Legendary bassist Charles Burrell, the first Black member of the Denver Symphony Orchestra in 1949, died on Tuesday. He was 104.

Burrell broke the color barrier as the first African American to sign a full-time contract with a major American symphony orchestra and was widely regarded as the “Jackie Robinson” of classical music.

Born in Toledo, Ohio in 1920, Burrell was raised in Detroit, Michigan.

According to a biography from The History Makers, a digital repository for the Black experience, Burrell’s love for the bass grew as he was mentored by members of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, who taught at his high school.

After high school, Burrell began playing jazz music at a club called B.J.’s in Detroit’s Paradise Valley.

During World War II, Burrell was drafted into an all-Black naval unit at Camp Rober Smalls at the Great Lakes Naval base. There, he played in the unit’s all-star band with Clark Terry, Al Grey and O. C. Johnson.

After his time in the service, Burrell was honorably discharged and began taking classes at Wayne State University in Detroit. Purnell Steen, Burrell’s first cousin, said Burrell’s bass professor deliberately mis-trained him, attempting to dishearten the young musician.

“It just made him ever more determined to become a professional classical bass player,” Steen told The Denver Gazette on Wednesday.

In 1949, Burrell joined his mother’s side of the family in Denver. The Denver Symphony Orchestra hired him shortly after.

Steen, a notable jazz musician himself, was mentored by Burrell as a child.

“He could take the complex and simplify it and break it down to very simple language that a child could learn to understand,” he said.

Burrell also mentored the likes of Grammy winning Jazz singer Diane Reeves, who is his niece, and pianist George Duke.

In 1959, Burrell moved to the San Francisco Symphony and fulfilled his dream of playing for Pierre Monteu. He remained there until 1965.

Steen recalled when Burrell was first referred to as “Jackie Robinson.” He preferred to call him a “lone eagle.”

“Eagles fly where nobody else dares to fly,” Steen said.

Although Burrell held prestigious musical titles throughout his long career, he often had to work other jobs in order to feed his four children.

According to Steen, Burrell single-handedly stripped the wood on the bleachers and hand re-stained every bleacher at Red Rocks by himself in the summer of 1951.

“He was not an egoist,” said Steen.

In 1965, an earthquake in San Francisco sent him back to Denver, and he returned to the Denver Symphony Orchestra. There he met his wife, Melanie, a cellist.

In his time at the Denver Orchestra, Burrell played with notable musicians, such as Charlie Parker, Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald among many others.

Burrell played in the Denver orchestra until he was 79 years old in 1999. He had played jazz music throughout his career. He was an active member of the jazz scene in Five Points, sometimes referred to as “The Harlem of the West.”

He also played with the Al Rose Trio at the The Playboy Lounge at 2022 E. Colfax Ave. — at the time a rare, multi-racial musical group with Lee Arellano on drums, “Buddy” Rose on keyboard and Burrell.

“He played with my Uncle Buddy in that jazz trio and was an integral part of our family,” said Cara DeGette, editor of the Greater Park Hill News. “As a kid, we went to hear them play at the Playboy Lounge. Listening to them jam was just incredible!

“Back then a multi-racial group of musicians playing together was pretty rare. They were cool cats, indeed,” DeGette said. 

In 2017, Burrell was inducted into the Colorado Music Hall of Fame. At the time, U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette entered remarks about him into the Congressional Record.

“Charles Burrell has been called the Jackie Robinson of classical music for his ability, class, and poise, helping forge change in American institutions that weren’t always inclined to widen their circles. It is my honor today to add to the accolades of this accomplished trailblazer,” she said at the time.

In addition to his music and mentorship, Burrell cared deeply about giving back to members of the community.

The Charles Burrell Visual & Performing Arts K-8 Campus in Aurora is named after him.

The Burrell in Denver, an affordable housing complex in Five Points, is also named after the musician.

“He loved that he did so many things for the community, and he did them because he just loved to do things for people,” said Steen.

The 2023 documentary “The Longest Walk” was made about Burrell’s life. Steen, who was involved in its production, said that it was originally going to be called, “Just call me Charlie” — because Burrell told everyone to call him that, as opposed to Mr. Burrell.

Kelley Dawkins, the marketing director for Dazzle Denver Jazz club said that Burrell celebrated his last few birthdays at the club.

“He just always seemed really humble, even though it was a city that really cared for him and honored him in all the ways that he should have been,” she said.

Steen said the family has yet to pick a date for a public memorial service.

“His dignified memory will live on,” he said.

City Editor Dennis Huspeni contributed to this story.