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Eddie Daniels

Eddie Daniels is that rarest of rare musicians who is not only equally at home in both jazz and classical music, but excels at both with breathtaking virtuosity.

Expert testimony from the jazz world comes from the eminent jazz critic Leonard Feather, who said of Eddie, "It is a rare event in jazz where one man can all but reinvent an instrument bringing it to a new stage of revolution."

From the classical side, Leonard Bernstein said "Eddie Daniels combines elegance and virtuosity in a way that makes me remember Arthur Rubenstein. He is a thoroughly well-bred demon."

Eddie first came to the attention of the jazz audience as a tenor saxophonist with the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra. When Thad and Mel first organized their band in 1966 to play Monday nights at the Village Vanguard in New York (where it still plays), Eddie was one of the first musicians they called. Later that year, he sank $400 in a round-trip flight to Vienna to enter the International Competition for Modern Jazz, a contest organized by the pianist Fredrich Gulda and sponsored by the city of Vienna, and won first prize on saxophone. He continued working with Thad and Mel over the next several years and toured Europe extensively with them.

A single clarinet solo recorded with the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis orchestra, "Live at the Village Vanguard" garnered sufficient attention for him to win Downbeat Magazine's International Critics New Star on Clarinet Award. This conversion to clarinet was not new, for Eddie began clarinet at age 13 and received his Masters in Clarinet from Juilliard. Winning numerous Grammy awards and nominations, Eddie Daniels revolutionized the blend of jazz and classical.

Eddie Daniels is clearly a renaissance musician, a virtuoso in both jazz and classical music, recipient of unreserved accolades from his peers, from critics, and from the public. Eddie's overriding ambition is to reach as many people as possible with his music, to enlarge the audience for both jazz and classical music and at the same time to tear down the walls separating them. In Eddie's hands, the music of Mozart can be as engaging as that of Charlie Parker and a concert featuring both can be a uniquely rewarding experience for the audience.

Luiz Millan: Brazilian Match

Read "Brazilian Match" reviewed by Chris M. Slawecki

by Chris M. Slawecki
September 20, 2023

Brazilian Match is a tour-de-force of classic and contemporary Brazilian music written by and featuring singer-songwriter Luiz Millan. Millan's fifth album is a leader is his first for Jazz Station Records and Brazilian jazz impresario Arnaldo DeSouteiro, whose storied history includes working with Antonio Carlos Jobim, Eumir Deodato, Dom Um Romão, João Donato, and other legends, and who called Millan “a composer's composer." “A great melodist who also happens to be a great poet, a fabulous storyteller; a ...

Radio & Podcasts

Les Brown, Jerry Bergonzi & Eddie Daniels

by Joe Dimino
May 9, 2021

The 698th Episode of Neon Jazz kicks off with a veteran musician that has delighted fans for decades; Eddie Daniels joined by an impressive line up including Dave Grusin and Bob James with new music from 2020 release Night Kisses. From there, we take a trip to Cuba with Harold-López-Nussa and the Cuban Jazz Combo. This hour is also dedicated to emerging musicians who are making the world vibrant in 2021 with Kansas City pianist Eddie Moore and the duo ...

Interview

Eddie Daniels: 'Sings' Ivan Lins

by R.J. DeLuke
July 1, 2020

Eddie Daniels, one of the finest of clarinetists during his decades in jazz, is still an active, curious, exploring musician. He welcomes new things. His latest album, Night Kisses: A Tribute to Ivan Lins (Resonance Records), set to be released at the end of July, represents something new for him. Music is an art that always reveals something fresh for those aware enough to look for it. For Daniels, the new project lit one fire and ...

Album Review

Eddie Daniels, Roger Kellaway: Just Friends

Read "Just Friends" reviewed by Angelo Leonardi

by Angelo Leonardi
July 26, 2018

Dall'archivio personale di George Klabin --il fondatore e presidente della Resonance Records --esce questa registrazione di un concerto di vent'anni fa, dato al Village Vanguard dal clarinettista Eddie Daniels e dal pianista Roger Kellaway con Buster Williams al contrabbasso e Al Foster alla batteria. Documento scintillante sia dal punto di vista della qualità acustica (nonostante l'incisione su cassetta con un singolo microfono Sony) che da quello artistico. All'età di 47 anni Eddie Daniels era nel pieno della ...

