The Final Chorus

Alexander Erpilev, 57, April 25th, in Aschersleben Germany. He was an orchestra conductor in his native Russia before moving to Germany in 2000 and turning his

EVERETT “EV” FAREY, 88, April 4, Novato CA. In the 50’s he was co-leader of the Bay City Jazz Band, led the Golden State Jazz

JIM LAVERONI, 64, March 28, Rohnert Park, CA. A drummer with The Black Tuesday Jazz Band, The Flying Eagle Jazz Band and the Swing and

JOSEPH KERACHER, 100, in Attalla, AL. He met his wife through the G.I. Josie program while stationed at Camp Sibert, near Gadsden Alabama in 1941.

CECIL TAYLOR, 89, April 5th, in Brooklyn, NY. A pioneer of free jazz known for the physicality of his piano approach. He pushed the limits

JERZY STANISLAW MILIAN, 82, March 7 in Poland. After graduating from the State high School of Music at 16 he was taught at the East

AUDREY MORRIS, 89, April 1, In Chicago. A pianist and singer who caught the ear of well known jazz men and the eye of Hollywood

OLLY WILSON, 80, March 12, in Oakland, CA. After performing as a teenage jazz musician enamored by Miles Davis and Charlie Parker he turned his

BUELL NEIDLINGER, 82, March 16, Widbey Island Washington. Famous for his work with Cecil Taylor, he also made contributions to free jazz and worked with

ALBERT “SAX” BERRY, 87, February 18, in Philadelphia. After being honorably discharged from the service in 1949 he pursued a career as a jazz saxophonist.

ERROL BUDDLE, 89, February 22, in Australia. Continuously prominent in the Australian Jazz scene since the 1940s, his first instruments were banjo and mandolin, though

RUSS SOLOMON, 92, March 4, in Sacramento California. Founded Tower Records out of his father’s Sacramento drug store in1960. The company took off after he

ALAN GERSHWIN, 91, February 27 in the Bronx. Famous for having maintained a curious (if not particularly lucrative) career on his dubious claim to be

VIC DAMONE, 89, on Feb. 11, of respiratory illness at Miami Beach hospital. One of a number of prominent Italian American singers who dominated the

HEINZ JAKOB “Coco” SCHUMANN, 93, on Jan. 28 in Berlin. Born in Berlin to a Jewish mother, by his teenage years he was spending his

HUGH MASEKELA, 78, on Jan. 23, of prostate cancer in South Africa. One of the most important names in African Jazz, he received his first

KENNETH DIEHL, 96, on Jan. 18 in Scottsdale, AZ. A co-founder of the Arizona Classic Jazz Society, he served as the Society’s first President (and

WILLIAM H. (Bill) HUGHES, 87, on Jan. 14, on Staten Island. Born in Dallas, Texas, he later moved with his family to Washington, D.C. and

BILL MOODY, 76, on Jan. 12, at home in Vallejo California. The author of nonfiction books on jazz topics as well as a series of

Marlene VerPlanck, 84, Jan. 14, of pancreatic cancer. Diagnosed in November she continued to perform up to the end. As a jazz vocalist, she began

Maurice Peress, 87, Dec. 31, of Leukemia, in Manhattan. A conductor who worked closely with both Leonard Bernstein and Duke Ellington. He considered himself a

Richard Ames, 97, Dec. 28, near Fayetteville, NY. He played in the brass sections of bands during high school and college during the ’30s and

Dr. Robert Edward Shanahan, 86, Christmas Day, Sylvania, OH. Bob was a surgeon, a private pilot, an accomplished gardener, and a beloved Dixieland Jazz musician.

Alan Joseph, 62, from a heart attack on Dec. 20 in Colorado Springs. Originally from Detroit, he moved to Colorado Springs in the late 1970’s