Edgar Meyer began studying bass at the age of five under the instruction of his father and continued his study with Stuart Sankey at IU. He obtained a B.M. from IU’s Jacobs School of Music in 1984. He is currently a visiting professor of double bass at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and adjunct associate professor of bass at Vanderbilt University.
In demand as both a performer and a composer, Meyer has formed a role in the music world unlike any other. Hailed by The New Yorker as “…the most remarkable virtuoso in the relatively un-chronicled history of his instrument,” Meyer’s unparalleled technique and musicianship in combination with his gift for composition have brought him to the fore, where he is appreciated by a vast, varied audience.
Collaborations are a central part of Meyer’s work. He has been and remains a member of numerous groups whose members include Chris Thile, Bela Fleck, Zakir Hussain, Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Mark O’Connor, Yo-Yo Ma, Emanuel Ax, Joshua Bell, Mike Marshall, and Amy Dorfman, among others. His debut album in 1985 featured the first public appearance of Strength in Numbers, whose members were Bush, Douglas, Fleck, O’Connor, and Meyer.
In 1994, Meyer received the Avery Fisher Career Grant and became the only bassist to receive the Avery Fisher Prize (2000). He received the first of five Grammys in 2000 for Best Classical Crossover Album for Appalachian Journey. It was soon followed by two Grammys in 2001 for Best Instrumental Arrangement for Claude Debussy “Doctor Gradus Ad Parnassum” From Children’s Corner and Best Classical Crossover Album for Perpetual Motion – Scarlatti, Bach, Debussy, Chopin. His uniqueness in the field was recognized by a MacArthur Award in 2002. His latest two Grammys were won in 2012 for Best Folk Album for The Goat Rodeo Sessions and in 2014 for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for Bass & Mandolin.
