At the height of the Miles Davis Quintet’s fame in 1966, Wayne Shorter wrote a suite of orchestral jazz songs entitled “The Universe Compositions.” Intended for a 24-piece orchestra, the compositions were immense, ambitious works that answered the call of psychedelic rock-n-roll, cool jazz, and the rigors of classical music. When Miles first saw the sheet music, he looked up at Shorter and said, “I asked for a song and you gave me a fuckin' symphony.” The band had begun rehearsing the compositions when the Quintet dissolved. As the band fell apart, The Universe Compositions were lost. It was Miles’ final wish before he passed away in 1991 that Wayne Shorter “find the music.” 50 years after their disappearance, The Universe Compositions are recovered by Miles’ only protegé, Wallace Roney, and debuted for the first time in history.

The story of Wallace Roney and The Universe Compositions is the story of missing links. Universe is the piece of music that would have bridged two eras of jazz. It is the masterpiece that Miles Davis never recorded. And for Wallace Roney, it was the bridge between mentorship and mastery. The work took on an added poignancy when Wallace unexpectedly passed away in March 2020 before seeing the music's release out in the world.