. A wedding really warrants a professional--like Dan. read more

Dan played at our corporate party last night and he was fantastic! He kept the mood upbeat and jazzy and just so fun. He was incredibly professional. He played a mix of jazz standards and christmas music which was perfect for the occasion! We will absolutely hire him again, he is the perfect addition to any party. read more

Dan was wonderful . He helped us find an amazing Saxophonist- Daniel. We will definitely use him again in the future. Dan was responsive and helped through the process ever step of the way! read more

I have hired Dan Zemelman as a performer and accompanist on several occasions, and consider him to be thoroughly professional, gracious and responsible, and one of the most inventive and musically aware keyboardists to be found in the Bay Area. He is a top-tier musician, with love and enthusiasm for his art, and a genuinely nice person, as well. I would enthusiastically recommend Dan as a solo performer, sideman, accompanist, or piano teacher. You'll get more than you asked for. read more

I asked Dan for a lot... and he delivered WAY MORE than I expected! His professionalism, friendliness, and attention to detail made him such a pleasure to work with. I needed music for each student in a class I'm teaching and Dan tailored each song for each woman to sing along with- some fairly common songs and some totally out of the ballpark that Dan had to learn on the fly. Not only did he record them in record time, but the heartfelt emotion mixed with technical skill that he put into each piece was felt throughout the class and brought some to tears. I'm so excited to have him come into the class next week for the live performance! Dan clearly is dedicated to his passion and I couldn't be happier to have chosen him to work with the class. His incredibly (incredibly) reasonable rates, professionalism, amiability, and friendliness have made him a total joy to work with. Thanks Dan! read more

Dan from start to finish was an absolute pleasure to work with for our wedding in San Francisco! He easily played any song requests we made for ceremony and cocktail hour and his music was the perfect touch to our Victorian themed wedding. Would highly recommend Dan again to anyone in need of a pianist and my wife and I can't wait to travel around the Bay Area to enjoy his music at other venues. Thank you so much for making our wedding unique and easy to work with. We appreciate you Dan! read more

Can't say enough good things about Dan. We found him through yelp and his 5-star rating is very well deserved. He was very accommodating to our last minute requests. Had great communication skills and was about to introduce us to other musicians that he had worked with in the past to strengthen the music program for our event. Our guests loved his music and he definitely made our event more special. Would strongly recommend. read more

I hired Dan Zemelman for a party at my home in February and he was absolutely marvelous! His rates were reasonable and his demeanor was extremely professional and yet friendly and open. My place is not the easiest to access because of stairs and such, but Dan had no problem bringing his keyboard and making it work. I am so grateful I found Dan. His playing was just beautiful. Everything he did seemed to fit in just perfectly and he didn't feel intrusive in the least. I will be calling Dan again the next time I need a pianist for anything! Thanks Yelp! read more

Dan was excellent in managing my girlfriend's surprise birthday violin performance!! He remained flexible in his accommodations for us and super fast with his communication. I appreciated the effort he placed in making sure we loved the performance once everything had been settled as well! It truly shows how much he cares about making his patrons happy. If you're looking for a performance from Dan or one of the artists he manages, I highly recommend picking him!! You won't regret it at all. read more

Dan added such a nice touch to our wedding! He played the piano during our walk-down and throughout the reception. He played classical, pop, r&b, blues, the works. He is SO versatile! An easy person to work with too :) Highly recommended! read more

Dan is wonderful! His music really added to the holiday spirit at our Christmas party. I'd like to give Dan my highest recommendation.

For my sins I started hosting a series of dinner parties - over a hundred people at a time dinner parties - a couple of years ago. Every one had a brilliant time. One of the key ingredients for the evenings success was Dan. I knew I wanted a really classy and accomplished Jazz pianist, and Dan is all that and more. He was ubber professional, charismatic and was able to seamlessly flow from providing ambient music for the dining to providing a concert for the guests after dinner. I have gone see Dan perform since then and continue to love his presence and fun loving spirit. If you are looking for an accomplished wedding pianist or for a pianist for some other type of event Dan is an excellent choice. read more

