Miles Davis

Miles Davis was an American trumpeter, bandleader and composer whose career spanned five decades and reshaped the course of 20th‑century music. Born on May 26, 1926, in Alton, Illinois, he grew up in an affluent African‑American family and began trumpet lessons at age twelve, quickly showing a prodigious ear for bebop and blues. After a brief stint at the Juilliard School he left to join Charlie Parker’s quintet, where his crisp, vibrato‑free tone earned him a reputation as a daring improviser. In the late 1940s he recorded the groundbreaking Birth of the Cool sessions, establishing the cool‑jazz aesthetic that contrasted sharply with the fiery bebop of his peers. The 1950s saw Davis rise to worldwide fame with albums such as ‘Round About Midnight and the legendary Kind of Blue, the latter becoming one of the best‑selling jazz records ever and showcasing his pioneering use of modal improvisation. Throughout the 1960s he assembled a succession of brilliant quintets, working with figures like John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, while simultaneously exploring orchestral collaborations with Gil Evans on masterpieces such as Sketches of Spain. The turn of the decade marked his radical electric period; albums like In a Silent Way and Bitches Brew fused rock, funk and African rhythms, provoking fierce criticism yet igniting the jazz‑fusion movement. After a health‑related hiatus in the mid‑1970s he returned in the 1980s, embracing pop production techniques on Tutu and achieving commercial resurgence. Despite personal turbulence, chronic health problems, and occasional controversy, Davis remained a relentless innovator until his death in 1991, leaving an indelible legacy that continues to inspire musicians across genres.