PHIL COHRAN

Trumpeter, Arkestra player (1927-2017)

Fellow musician John Gilmore was responsible for introducing trumpeter Phil Cohran to Sun Ra in 1959. Cohran joined the Arkestra soon after, staying put for the next two years and contributing to such experimental jazz albums as Holiday For Soul Dance (featuring Cohran’s own “Dorothy’s Dance”), Angels And Demons At Play and Fate In A Pleasant Mood. When Sun Ra relocated to New York via Montreal in 1961, Cohran elected to stay in Chicago, where, four years later, he co-founded the Association For The Advancement Of Creative Musicians. He also set up the Artistic Heritage Ensemble, alongside future Miles Davis guitarist, Pete Cosey, and started the local AfroArts Theatre. One of his students was Maurice White, who adopted Cohran’s invented frankiphone (an electrified kalimba) in his later role with Earth, Wind & Fire.