Dana Leong is a two-time Grammy Award-winning multi-instrumentalist, composer, technologist and social entrepreneur known for blending traditional instruments like electric cello and trombone with AI-driven soundscapes and immersive technologies. Recognized as one of the world’s top electric cellists and referred to as the world’s top trombone player by members of Balkan Beat Box, his innovative work bridges music, technology and social impact. His work, including the NeuroSymphony project (using brain scanner biofeedback and machine learning to create adaptive musical experiences) exemplifies the pinnacle of arts and technological innovation. He is the founder of TEKTONIKmusic.org and a United States Music Ambassador and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.
Born in the San Francisco Bay Area, Leong’s early immersion in music under his mother, pianist Sumiko Nagasawa, a frequent performer on Japanese National Television (NHK). By 16, Leong became Stanford University’s youngest jazz professor, teaching improvisation while balancing dual principal roles in California’s top classical and jazz ensembles. Leong’s career is defined by boundary-pushing collaborations. He performed and created with luminaries like Ryuichi Sakamoto, Paquito D’Rivera (on the Grammy-winning Panamericana Suite), DMC Champion DJ Qbert & Kanye West (Ye). In 2014, he brought hip-hop to the World Economic Forum’s Davos Congress, co-creating Rhythm of the City, an AI-augmented film blending live music, visuals and storytelling which was later an official selection of the Tribeca Film Festival.
As founder of TEKTONIKmusic.org, Leong leverages music and technology to heal trauma-affected communities. TEKTONIK’s initiatives integrate music, neuroscience and AI, reaching 100M+ audiences through platforms like TEDxShanghai, the UN and Alibaba’s XIN Philanthropy Conference and on keynote presentations at TATLER Magazine & The United Nations. A World Economic Forum Young Global Leader (2015) and UBS Global Visionary (2017), Leong champions art’s role in addressing global challenges.
His latest album TEKTONIK Music – Sweet Sleep Meditations partners with EMOTIV Technologies and Stanford Neuroscience to optimize mood enhancing music’s ability to reduce stress and improve deep sleep. The album has been entered in the 2026 Grammy Voting Ballot.