Album Review

Eddie Daniels: Heart Of Brazil

Read "Heart Of Brazil" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky

by Dan Bilawsky
July 14, 2018

When Resonance Records' George Klabin pitched Eddie Daniels on this project saluting Egberto Gismonti, the legendary reedist was enthused yet somewhat trepidatious. Gismonti's music--a sui generis form of fantasia that proves evocative in its blending of Brazilian forms, a jazz harmonist's argot, and European classical languages--is no easy nut to crack or translate. But Daniels, of course, is no slouch. A doyen of the clarinet and an expert at navigating tricky divides like the potentially deadly jazz-classical fault line, he ...

Album Review

Eddie Daniels and Roger Kellaway: Just Friends: Live at the Village Vanguard

Read "Just Friends: Live at the Village Vanguard" reviewed by C. Michael Bailey

by C. Michael Bailey
September 19, 2017

Resonance Records has dramatically improved the respective discographies of Bill Evans (Live At Art D'Lugoff's Top of The Gate (2012), Some Other Time: the Lost Session From the Black Forest (2016), Another Time: The Hilversum Concert (2017)); Wes Montgomery (Echoes of Indiana Avenue (2012), Wes Montgomery: In The Beginning-Early Recordings from 1949-1958 (2015), Smokin' in Seattle: Live at the Penthouse (1966) (2017)); and Gene Harris (Live in London (2008), Another Night In London (2010), Three Sounds: Groovin' Hard -Live at ...

Album Review

Eddie Daniels & Roger Kellaway: Just Friends

Read "Just Friends" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky

by Dan Bilawsky
September 11, 2017

Clarinetist Eddie Daniels and pianist Roger Kellaway are more than just friends; they're musical soulmates, connected in pulse and impulse, focused on the same syncretic sum of sounds and styles, and bound by a telepathic rapport. Both men are virtuosos of the highest order, but that's beside the point. The real measure of their artistic collaborations is tied to the way they communicate and connect, not how fast they can go or how many notes each can cram into a ...

Recording

Eddie Daniels, with Roger Kellaway - Live at the Library of Congress (2012)

Source: Something Else!
December 22, 2011

Clarinetist Eddie Daniels, appearing last February at the Library of Congress' Coolidge Auditorium, displays an almost telepathic symbiosis alongside pianist Roger Kellaway. Making good on 2009's pleasant and compulsively listenable Duet of One, the two charge into the evening with an explorative, polyrhythmic remake of Gershwin's “Strike Up The Band," stretching it out into an eight-minute rumination. Later, Daniels (a founding member of the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra) and Kellaway (Al Cohn and Zoot Sims, Clark Terry, Bob Brookmeyer, Ben ...
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Performance / Tour

Clarinet Virtuoso Eddie Daniels and Vocalist Kevin Mahogany with the South Florida Jazz Orchestra Saturday, November 17, 2007 - 8:00 PM

Source: Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services
November 13, 2007

This is a rare opportunity to see two great artists doing their unique material, accompanied by an energetic and powerful big band. Join us for this magnificent concert that benefits South Florida JAZZ educational programs in the community. Excellent seats are still available with VIP amenities if you desire them. Each artist will be featured for a set of personal arrangements with the 16-piece South Florida JAZZ Orchestra, followed by a jam at the conclusion of a thrilling evening. Join ...
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102

Performance / Tour

Les Paul (Mon) Mingus Legacy (Tues) Jimmy Bruno (Wed) Eddie Daniels CD Rel (Thu-Sun) at the Iridium Jazz Club

Source: Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services
October 15, 2007

