LOS ANGELES – Perhaps best known for his transcendental work with John Coltrane and his solo career with Impulse Records beginning in the mid-1960s, the legendary jazz saxophone helped define the so-called Spiritual Jazz Movement. Musician Pharoah Sanders has passed away. he was 81 years old.
His record label Ruaka Bop confirmed on Twitter that Sanders died Saturday morning in Los Angeles. The cause of death has not been revealed.
“We are devastated to share the passing of Pharoah Sanders,” read the label’s statement. “He died peacefully this morning in Los Angeles surrounded by his loving family and friends.” May he rest in peace, always and forever the most beautiful human being.”
Born in Little Rock, Arkansas, into a musical family, Sanders came to the San Francisco Bay Area to meet fellow saxophonists Dewey Redman and Sonny Simmons, pianist Ed Kelly, and drummer Smiley Winters. I have played with many of the best musicians.
He moved to New York City in 1961 and, at first unable to make a living from music, soon found work jamming with jazz greats such as Sun Ra, Don Cherry and Billy Higgins.
In 1965, Sanders joined Coltrane’s band as tenor saxophonist, breaking with traditional jazz molds with albums like Ascension and Meditations.
“Coltrane’s ensemble with Sanders was the most controversial in jazz history,” says Sanders’ website.
“Their music almost completely sheds traditional jazz concepts such as swing and functional harmony in favor of a rich, irregularly structured, organic mixture of sounds for sound. Strength was needed in that band, and as Coltrane realized, Sanders had it in abundance.
After Coltrane’s death in 1967, Sanders briefly co-starred with widow Alice Coltrane before splitting up to do his own projects.
In 1969 Sanders released his most famous work, “Karma”. This featured “The Creator Has a Master Plan”, a recording that became one of his most influential tracks of the time.
After continuing to release records as bandleader and sideman in the 1970s and 80s, Sanders began to taper off in the 90s.
After a long hiatus, he returned to the studio in 2021 to record ‘Promises’ with electronic music producers Floating Points and the London Symphony Orchestra.
“My beautiful friend passed away this morning,” Floating Points wrote on Instagram following the news of his death. We bless that art will remain with us forever.Thank you, Pharaoh.”
Sanders’ ideas for complex, structurally fluid instruments went on to influence subsequent generations of musicians, including the LA scene that spawned Flying Lotus, Kamasi Washington, Madlib, Carlos Niño and Terrace Martin.
In a 2020 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Sanders was soft-spoken and answered questions in one sentence. When asked about his famous work, “The Creator Has a Master Plan,” and whether the state of the world led him to question his design, his answer was short, “To the Creator. Master he has a plan. That’s it.”
By his side was his longtime friend and saxophonist Hazard Lawrence, who added: Creators have a master plan. So, even in this period, these are all within the master plan. All working together for our benefit. ”
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