Albert Ayler

Albert Ayler (born July 13, 1936, Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.—died November 1970, New York, New York) was an American tenor saxophonist whose innovations in style and technique were a major influence on free jazz. As a boy, Ayler studied saxophone with his father, with whom he played duets in church. In his mid-teens he played in rhythm-and-blues bands, and as a young alto saxophonist in Cleveland, he mastered the bebop style and repertoire. He began playing...