Daniel immigrates to Canada in 1963 and settles in Montreal, where he finishes his High School Studies. He goes on to study at McGill University at the Faculty of Music, then leaves for Switzerland, where he will study Harpsichord and Early Music at the Conservatory of Music in Geneva. Daniel Thonon then moves to Annecy, France, where he will spend the next ten years playing and producing himself in various concerts around Europe with his Early Music Group "Le Concert dans L'Oeuf". He produces four records with this group, while at the same time, researching various aspects of Musicology, Instrument building, and works for two years as a Music Therapist in a psychiatric institute. He composes and arranges various works for theatre and cinema, traditional music groups, rock, jazz, contemporary, etc. In 1978, he goes to study music of the Arab/Andaluz tradition in Tlemcen, Algeria.

   Daniel Thonon has been playing the diatonic accordion since 1982. He is now considered as one of the best on this instrument. Daniel uses a technique sometimes called "cross fingering", which is the same that was developed by Marc Perrone in France, Riccardo Tesi in Italy, or Andy Cutting in England. The instrument Daniel uses was built by Castagnari, in Recanati, Italy. These instruments are considered by many as the "Rolls Royce" of the button box, they have a tone quality and dynamics that are unequalled by any other accordion. Daniel plays mostly his own compositions, but is also known for playing Baroque, Tango, Jazz standards, Musette, French songs or Klezmer.