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By Dixie Weekly News
Dan Truman may have found national fame with top country band Diamond Rio, but he still finds home under the Dixie Sun.
Truman, who grew up in St. George and attended Dixie State College, will return to his hometown roots, along with his father, Delmonte, and son, Ben, for a special concert on Thursday, March 20, at the Eccles Main Stage Theater.
Award-winning guitarist-composer-producer Ron Saltmarsh will join the three generations of Trumans onstage as they bring to life jazz and gospel tunes from past albums and their soon to be released, “This Way That.”
“I have wanted to do something to honor my first love, jazz music, and thought maybe in the process, I could help the community theater where so many of my close friends share their talents,” Truman said. “When Ron agreed to come, we decided this would be a great way to give back to a community that has supported me through the years.”
The Trumans and Saltmarsh will contribute all proceeds from their concert to the “Raise the Roof in 80 Days” capital campaign for St. George Musical Theater.
“My parents have already joined the ‘Grand Circle’ of donors in support of SGMT. It is so important to keep a homegrown treasure like this in our community as the arts change and enhance our lives,” Truman said.
Truman said his father has a great Broadway-type voice, so good that Truman was reluctant to do much singing while growing up and concentrated instead on his piano studies. Now, with a son who has an incredible voice and recording credits to his name, Truman is excited to showcase both his father and son.
Ron Saltmarsh has covered nearly every conceivable musical base, from country to pop, Sousa marches to jazz and contemporary orchestral music. His work can be heard on promo spots for CMT, A&E, ESPN, Disney, NBC, ABC and Fox Television, as well as dozens of major television and radio stations.
Most recently, Saltmarsh scored the music for the cyber-punk thriller film "SIGMA" and has been the lead composer scoring music for the prime-time series A&E 's "Biography" and specials for the History Channel. "Entertainment Tonight," "The Rosie O'Donnell Show," "Good Morning America" and "T.G.I.F." anchor a long list of high-profile credits that also includes corporate clients such as PepsiCo, AVON, Big O Tires, Nu-Skin, The Salvation Army and Help-U-Sell Realty. Saltmarsh has been nominated for multiple Emmy Awards and won prestigious Addy, Telly and Clio awards.
His arranging and keyboard talents can also be heard on the Grammy-nominated album "One More Day," by Diamond Rio.
Saltmarsh is long on live experience, too, having led his own jazz group and worked as a sideman in country, pop, jazz, and show bands.
"Writing and performing my own music has always been the big thing for me," said the easygoing father of four. "My aunt gave me a guitar when I was in fourth grade, and that was pretty much it. I started coming up with my own melodies right away. I'd form different bands with my friends and play in all the bands at school. I'd arrange music for the orchestra and jazz band, even the vocal groups. I guess everything I've done has evolved as a way for me to write and play my own music."
Truman and Saltmarsh have worked together in Nashville, both living there for a number of years, as well as collaborating at The Jazz Ranch, a state-of-the-art studio that was originally part of the Osmond Family complex.
Projects in Saltmarsh’s own studios have given him the chance to work with various luminaries, including Lorrie Morgan, Diamond Rio, Linda Davis, Marie Osmond, Phylicia Rashad, Andy Williams, The Osmond Boys and self-help guru Stephen Covey.
Co-creators Truman and Saltmarsh are working on a second CD for the adult contemporary project known as, “This Way That.”  Going back to their early jazz and rock influence, they will produce a record they hope will springboard them into the next century, doing what they love the most, performing. 
This special three-generation concert will be onstage one night only, March 20, 7:30 p.m., at the DSC Eccles Main Stage Theater. Tickets are $15.
For tickets, call (435) 628-8755. For more information on SGMT events and performances, visit www.sgmt.org.

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