Danilo Tavares was born in Salto Baixo (Tarrafal – Santiago island in 1969) is a Dutch Cape Verdean bass player, music producer and sound engineer, residing in Rotterdam. He is better known in Portuguese-speaking countries and communities around the world, as a bass player for the well-known bands Rabelados and Splash created in Rotterdam! But Danilo, is a man and an artist of multiple talents.

At the age of just three years old, Danilo moved with his parents to the Netherlands and begun to reside in Rotterdam. Rotterdam contributed a lot to Cape Verdean musical dynamics on the last century since the 60s. This Dutch city port, a breeding ground for many renowned Cape Verdean sailors and artists, has become a mandatory stage for all respected Cape Verdean artists. At the age of 11, Danilo watches live shows in Rotterdam with his father from the then renowned Cape Verdean bands Tulipa Negra (from Portugal) and Bulimundo (from Cape Verde). From those experiences his passion for music and sound was sparked.

1989 – 2000: Bass Player and Producer

From 1989 Danilo played and recorded in various studios with multiple musical groups and artists such as Rabelados, Beto Dias, Kino Cabral, Grace Évora, Bitori Nha Bibinha, Chando Graciosa and others. On this same period, he started on the adventure of phonographic production. In 1998, he created together with Djucka Teixeira the innovative duo producer TxT, which produced several artists on CD. In the late 1990s, he graduated from the renowned audio engineering institute (SAE) in Rotterdam.

2000 – 2010:

During this period Danilo, accumulates years of experience, training, and functionality in the music industry as Bass Player, Producer and Sound Engineer. On this decade, Danilo continues to be the bass player for the bands Rabelados and Splash! At the same time, he produced several albums with emerging Cape Verdean talented artists under the name of Mister D. He also worked as Chief sound engineer at MESA and Giva Tropical Recording Studios, respectively, all based in Schiedam. Both Cape Verdean-Dutch companies were active and specialized in the segment of Cape Verdean and PALOP music. This was very successful period for exotic Portuguese African music, produced in the Netherlands. A success of which Danilo was undoubtedly co-responsible as a musician, composer, arranger, and sound technician.

2010 – Present:

In 2011 he founded Tavares Music Studio of which he is the proud owner and manager. In this company, he is a bass player, producer, sound engineer and recording studio manager. Since the foundation, more than a thousand exclusive recordings have been produced in his studio. Artists from all walks of life expressly travel to Rotterdam to catch a glimpse of the atypical Rotterdam-Cape Verdean sound and get their recording seasoned and signed by Danilo Tavares. In between his amazing work as a producer, Danilo reserves time to accompany the legendary accordionist Bitori Nha Bibinha, with whom Danilo has already successfully toured many stages of theaters and festivals around the world as a bass player and leader of the band. Danilo continues to learn, work and develop on the music industry as bass player, producer, sound engineer and recording studio manager, because music for him is not only a job, but it’s also a passion he wants to keeps alive through communication between musicians and the community.