Miles Davis first appeared at Carnegie Hall in a 1949 concert of the Stars of Modern Jazz. The performance recorded on May 19th, 1961, features Davis with his regular quintet and accompanied by a 21-piece orchestra, conducted by Gil Evans. The orchestra and quintet together perform selections from Miles Ahead and Sketches of Spain. The recording almost didn't happen because Davis withdrew his permission to record at the last minute, which led to the concert being surreptitiously captured by Columbia Records producer Teo Macero. Davis was unaware of the recording until several days later.
The concert itself was a benefit for the African Medical Education and Research Foundation—a relief organization that some thought supported the South African government, which at the time enforced a brutal system of apartheid against the country's black residents. Because of this, drummer Max Roach (who had played with Davis many times but was not performing that night) issued a one-man political protest in the hall, placing placards on stage during the performance. Miles temporarily stopped the concert and left the stage.
Miles Davis appeared at Carnegie several times after 1961 (fewer than 10 total) including on March 30, 1974, the occasion of his final recording in the Hall. Aptly titled Dark Magus, it was released in 1977, and marked the conclusion of his tumultuous, hard electric period and the beginning of his 5-year hiatus from music making.
Miles Davis returned to regular performances in 1981, until his death a decade later, in September of 1991 at the age of 65.
Miles Davis at Carnegie Hall was reissued – with previously unreleased portions of the concert - in 1998.
On May 17th 2026, trumpeter Keyon Harrold, who provided the trumpet solos for the biographical film Miles Ahead, will present a concert in celebration of the Miles Davis centennial, 10 days before Davis’s birthday and just two days before the 65th anniversary of what is widely considered the most important jazz recording ever made at Carnegie Hall.