Portrait of Pharoah Sanders

Birthday profile

Pharoah Sanders

Pharoah Sanders, American saxophonist and bandleader (died 2022)

Born
October 13, 1940
Died
September 24, 2022
Zodiac sign
Libra
Birth year
1940

About Pharoah Sanders

Pharoah Sanders was an American jazz saxophonist. Known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on the saxophone, as well as his use of "sheets of sound", Sanders played a prominent role in the development of free jazz and spiritual jazz through his work as a member of John Coltrane's groups in the mid-1960s, and later through his solo work. He released more than thirty albums as a leader and collaborated extensively with vocalist Leon Thomas and pianist Alice Coltrane, among many others. Fellow saxophonist Ornette Coleman once described him as "probably the best tenor player in the world". Sanders first recorded with Coltrane on Ascension (recorded in June 1965), then on their dual-tenor album Meditations (recorded in November 1965). Pharoah's first album, Pharoah's First, was not what he expected. Starting in 1966, Sanders signed with Impulse! and recorded Tauhid, released the following year. In the 1970s, Sanders continued to produce his own recordings and also continued to work with Alice Coltrane on Journey in Satchidananda.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Pharoah Sanders timeline

  1. Sanders first recorded with Coltrane on Ascension (recorded in June 1965), then on their dual-tenor album Meditations (recorded in November 1965).
  2. Starting in 1966, Sanders signed with Impulse! and recorded Tauhid, released the following year.

The world when Pharoah Sanders was born

Pharoah Sanders was born in 1940. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1940

  • #1 song"In the Mood" – Glenn Miller
  • Top movieRebecca
  • Best-selling bookFor Whom the Bell Tolls – Ernest Hemingway

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentFirst televised college basketball game
  • Top headlineWinston Churchill becomes British Prime Minister
  • Technology milestoneFirst McDonald's restaurant opens
  • Defining fadSwing music hits its peak
  • Notable inventionJeep (military vehicle)
  • World population2.30 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderFranklin D. Roosevelt
  • Sports championCincinnati Reds (World Series)
  • U.S. population132.2M

1940 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Pharoah Sanders's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19402026
Gas$0.18$3.45/gal
Average home$5,300$435,000
Average income$3,100$67,500
Minimum wage$0.30$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.25$11.95
Postage stamp$0.03$0.73
Population132.2M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, MusicBrainz, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.