After Tragedy, Daniel Beilman Found a New Path in Music. The Recording Academy Took Notice. A car accident left Beilman temporarily deaf and blind, but he returned to music as a teacher. The rewards have been many.
By
Cheston Knapp
December 12, 2024
Daniel Beilman B.M. '14
Image courtesy of artist
Earlier this year, Daniel Beilman B.M. '14 was named a quarterfinalist for the prestigious Music Educator Award from the Recording Academy and Grammy Museum. This recognition has been humbling and unexpected. Growing up, Beilman dreamed of a career as a bassoonist. If he thought of teaching at all, it was as a means toward this end. But he's found that helping students with disabilities achieve new milestones has been a gift beyond reckoning.
It's been the most incredible and fulfilling job I've ever had, he says of his work at Oak Park School in Sarasota, Florida. I had a student today who said his first five words. Ever. And he's a junior in high school. Things like this happen all day, every day.
Beilman uses music as a tool to help his students feel more comfortable with themselves and the world, which helps them build the confidence they sometimes lack.
Allowing music to be a form of communication, a way of learning how to speak or hear, is truly special, he says, adding that music has been a big part of his recovery from a car accident that left him temporarily unable to do either.
When Beilman graduated from Boston Conservatory at Berklee, he was on track to having the life of his dreams. He was traveling the world to play with orchestras, teaching in cities across Europe, and writing new music with ambitious composers. But in the spring of 2020, while driving to a hike, he lost control of the wheel. His car flipped and turned his world completely upside down.
Over the next six months, his hearing and sight slowly returned. . . . For almost two years, he couldn't bring himself to even dream of playing his bassoon.In a movie of his life, this would be where the flashback montage happens. Beilman at six: stealing his sister's clarinet and playing along to The Lion King soundtrack. In middle school: falling in love with the bassoon after seeing a Disney commercial in which a young girl plays the The Sorcerer's Apprentice and her toys spring to life. At the Conservatory: staying up into the small hours playing with his classmates. In his mid-20s: pinching himself as he sits in with the London Symphony Orchestra, the Berliner Philharmoniker.
When Beilman woke up in the hospital, the fear he felt was literally unspeakable. In and out of medically induced comas, he couldn't see, hear, or move. After stabilizing, he endured extensive facial reconstructive surgery, with over 60 implants and more grafts than he can remember. After his release, 21 days later, he realized that his journey to recovery had just begun. With the horrific behind him, what lay ahead was merely awful.
Over the next six months, his hearing and sight slowly returned. To relearn how to use his facial muscles, he said his ABCs again and again, exaggerating each letter, and slowly regained his ability to speak. For almost two years, he couldn't bring himself to even dream of playing his bassoon.
My doctors said that if I blew too hard, a lot of things could happen, he says. So I was hesitant.
He's playing again now, though. And while he's not at the same level he was at before the accident, he's still able to find the joy that drove him to the instrument and to music-the same joy he loves seeing in the faces of his students. And he's discovered a deep well of sympathy has opened inside him after his experience of being deaf and blind. I get sad and emotional if I think about not playing and performing again, he says. But now, no longer playing just for himself, he lives with a profound sense of purpose.
Related Categories
Berklee Today
News
Most Popular
Rihanna sings during the Concert for Valor in Washington, DC, November 11, 2014.
Image by EJ Hersom / CC-BY-2.0
This Rihanna Song Has Secret' '80s Easter Eggs The SOS songwriter revealed a nostalgic twist to the lyrics, and it's going viral on TikTok.
Latest
Alissia Benveniste BM '14
Grammy-Nominated Producer Alissia Benveniste Makes Magic, Inside and Outside the Studio Since graduating a decade ago, bassist Benveniste has been exploring collaborations with legends and forging new creative connections.
Tina Davis, president of the independent distributor, record label, and publisher EMPIRE and Tonya Butler, chair of Berklees Music Business/Management Department.
Image courtesy of Music Business/Management
Berklee Honors Tina Davis, President of EMPIRE, at Annual Music Business Lecture Series The leader of one of the most successful independent record labels shared insights at the 31st annual James G. Zafris Lecture Series.
Daniel Beilman B.M. '14
Image courtesy of artist
After Tragedy, Daniel Beilman Found a New Path in Music. The Recording Academy Took Notice. A car accident left Beilman temporarily deaf and blind, but he returned to music as a teacher. The rewards have been many.
Read All
Subscribe The latest sounds, stories, and ideas, sent to your inbox weekly.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
10/06/2026
DAZN-owned digital-media company launches three fan-first series leaning into cr...
10/06/2026
Clear-Com has announced the appointment of Jason Dino as Southwest Regional Sales Manager USA, covering Southern California and the Southwest region. Dino joins...
10/06/2026
An 11% decrease in number of global broadcast deals reflects the organization...
10/06/2026
The Women Without Boundaries Awards recognize women whose work is advancing the future of media, broadcast, AV, workplace technology, digital experience, and re...
10/06/2026
Today is match day minus two for FIFA and HBS. On Thursday, there will be two ma...
10/06/2026
SES is supporting broadcast distribution of the world's biggest football tou...
10/06/2026
NDI has announced that BirdDog has become the first hardware manufacturer to achieve full NDI 6.3 compatibility across its complete lineup of cameras, encoders,...
