We just received word from Jason Patterson that the wonderful soul of jazz giant Mulgrew Miller passed on May 29th.  

He kindly came on air at Jazz from the French Market and spoke with us this April before his show at Snug Harbor. 

Jason remembers: Mulgrew had just done a short residency in New Orleans, appearing at the UNO Jazz @ the Sandbar on April 3rd followed by a master class the next day and a performance at the Snug Harbor on April 4. UNO Professor and pianist Victor Atkins had studied with Mulgrew at Memphis State and was an advocate for bringing Mulgrew to New Orleans this spring. He saw how important it was for his students to learn from the master. "The thing about Mulgrew is you could hear so much jazz history in his playing. He could play in an older style of jazz and make it sound new and fresh. My students were able to experience that level of history from someone that had played with and absorbed from so many giants of the music. You can't hear that from the younger players on the scene today."

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During his interview at WWOZ on April 4th, Mulgrew kept referring to the "language of jazz" as to what he used as a musician and educator.  When I asked him whether he was using "language" as a metaphor, he responded with a warm smile, "no, jazz IS a sophisticated language that we use to communicate. But it is different than English, which we too often take for granted.  To be a jazz musician, I tell my students they have to study jazz, it' roots, its structure, its influences, its present and its future." 

We have lost a magnificent "spokesperson", a kind and gentle human being, and a brilliant artist.

Geraldine Wychoff has written the following to be published in Louisiana Weekly next issue:

Pianist Mulgrew Miller Passes