Jan Lee McDaniel

Jan Lee McDaniel, 69, of Edmond, OK passed away on August 13, 2026 after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. Born June 18, 1957, in Nocona, TX, Jan was a musical prodigy, performing on the piano by age 5 and acting as full- time organist at his church by age 9.

After completing degrees in piano performance and musicology, Jan began his professional career as a Rotary International Graduate Scholar at the Nordwest Deutsche Musikakademie and as assistant conductor and vocal coach with the Detmold State Theater in Germany. Once back in the states, Jan served as director of accompanying at Stephen F. Austin State University for a decade before moving to Oklahoma and continuing his career in teaching acting as a coach, conductor and professor of musicology at the Wanda L. Bass School of Music for 27 years.

Jan was equally vital to the broader Oklahoma arts community. As the founding music director of Painted Sky Opera, Oklahoma City’s professional opera company, he championed contemporary works alongside classic opera and operetta. He was a frequent guest conductor with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic and Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma. He shared the stage and recording studio with renowned artists, including OCU alumni Kelli O'Hara, Kristin Chenoweth, Marquita Lister and Leona Mitchell, along with many more vocal luminaries. Yet his greatest professional legacy lives on in the hundreds of students he guided from the rehearsal halls of the Wanda L. Bass School of Music to Broadway, major opera houses, and academic institutions worldwide.

McDaniel’s spirit of collaboration and overall expertise was sought across the country and around the globe. He served as music director of OCU’s New York Showcase, taught six summers at the Taos Opera Institute, spent several seasons as musical director of the Key West Symphony Orchestra’s Young Artist Opera Program, and conducted and coached in Germany, Japan and across the United States.

Beyond the podium and the keyboard, McDaniel was a visionary educator. At OCU, he served as professor of Vocal Coaching, a program he founded and directed. He was also an award-winning conductor of the Oklahoma Opera and Music Theater Company, leading three dozen mainstage productions that encompassed both regional and world premieres. Alongside his OCU creative teams, his artistic vision was recognized with seven national Production Awards from the National Opera Association.

While Jan was a gifted musician and deeply devoted teacher and friend, his life was guided by his deep faith in God and by his constant devotion to his family. He will be remembered not only for his brilliance as a scholar and musician, but by his whimsical personality, and the contagious joy that he so easily shared.

Jan is survived by his wife of 30 years, Catherine, his children, daughter Berkeley Shouse and son-in-law Caleb Shouse both of Tulsa, OK, daughter Alex McDaniel of Oklahoma City, son Ian McDaniel of Oklahoma City and grandchildren Violet and Jonas Shouse; as well as beloved extended family, colleagues, friends and treasured students.

A Memorial service will be held Saturday, October 10 at 1:00 at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Oklahoma City. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to:

Painted Sky Opera –Venmo @PaintedSkyOpera

or Oklahoma City University in support of the Kirkpatrick Auditorium renovation--give online at okcu.edu/kirkpatrick or mail checks payable to Oklahoma City University to: OCU Advancement Office, PO Box 2780, Oklahoma City, OK 73101. Please note “In Memory of Jan McDaniel” with your gift.