IRIDIUM JAZZ CLUB 1650 BROADWAY (Corner of 51st) NEW YORK, NY 10023 RESERVATIONS: 212-582-2121 Sets At 8:00 & 10:00PM Effective immediately, minimums are $10/person/set for all show except Les Paul - $15 mins. Oct. 17 JIMMY BRUNO Oct. 18-21 EDDIE DANIELS BAND IPO CD Release “Homecoming" EDDIE DANIELS: CLARINET, TENOR SAX, TOM RANIER: PIANO, DAVE FINCK: BASS, LEWIS NASH: DRUMS Opening Night ...
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146

Performance / Tour

Grammy Winner Eddie Daniels Leads off Ellington Series on September 14

Source: Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services
September 11, 2007

"It is a rare event in jazz where one man can all but reinvent an instrument bringing it to a new stage of evolution." --Leonard Feather Eddie Daniels, the remarkable jazz clarinetist and saxophonist, will perform the first concert of the season on the Yale School of Music's Duke Ellington Fellowship Series on Friday, September 14 at 8:00 pm in Morse Recital Hall in Sprague Hall. Daniels will perform with his quartet, featuring Tom Ranier, piano, Dave Finck, bass, and ...
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139

Recording

Eddie Daniels New 2 CD Set Homecoming Live at the Iridium

Source: Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services
August 17, 2007

IPO RECORDINGS IS PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THE RELEASE OF THE NEW EDDIE DANIELS 2 CD SET HOMECOMING LIVE AT THE IRIDIUM

“Eddie Daniels came back to play in the city where he used to grace the bandstands at the Vanguard, Half Note and Village Gate and helped bring forth two special CDs at the Iridium. Quite a homecoming!" Ira Gitler

Eddie Daniels Homecoming Live at the Iridium (2CD Set) (recorded Live@Iridium NYC during his 65th Birthday week Oct. 19-22, 2006)IPO ...
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125

Performance / Tour

Eddie Daniels 65th Birthday Celebration Oct. 19-22 at The Iridium Jazz Club

Source: Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services
October 18, 2006

IRIDIUM JAZZ CLUB 1650 BROADWAY (Corner of 51st) NEW YORK, NY 10023 RESERVATIONS: 212-582-2121 www.iridiumjazzclub.com 8:30 & 10:30PM, Fri. & Sat. 3rd Sets AT MIDNIGHT

Oct. 19-22 EDDIE DANIELS 65TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION Joe Locke vibes, David Finck bass, Joe LaBarbera drums Special Guests, Thurs. Oct. 19 PAQUITO DeRIVERA, KEN PEPLOWSKI & RON ODRICH Live Recording For IPO Recordings This Week at Club!

The Iridium ...
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112

Performance / Tour

Eddie Daniels 65th Birthday Celebration Oct. 19-22 at The Iridium Jazz Club

Source: Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services
September 21, 2006

IRIDIUM JAZZ CLUB 1650 BROADWAY (Corner of 51st) NEW YORK, NY 10023 RESERVATIONS: 212-582-2121, www.iridiumjazzclub.com 8:30 & 10:30PM, Fri. & Sat. 3rd Sets at Midnight

Oct. 19-22 EDDIE DANIELS 65TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION Joe Locke vibes, David Finck bass, Joe LaBarbera drums Special Guests, Thurs. Oct. 19: PAQUITO DeRIVERA, KEN PEPLOWSKI & RON ODRICH Live Recording For IPO Recordings This Week at Club! ...
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128

Recording

Eddie Daniels Quartet New CD "Mean What You Say" Street Date May 9, 2006

Source: All About Jazz
May 4, 2006

Eddie Daniels Quartet Mean What You Say Hank Jones, Richard Davis, Kenny Washington IPO RECORDINGS IPOC 1009 Street Date May 9, 2006

The new release is called Mean What You Say, a new recording by Grammy Award winner Eddie Daniels, leading a quartet that includes piano legend Hank Jones and the great bass and drums combination of Richard Davis and Kenny Washington.

Due in stores on May 9, 2006, this will be ...
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