Biography
Sun Ra (born Herman Poole Blount, legal name Le Sony'r Ra; May 22, 1914 – May 30, 1993) was a prolific jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher known for his "cosmic philosophy," musical compositions and performances. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama. He is a 1979 inductee of the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame.
The "Solar-Myth Arkestra" was one of the names of the ensemble with an ever-changing line-up that was lead by him from the mid-1950's until his death. It was also called "His Cosmo Discipline Arkestra", "The Blue Universe Arkestra", "The Jet Set Omniverse Arkestra" or, simply, "The Arkestra", among other names. Sun Ra once stated that the ever-changing name of his ensemble reflected the ever-changing nature of his music.
Biography text from Last.fm, available under CC BY-SA.