Eddie Daniels
Eddie Daniels is a masterful reed player who has expanded the reach of the clarinet well beyond its traditional position in jazz. Eddie graduated from Juilliard in 1966 and was promptly recruited by Thad Jones and Mel Lewis to join their new band, where he played until 1972. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, he also played and recorded with many of the leading musicians in New York, including Hank Jones, Roland Hanna, Freddie Hubbard, Joe Henderson, Richard Davis, Bucky Pizzarelli and Airto Moreira.
After a number of highly successful albums for GRP and jazz/classical crossover projects, such as a jazz version of Vivaldi's Four Seasons, Eddie moved to Santa Fe and concentrated on teaching and performing on his first instrument, the clarinet. He plays in a limited number of concert settings, both jazz and classical. One of the goals of IPO was to get Eddie back to performing straight-ahead jazz, and to unpack his tenor sax.
