Trumpeter and French hornist Robert Northern aka Brother Ah died on 31 May. Born in North Carolina in 1934, Northern grew up in New York. During his time there, Northern was given a bugle by a neighbour, and he recalls using it to imitate the sounds of his neighbourhood. While in school he learned the trumpet but soon switched to French horn, for which he was offered a scholarship at the Manhattan School where he formed his practice, combining classical music and jazz.

Northern went on to play with Gil Evans and performed on many releases including Thelonious Monk’s 1959 Town Hall album, John Coltrane’s Africa/Brass, Freddie Hubbard’s The Body & The Soul, and McCoy Tyner’s Tender Moments. Throughout the early to mid-1970s Northern spent time in Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania, and released several albums as leader. He taught at Dartmouth College, replacing Don Cherry when Cherry moved to Sweden, and founded the World Music Ensemble. He died in Washington aged 86.

Phil Freeman spoke to Robert Northern in 2017 for an interview published The Wire 398. Read it for free via Exact Editions.