10/06/2026
Vince Caputo and Scott Carter, winners of the 2026 Sports Emmy for Outstanding Post Produced Audio have been announced as presenters for the 2026 SVG Advanced A...
10/06/2026
FOX One today unveiled a slate of new product features and enhancements designed to elevate the viewing experience for fans on the official streaming platform o...
10/06/2026
Primary production partners Dome Productions and Raycom Sports once again played...
10/06/2026
The Women in Sports Filmmaking Experienceship is an immersive professional devel...
10/06/2026
The league has expanded its HSAN architecture for the NBA Finals to manage more ...
10/06/2026
The inaugural MoonPay X Games League (XGL) Winter Draft will take place Wednesday, September 16, 2026 at Cosm Los Angeles from 7-9 p.m. PT. The event will strea...
10/06/2026
The University of Oklahoma (OU) Athletics Department and Learfield have announce...
10/06/2026
The Video Services Forum (VSF) has released TR-06-4 Part 8, a new specification for RIST Satellite-Hybrid: Out-of-Band Method. The specification creates a mecha...
10/06/2026
Riedel Communications provided the communications infrastructure for the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Lisbon, supporting live medical proc...
10/06/2026
A still from The Doom Generation by Gregg Araki (Courtesy of Sundance Institute)
By Lucy Spicer
Have you checked out our Sundance Film Festival 101 list yet...
10/06/2026
Get Hands-On with Interfaces & Mic Preamp Brands
If youre after a new interface or preamp, then GearExpo UK is the place to be! Well have a whole host of au...
10/06/2026
November 13-14 2026, The Midway, San Francisco
Following their recent rebranding, MONO Music Conference (formerly Music Expo) have officially announced thei...
10/06/2026
Debut instrument free for limited time
deFORM is the debut release from newly founded developer ebbandflow, and it's being offered as a free download fo...
10/06/2026
Alone Australia Season 4: Meet the Cast
10 June, 2026
Media releases
WATCH THE TRAILER
Smash-hit survival series Alone Australia drops its highly anticipa...
10/06/2026
DEADLY THEN, DEADLY NOW, DEADLY ALWAYS: SBS & NITV IGNITE NAIDOC WEEK 2026 WITH ...
10/06/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and TRUMPF advance laser-based drone defense with THORIS LCS Rohde & Schwarz is showcasing THORIS at ILA 2026: A sovereign, end to end counter...
10/06/2026
MAHLE and Rohde & Schwarz develop application for sensor testing of modern drive...
10/06/2026
Production and Development Funding supports the creation of compelling, commercially viable, artistic and culturally relevant South African screen content. Deve...
10/06/2026
Media buyers and sellers can now compare YouTube reach from computer, mobile, an...
10/06/2026
Accedo, Humans not Robots, and the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) have announced the launch of Ecoflow X. Formerly an IBC Accelerator project, ...
10/06/2026
Frequency, the engine powering the world's leading streaming television channels, today announced that James Smith has joined the company as General Manager...
10/06/2026
At the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Lisbon, Riedel Communications provided the communications infrastructure for live medical procedures s...
10/06/2026
Globecast, a leading provider of broadcast, media, and entertainment managed services, today announced the launch of its Content Exchange platform powered by Or...
10/06/2026
Klvr will showcase how venues, integrators and production teams are rethinking disposable battery usage at InfoComm 2026 (Las Vegas, June 17-19, booth #N6311). ...
10/06/2026
The Video Services Forum (VSF) has further enhanced the Reliable Internet Streaming Transport (RIST) protocol by incorporating a new feature, RIST Satellite-Hyb...
10/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
10/06/2026
10 Jun 2026
VEON's Banglalink Brings Every World Cup 2026 Match to Football...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
How to watch every ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 match live on Sky Sports
Where is the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 availabl...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
P RLA brings first-ever Beautifully Clean Oral Care'...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
Sky reveals pulse-pounding first teaser trailer for upco...
10/06/2026
Wuppertal June 10, 2026
Riedel Artist at the Heart of the 14th World Live Neurovascular ConferenceAt the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Li...
10/06/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Showcases New Mobile Experience, Collections and Games Vision in APAC
Product
10 June 2026
GlobalSouth KoreaJapan
Link copied to c...
10/06/2026
Back to All News
Ready to Join? The Netflix Fan Club Arrives at Cannes Lions
Business
10 June 2026
Global
Link copied to clipboard
Download all assets
N...
10/06/2026
Chemists snap together complex 3D molecules from highly reactive radicals-without losing their shape Scripps Research team develops stereoretentive radical-radi...
09/06/2026
Kiswe announces an expanded long-term partnership with ONE Championship (ONE), t...
09/06/2026
SiriusXM will broadcast FOX Sports' English-language commentary for all 104 FIFA World Cup 2026 matches from June 11 through July 19, available to subscribe...
09/06/2026
EVS has announced it is changing its corporate name from EVS Broadcast Equipment to EVS, reflecting the company's expanded portfolio beyond broadcast equipm...
09/06/2026
Fox Corporation and the NFL have announced a multi-year agreement to bring NFL c...
After Tragedy, Daniel Beilman Found a New Path in Music. The Recording Academy Took Notice. A car accident left Beilman temporarily deaf and blind, but he returned to music as a teacher. The rewards have been many. 
