Saxophone legend Sonny Rollins dies aged 95

Sonny Rollins, the towering figure of modern jazz whose restless imagination and commanding tenor saxophone sound reshaped the language of the music, has died at the age of 95. Rollins passed away on 25 May 2026 at his home in Woodstock, New York, his family confirmed. Revered as one of the greatest saxophonists in history, he was widely regarded as the last surviving giant of jazz’s golden bebop era, a musician whose influence spanned generations and genres.

Born Theodore Walter Rollins on 7 September 1930 in Harlem, New York, he grew up in a neighbourhood alive with the sounds of jazz at a time when the music itself was evolving at extraordinary speed. Inspired by the likes of Coleman Hawkins and Charlie Parker, Rollins switched from piano to alto saxophone before settling on the tenor horn that would become his voice.

By his late teens, Rollins was already recording with leading figures of bebop, including Bud Powell and J.J. Johnson, before going on to work with Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker and Max Roach. These collaborations placed him at the very centre of one of the most fertile periods in jazz history.

In the 1950s, Rollins produced a string of landmark recordings, among them Saxophone Colossus (1956), an album that would give him his nickname. His compositions from this period — including “St. Thomas,” “Oleo,” “Doxy” and “Airegin” — have since become jazz standards.

At the height of his early fame, he famously withdrew from the spotlight, spending months practising alone on New York’s Williamsburg Bridge in search of a deeper musical truth. When he returned with 1962’s The Bridge, it marked not just a comeback, but a statement of artistic renewal. This pattern of reinvention became a hallmark of his career. Rollins took further sabbaticals, continuously re-evaluating his playing and pushing the boundaries of improvisation. His performances — often extended, spontaneous explorations — were studies in melody, rhythm and storytelling, marked by humour, intellect and an unfiltered emotional honesty.

Rollins’ achievements were widely recognised. He received multiple Grammy Awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as the National Medal of Arts and a Kennedy Center Honor. Yet, characteristically, he remained ambivalent about accolades, often insisting that the true reward lay in the act of creation itself. His retirement was forced on him due to ill health in 2012.