British jazz bassist and composer Graham Collier has died
suddenly at the age of 74.
Born in Tynemouth in 1937, he became an army musician after leaving
school at the age of 16. He then won a scholarship to study at the
Berklee School of Music in Boston, becoming its first British
graduate in 1963.
On his return to Britain he formed Graham Collier Music, the first
of many bands of that name that were dedicated to performing his
compositions. During his career he recorded 19 albums and
collaborated with ensembles including the Danish Radio Jazz
Orchestra and the NDR Big Band.
He was also influential as a jazz educator. He wrote seven books on
jazz, jazz history, composition techniques and education. In 1986
he founded the jazz course at the Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in
London, having previously developed a six-year jazz degree course
at the Sibelius Institute in Helsinki.
Collier was awarded an OBE in 1987. He remained at the RAM as
artistic director until 1999, before moving to Spain, and later
Greece, where he continued to compose and travel internationally to
present concerts and workshops.
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