Role

:

Composer Performer

Country

:

United States of America

Birth

:

October 9, 1920 in Chattanooga, TN

Death

:

December 23, 2013 in Shutesbury, MA

 

Yusef Lateef was a renowned American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and educator. He was born William Emanuel Huddleston on October 9, 1920, in Chattanooga, Tennessee. His parents were both musicians, and his father played the trumpet and the violin. Lateef grew up in Detroit, Michigan, where he began playing the saxophone at the age of 18. Lateef's early musical influences included jazz greats such as Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins, and Charlie Parker. He also studied classical music and was particularly interested in the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Lateef's interest in world music began when he heard recordings of Middle Eastern and Indian music. He was fascinated by the different scales and rhythms used in these musical traditions and began incorporating them into his own compositions. In the 1940s, Lateef played with various jazz bands in Detroit, including the Lucky Millinder and Roy Eldridge bands. He also played with Dizzy Gillespie's big band in 1949. In the early 1950s, Lateef moved to New York City, where he played with the likes of Charles Mingus, Miles Davis, and Cannonball Adderley. Lateef's first album as a bandleader, "Jazz Mood," was released in 1957. The album featured Lateef on tenor saxophone, flute, and oboe, and included original compositions as well as jazz standards. Lateef's use of the oboe in jazz was groundbreaking, and he continued to explore the possibilities of the instrument throughout his career. In the 1960s, Lateef began incorporating more world music influences into his music. His album "Eastern Sounds," released in 1961, featured Lateef on tenor saxophone, flute, and oboe, as well as Middle Eastern instruments such as the oud and the arghul. The album was a critical and commercial success and is considered a landmark in the fusion of jazz and world music. Lateef continued to explore world music throughout the 1960s and 1970s, incorporating African, Indian, and Japanese influences into his music. He also began experimenting with electronic instruments and was an early adopter of the synthesizer. Lateef's compositions were often characterized by their use of unusual scales and rhythms, as well as their incorporation of non-Western instruments and musical traditions. He was also known for his use of improvisation and his ability to seamlessly blend different musical styles. Lateef was not only a prolific composer and performer but also an influential educator. He taught at the Manhattan School of Music, the New England Conservatory of Music, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst, among other institutions. He was also a prolific author, writing several books on music theory and spirituality. Lateef continued to perform and record well into his 80s. He passed away on December 23, 2013, at the age of 93. His legacy as a pioneering jazz musician and composer continues to inspire musicians around the world.

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