Phil Cohran was best known for playing trumpet in the Sun Ra Arkestra in Chicago from 1959 to 1961, and for his involvement in the foundation of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians.
11 Facts About Phil Cohran
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Phil Cohran played trumpet in bands led by Jay McShann in the early 1950s, and then in a US Navy band.
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Phil Cohran was introduced to the Sun Ra Arkestra by John Gilmore in 1959.
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Phil Cohran appeared on the albums Fate In A Pleasant Mood and Angels and Demons at Play among others.
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Phil Cohran played mostly trumpet and sometimes stringed instruments such as the zither.
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Phil Cohran formed the Artistic Heritage Ensemble with Pete Cosey, future members of Earth, Wind and Fire's horn section and Motown percussionist "Master" Henry Gibson, among others.
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In 1967, Phil Cohran founded the Afro-Arts Theater, a center for African American musicians, in Chicago's South Side.
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Phil Cohran said that he taught White and his brothers music in their youth, much as The Wailers were tutored by Joe Higgs.
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Several of Phil Cohran's sons make up eight of the nine members of the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, which consists of four trumpets, two trombones, one euphonium, a sousaphone and drums.
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Phil Cohran taught voice and music to inner city youth and adults at Northeastern Illinois University's Center for Inner City Studies.
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Phil Cohran died in Chicago on June 28,2017, at the age of 90.