Composer Daniel Steven Crafts wrote for the great tenor Jerry Hadley until his tragic death. The first of their collaborations, The Song & the Slogan, a setting of poetry by Carl Sandburg, was made into a program for the PBS Television Network and ultimately won an Emmy for Best Music.
Opera and vocal music and collaborations have included work with writers Rudolfo Anaya (La Llorona), V.B. Price (From a Distant Mesa), Benedict and Nancy Freedman (Sappho), Erik Bauersfeld (Diary of a Madman; Bartleby), poet Adam Cornford (many works) and cartoonist Shannon Wheeler (Too Much Coffee Man).
With Too Much Coffee Man Opera he created a new sub-genre of classical opera known as Gonzo Opera. While using the vocal techniques of traditional opera, Gonzo Opera uses wildly comical and satirical plots and situations, and is designed for small ensembles.
His work has been recorded by the Kiev and Czech Philharmonics and the Prague Radio Symphony
www.dscrafts.net