Jazz pianist Andrew Hill has died from lung cancer at the age of 75. His record label, Blue Note, announced the news, saying "our hearts go out to his wife Joanne, and the countless musicians, friends and fans that his music and spirit touched".
Hill was born in Chicago in 1931 and during the fifties worked with the likes of Charlie Parker and Miles Davis before starting to record his own albums. From 1970-1972 he was composer in residence to the Colgate University of Hamilton in New York, and in 1997 was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Jazz Foundation of America. In 2003 he was awarded Denmark's Jazzpar Prize, which recognised the musician as being a "genuine original".
His final album, 'Time Lines' was released in February 2006, and his final performance took place just weeks ago, on 29 Mar at the Trinity Church in New York city. After being diagnosed with cancer back in 2004, Hill was reported as saying: "Even though I am living with a terminal illness I am able to look forward to my work and the future with enthusiasm".