Corea's illness"was only discovered very recently," read a statement posted on his Facebook page Thursday .
The dynamic composer and bandleader, whose compositions-turned-jazz standards included Spain, 500 Miles High and La Fiesta, was among a select group of talent alongside Herbie Hancock and Keith Jarrett to emerge as some of the 20th century's most influential pianists. The pianist who also played the drums performed local gigs in high school and began musical studies at both Columbia and Juilliard before quitting to play full time.
The musician known for his improvisational chops started his own free jazz group, Circle, which was active from 1970-1971, when Corea began expanding on the percussiveness of the piano by plucking the strings inside the instrument's body. "This man changed my life through his music and we were able to play together many times," tweeted Sheila E, an acclaimed jazz drummer and Prince protege.Corea's mammoth discography earned him more than 67 Grammy nominations.