We wanted a great pianist for our wedding and spent some real time looking around. I've been playing piano my whole life and was not only picky, but had a really specific idea of what we wanted. Dan fit the bill in every way. He was easy to work with from the beginning and is an incredibly talented musician. He put together a few sets based on our input and played throughout the welcome, dinner, and reception. He also played our ceremony and even collaborated with another musician friend of ours on the day of the wedding. From our initial conversation, subsequent emails, and the day-of, he was easy to work with, professional, and friendly. He's your guy. read more

Dan did a beautiful job playing piano for our wedding guests in the penthouse of the Fairmont San Francisco. He was easy to work with, very responsive, and tailored his song list to accommodate things we liked (including a few Disney songs)! In the summer, I decided I wanted a roaming saxophonist to accompany Dan during the dinner portion of our wedding, so we worked with Dan to bring one in. He was also excellent and we heard rave reviews from our guests. Thank you, Dan! read more

Dan is the absolute best. We hired him to play the piano during our wedding ceremony in a church. He was very responsive throughout the entire process. I had two somewhat unconventional requests for songs, and he was able to find the sheet music and master the pieces on somewhat short notice. He was open to working with a vocalist whom he had never met. Dan was flawless. I highly, HIGHLY recommend him. He is the kind of professional that you can hire and not worry about anything for a second (just what a bride and groom need). read more

My husband and I hired Dan to play the piano at our wedding ceremony this past April 28th. Dan was amazing to work with. He was extremely communicative in helping us plan the music for our ceremony and also helped us hire a violin player. I love classical music and Dan performed all my favorites including Fur Elise, Cannon in D and The Wedding March! He was professional in every respect including being early the day off and played beautifully. He's a talented musician! Thank you Dan. read more

I hired Dan on pretty short notice to come to Lafayette to perform during an American Legion dinner. Since the dinner was on December 5th, I wanted Dan to play holiday music and he did a fabulous job on playing the right songs with a good contemporary feel. I would hire Dan again in a heartbeat. read more

Dan played at our wedding this weekend and we couldn't be happier! Communication and contract was super easy. He was able to get what we wanted with minimal guidance ('play some jazzy stuff!') and captured the right mood throughout. To top it off he is just a cool human and fit right in with our friends & guests. read more

This is a review for Dan Zemelman at www.danzemelman.com. My fiancé and I had requested a quote in October for a Duet for our wedding ceremony. Over the following weeks, he checked in to see if we were still interested and we exchanged emails about the details. In December, we decided to choose him since he was persistent and kept checking in. We signed his contract which stated "Duo piano/violin, and put down a deposit. A month rolls around, and we get an email from Dan. His email said, "I'm afraid that my quote was too low of a pay scale for the location and setup." Dan should have thought about his quote back in October-December when he kept on checking in to see if we wanted to book him. My fiancé and I kindly declined to use him. Who knows what he would ask for next? Would he even show up? Ask for more cash? This is the unprofessional response that he had emailed when we declined. "Just know that you will be hard-pressed to find quality professional players to do the job for the price you are wanting." The "price that we are wanting"?!! He gave us the quote! We never offered a price quote. Dan has been doing this for years. Quoting a price isn't new to him. His website boasts, "played at hundreds of weddings." We were never rude to him and that was his response? We did find somebody else for the same price who is professional, courteous, and who has worked with several famous people. He breached his contract. The next person won't be so nice and sue him. Hire someone who is professional and who you can trust. Not this winner. read more

Dan played at our private dinner party. He prepared our favorite classical pieces that we indicated, and more classical piano music for a great evening of music, wine and good company. Dan really made it a special evening, producing wonderful sounds from our piano. Unforgettable! Thank you Dan! read more

If you are looking for a top notch pianist and all around classy guy, Dan is your man. We hired him for our wedding ceremony and all of the guests stated that Dan and some string fellows he brought along were terrific. I almost want to have another event just so we can have Dan play. You can't go wrong with Dan. read more

Dan was an absolute pleasure to work with and delivered on the day of our wedding in a big way! Dan was just very easy to work with, asked all of the right questions to get a sense of what we needed, and he even was able to customize his performance to what my wife and I wanted. He's a very talented musician who knows the best in the business, and he was able to get them to join him for our wedding. Dan's performance perfectly complimented our ceremony. He was able to read the situation and fit into it marvelously. Moreover, he was just a pleasant and helpful presence on a very busy day. We could not have been happier. Thanks, Dan! read more

