Daniel Bassin
Director of Music Ministries
(he/him)
Dr. Daniel Bassin is an active and experienced Unitarian Universalist music director, conductor, educator, trumpeter, and composer/improvisor with musical roots in NYC, Boston, Buffalo, NY, and Southern California and deep ties to the Portland area. Bassin joined the staff of First Unitarian Portland in August 2026. Having received his PhD in Composition from the University at Buffalo, an MFA in Conducting from Bard College, and a BM with Honors from the New England Conservatory of Music, Dr. Bassin’s performances have taken him to 39 countries and 42 American states in venues from Carnegie Hall to the Bowery Ballroom, and in genres ranging from ancient music to the most contemporary, with pop, jazz, and classical in between. Principal teachers include David Felder, Jeffrey Stadelman, and Robert Ceely, composition; Harold Farberman and Peter Eötvös, conducting; Joe Maneri, improvisation; and Charles Schlueter, trumpet. Previous posts include Music Director of the Towson Unitarian Universalist Church and the Unitarian Universalist Church of Buffalo; Director of Orchestras for Idyllwild Arts Academy and Summer Program, Buffalo State University, and the University at Buffalo; and Artistic Director of the Buffalo Master Chorale, among regular collaborations as an ensemble director and clinician. As a conductor, Bassin has led world premieres of over 150 new works and has championed more than 90 regional first performances of works by neglected and under-represented composers.
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