Dan Greenleaf, a Vermont-born guitarist and composer, embraces the unique challenges and strengths that shape his playing, including the influence of his cerebral palsy on his approach to the instrument. Live at Ford Hall, Greenleaf’s debut album, represents an unfiltered self-portrait of an artist fully embracing his musical voice. “This is as close as I could get to who I am right now,” Greenleaf explains. “It’s supposed to feel raw and unrefined because that’s what I can do.”

Featuring an ensemble of longtime collaborators—Nick Peloso (upright bass), Robert Irvin (keyboards), Drew Martin (saxophones), Theo Lobo (drumset, audio engineering), and Eric Maier (mastering)—the album embodies years of musical partnership and personal growth. The album artwork, painted by Greenleaf with digital art by Maier, visually reflects the organic and experimental nature of the music.

Today, Greenleaf has released the opening track to Live at Ford Hall “Opening Theme.”  The single is a beautiful and meditative prelude to the album, with the romantic sounds of the theater coming alive as background noise.  Greenleaf said of the single, “‘Opening Theme’ was just something I was playing over and over one day and kind of humming along to. It was one of those moments where I didn’t intend to write or practice, I just picked up the guitar to disassociate a little bit. I remember I recorded it in my voice memos thinking that I would explore  it some more and maybe write it into a larger melody one day and I just kind of didn’t. It almost felt like a character theme in a movie or something which is something I’ve always been interested in trying to write. I still hum it to myself so I guess it kind of stuck to me.”

The concert setlist showcases Greenleaf’s approach to composition, where space and dynamics play a central role. Tracks such as Opening Theme, Bite Bullet, and Closing Theme highlight his ability to craft expansive musical landscapes with minimal yet impactful melodic material. “My goal that night was to take the audience on a journey through dynamics—to make the quiet sections truly quiet so it feels like we went somewhere when it got loud,” says Greenleaf.

Live at Ford Hall is slated to drop May 16.  

Photo Courtesy: Eric Maeir