RIP Sa Davis

Berklee percussion faculty department member and transcendant performer SA DAVIS has died. His live work with Billy Cobham and many others such as Grover Washington and George Benson will be missed
RIP Sa........

You're kidding ! That's terrible. Saw him play with Boomer a number of times. Very sorry to hear that ! Prayers for him and his family.


RIP Sa Davis





Peace, TED

He dos'nt look over 50 years of age. My condolences to the survivng family and friends.

Shalom,
rac

Woody, where did you obtain this information? I would like to check this out as soon as I can. Thanks in advance for any leads you can provide.

Boomer

Sad news Woody!
I really like his work with Billy on G.R.P label ,and i had the chance to see him live back in the 80's in Paris ,this was the first time i saw Billy too!Rest in Peace Mr DAVIS.Peace,Stef.

Billy,
Kenwood Dennard told me about his death as they both teach at Berklee college of music.

You can ask Dean Brown about it too as he told me he heard about it, also.
I see you're playing in Tokyo with him at the cotton club in Dec. w/ will lee.

more info here, Billy

http://www.berklee-blogs.com/2010/09/remembering-sa-davis/

Sa Davis, 56, a member of Berklee's percussion faculty and an innovator of hand-drumming technique, died a few days before the beginning of the fall semester. Known for incorporating percussion styles from around the world into a range of more well-known genres, Davis performed with a host of music greats, including Billy Cobham, Tom Scott, Grover Washington Jr., Freddie Hubbard, and Lalah Hathaway.

He was also a frequent collaborator with a long list of Boston-based musicians, including faculty members at Berklee, New England Conservatory, and Northeastern University.

"He was probably the best conga player I've ever played with," said Berklee professor of percussion Jackie Santos, one of Davis's longtime musical mates. "He never overplayed. Everything he played had a nice groove."

Santos and Davis played together in bands dating back to the late 1970s, when both were members of the r&b-fusion group Peaceful Flight, which also featured faculty member Armsted Christian.

Davis, who joined the Berklee faculty in 1995, most recently taught courses such as Afro-Caribbean Rhythms and Percussion for Nonpercussionists and Practical Applications of Afro/Latin Rhythms.

"My specialty as a percussionist is to be able to take instruments from Brazil, Africa, and Cuba, and the rhythmic patterns associated with them, and transform them for use in very conventional settings—playing r&b, pop, jazz, rock 'n' roll, hip-hop, or whatever the style may be," he said in a recent interview for Berklee.edu.

"He was just a beautiful person overall," said Santos. "I loved playing with him not only because of his musicianship but because he always brought a warm, gentle feeling. It was great to be on stage with him and look over at him, seeing his warm smile light up the room."