My husband and I hired Dan as a solo pianist at our wedding at Auberge du Soleil on August 2, 2014. He was fantastic!! He played at the ceremony and at the cocktail reception and the music was so beautiful. I requested a song for the bride processional that he had to learn off a sheet music that I sent him, and it was perfectly executed. The timing was perfect on every song, and he was very courteous and on top of things. He responded to all of my emails right away. We highly recommend! read more

I was the photographer at two events now where Dan was playing music (one wedding, and one corporate event). His music was both interesting and moving, but never got in the way. A really great guy. I would definitely recommend him for your wedding or special event. read more

Dan played our wedding in March 2010, and he was the best! He is professional, punctual and most importantly, plays a great jazz piano set during your dinner reception! Hire him for sure. read more

I've had the pleasure of working with Dan in many different musical situations. A superb musician and consummate professional. Dan is versatile and enjoys what he does! I always enjoy hearing and playing with Dan. read more

Dan is a real professional in his line of work. He played at my wedding the music was beautiful. Dan was early and stayed later than we discussed without any issue. I'm very happy we went with him. I would high recommend dan to anyone I know. Thanks again from Anthony and Dana read more

Our company hired Dan to play at a holiday function at the Fairmont Hotel Penthouse Suite in San Francisco. Dan was terrific! Great follow-up, arrived when promised, and, more importantly, entertained the 150+ people (of varying age groups) in attendance for over three hours. He was also very flexible when asked to perform some requests, including from one of our employees who wanted to sing "Silent Night". I highly recommend Dan for any event you need a top-notch piano entertainer. Thanks again Dan! read more

Dan is a beautifully gifted pianist! He played with me at a concert for the Monterey Jazz Festival golf tournament that held Clint Eastwood mesmerized for the entire hour! read more

His a extremely good professional musician. He come to Rhoda Goldman Plaza were I work and all the elders loved him. He is such a great performer and I really enjoyed his music. Definitely a keep consider him and he will go out of his way to fulfill your smile! ;-) read more

We hired Dan to play live at a house party. Dan was extremely amiable and friendly. He arrived early and was well-prepared. We had a piano on hand, but he had brought equipment in case we needed it. He is able to play a wide variety of music, although we did not specifically request any particular style or genre of music. However, he was extremely professional and courteous and had prepared music of his own choosing. His live music added great atmosphere to our party, and he blended right in with our guests. His rates were extremely reasonable, especially given that he was driving over an hour to our location. Our only regret is that we did not book him for longer! read more

Dan is very patient and he is talented as he can switch from his usual repertoire to the music we picked for our wedding, which was classical but not the usual wedding pieces. I drove him insane with all my different music choices and he even took extra time out to practice with the violinist so that they could give us a beautiful performance. He is very responsive by email and you can feel he is in charge of his business and music. If we had another occasion where we would need beautiful music, we would give him a call right away. Also, the violinist cancelled on us a few weeks before the wedding. PANIC. Dan found someone else without creating any stress for us. Thanks! read more

A masterful pianist, composer and accompanist. Dan's aesthetic sense is extraordinary - like a superpower, really. No, really. He's that good....jazzy, yet contemplative, he can be funky, cerebral, down-home - the whole spectrum. Total pro. Plus he's simply one of the nicest humans I've ever met. read more

Dan played at our wedding reception this past September and did a wonderful job. Very professional, knowledgeable, and easy to work with. All our guests had a great time. He was so personable and warm that he added a nice personality to go with his awesome musical knowledge and sense of timing. Bravo! read more

Dan played at our wedding last year and I've been meaning to write him a review ever since. He is one of the most accomplished piano players I've ever seen and we knew immediately that we wanted him to play for us. He was flexible with his playlist and listened well to what we were looking for. Not only did our guests comment on how fabulous his playing was but his music encouraged people to get up and dance. As a bride -to-be running around trying to get everything ready I met with him once, booked him, and knew i could trust him. Simple! Thank you Dan for sharing your talent on our special day. read more