Abdul Wadud (born Ronald Earsall DeVaughn; April 30, 1947 â August 10, 2022) was an American cellist known for his work in jazz and classical settings. Jazz musician and fellow composer Tomeka Reid hailed Abdul Wadud's "Camille" in a 2020 feature in the New York Times on music that one could play to make friends fall in love with the cello.
He grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, the youngest of twelve children in a musical family; his father played trumpet and French horn. He studied cello in the cityâÂÂs public schools while also playing saxophone, and took private lessons with members of the Cleveland Orchestra. He first attended Youngstown State University, then transferred to the Oberlin Conservatory, where he converted to Islam and adopted the name Abdul Wadud. In Cleveland he co-founded the Black Unity Trio with saxophonist Yusuf Mumin and drummer Hasan Shahid; the groupâÂÂs album Al-Fatihah was recorded in 1968 and released in 1969. Wadud later earned a masterâÂÂs degree in performance at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and worked in orchestras including the New Jersey Symphony, alongside an active presence on the 1970s loft-jazz scene.
His son is R&B singer Raheem DeVaughn.
Wadud died on August 10, 2022, at the age of 75.
WadudâÂÂs only solo album, By Myself, was recorded in New York in 1977 and self-released the same year on his Bisharra label. Critics and musicians have highlighted the recordâÂÂs blend of classical technique with chordal strumming, pizzicato lines, and blues-inflected improvisation, marking it as a landmark for improvised cello. After decades out of print, the album was remastered and reissued in 2023 by the Cleveland label Gotta Groove Records, prompting renewed critical attention and tributes from improvising string players who cite WadudâÂÂs influence.
With James Newton
With Julius Hemphill
With Arthur Blythe
With Anthony Davis