Recording of the Week, Ron Miles - Old Main Chapel

Ron Miles, the 'understated master of jazz cornet', passed away in 2022 from the rare blood disorder known as polycythemia vera. Announcing the musician's untimely passing, Blue Note president Don Was described Miles as "a gifted artist [and] a sweet, soulful man whose character was reflected in every exquisite note he played." He had gone on to achieve national acclaim by the time his tragic illness took hold, having already been recognised as a jazz hero in his own neck of the woods in Denver, Colorado. The prolific cornet player, bandleader and educator was 58 years old. 

Having dazzled audiences with warm jazz melodies and a nuanced creative approach throughout his career, this pure and gentle soul explored a variety of genres over the course of his life. The albums he released across five different decades each varied in inspiration from post-rock to grunge, country and folk. Though whilst he was a fixture in his local music scene, in Miles' bands, the accompanists were often more famous than their leader. Two of his fondest collaborators, Bill Frisell and Brian Blade, now appear with the late cornetist on a freshly released recording of a live performance from 2010. The trio, which at the time had only been performing together for as a little as a year, offer a captivating glimpse of the musical heights they would soon unlock on future releases such as I Am A Man (2017) and Rainbow Sign (2020).

Having already recorded a pair of albums together as a threesome, the personnel on those final two albums would grow to include bassist Thomas Morgan with Jason Moran on keys. This quintet was the first ensemble to appear before a live audience at the Village Vanguard following 18 months of lockdown amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, in what was Miles' first appearance at the New York venue with his own band. By this point, the understated musician had begun to recieve the public attention he had never actively sought, but plainly deserved.

The Old Main chapel at the University of Colorado Boulder sets the scene for this homecoming concert, just a short drive from two-thirds of the band's hometown (Blade hails from Shreveport, Louisiana.) It's mostly tunes that would end up on Quiver (2012), the group's first album together, which form the bulk of this release. For that reason, the differences between the studio and live performances here are low-key, but distinct. Without the usual mechanical workroom constraints, a resulting air of freedom lends a certain layer of physicality to the group's sauntering display. Otherwise it's a fraction less polished, but that only doubles its ambiguous gospel charm. 

The presence of the jazz cornet in living memory is largely a muted one. A mainstay of early jazz pioneers such as Buddy Bolden and Bix Beiderbecke, its appearances remain few and far between throughout the unfolding 20th century canon – save for the avant-garde work of Don Cherry as well as Freddie Hubbard, who brandished his own on Herbie Hancock's iconic Empyrean Isles (1964). On account of this Denver native's legacy, however, the mellow brass instrument has gained another reputable practitioner, known for playing from his heart and leading with his soul. 

With his tailored suit and horn-rimmed glasses, from the outside Ron Miles resembled a type of jazz musician that's almost been consigned to the archives. All the genre's classiness and allure, encompassed in a perfect silhouette – which, after all is said and done, is what this immortal recording leaves us with.