Saxophonist and composer Pharoah Sanders, known for his visceral and spiritual, purposeful and ecstatic music, died Saturday in Los Angeles. he was 81 years old.
His death was announced in a record company statement Ruaka Bapdid not identify the cause.
The sound Mr. Sanders drew from the tenor saxophone was a force of nature. Robust, throbbing, receptive and steeped in deep blues, he used a high degree of skill to produce screeching harmonics and majestic multiphonics. He may sound intense or distressed. He may also sound kind and welcoming. He was widely recognized as a member of John Coltrane’s group from his 1965 to his 1967 and went on to have a fruitful and prolific career with dozens of albums and decades of performances.
Mr. Sanders performed free jazz, jazz standards, bright Caribbean tunes and African and Indian incantations such as “The Creator Has a Master Plan.” 1969 album “Karma” The pinnacle of dedicated free jazz. He has recorded extensively as a leader and collaborator, working with artists such as Alice Coltrane, McCoy Tyner, Randy Weston, Leon Thomas, Joey Defrancesco and many others.
His latest album was ‘Promises’, a collaboration with electronic musician Sam Shepherd, known as Floating Points, and the London Symphony Orchestra, released in 2021.
“I’m always trying to make something that might sound bad sound beautiful in some way,” Sanders said. New Yorker 2020.
A full obituary follows.