John Coltrane Essay

John Coltrane is considered one of the most important figures in jazz, alongside other greats such as Miles Davis and Louis Armstrong. Coltrane struggled with drug addiction early on in his career, but during the late 1950’s he was able to get through it. I chose John Coltrane because I consider myself a fairly religious person, Coltrane himself was a religious person who wanted to bring positivity to people through his music. Arguably Coltrane’s most globally acclaimed record, “A Love Supreme,”

Spirituality and John Coltrane After being fired from Miles Davis's band in 1957 for his chronic use of heroin, John Coltrane was hurt tremendously. He decided it was time he quit using heroin. He took a month off from music while he went "cold turkey." During this month in the early spring of 1957, Coltrane had a momentous religious experience (Nisenson, 40). Coltrane asked God to give him "the means and privilege to make others happy through music" (Coltrane, 1995, 2). As time

John Coltrane: An Experimental Musician Jazz, which evolved from African American folk music, has developed and changed over the last century to become an art form in America. It places particular importance on inventive self interpretation. Rather than relying on a written piece, the artist improvises. Jazz has taken many forms over the past seventy years; there is almost always a single person who can be credited with the evolution of that sound. From Thelonius Monk, and his bebop, to Dizzy Gillespie’s

Despite a relatively short career, John Coltrane was among the most influential, and most controversial figures in jazz. He pioneered many important directions and developments in jazz in the 1950s and 1960s including hard bop, modal jazz and free jazz. Coltrane was also known for his virtuosic ability in improvising. He has such command over his instrument that many other players tried to imitate his sound on the tenor saxophone, though only a few could approach his technical mastery. Coltrane’s

John Coltrane John Coltrane was born on September 23, 1926, in Hamlet, North Carolina. This particular day had important astrological significance. It was the day of the autumn equinox, one of only two days through the year where night and day are perfectly equal (Fraim 7). Shortly after his birth, Coltrane's family moved to High Point, North Carolina. He lived in a nice neighborhood sharing a house with his mom and dad, aunt and uncle and cousin, and his grandparents, the Blairs (7)

search for the incorporation of his spirituality with his music. John Coltrane was not only an essential contributor to jazz, but also music itself. John Coltrane died thirty-two years ago, on July 17, 1967, at the age of forty. In the years since, his influence has only grown, and the stellar avant-garde saxophonist has become a jazz legend of a stature shared only by Louis Armstrong and Charlie Parker. As an instrumentalist Coltrane was technically and imaginatively equal to both;

John Coltrane John Coltrane Jazz, taking its roots in African American folk music, has evolved, metamorphosed, and transposed itself over the last century to become a truly American art form. More than any other type of music, it places special emphasis on innovative individual interpretation. Instead of relying on a written score, the musician improvises. For each specific period or style through which jazz has gone through over the past seventy years, there is almost always a single person

see the light in this complicated world of ours. One of the many people in this world who have experienced this enlightenment is John Coltrane. What makes this man special is that he like many others started out life with no path he only lived in the moment not thinking about how he can leave his mark on the world. However unlike the majority of the population Coltrane midway through his life realised he needed to make a change in the world and that the way he would do it would be through his music

John Coltrane John Coltrane is noted as a legendary saxophonist. His career was brief, controversial yet noted among the most important figure in Jazz. He grew up playing the clarinet and eventually changed to the alto and tenor saxophone. He was not only a musician, but he was also a composer. He endured the loss of several influential men at a young age. Throughout his musical career, he played in many bands including quartets, quintets and sextets. He played alongside many great musicians during

The alto saxophonist, John Coltrane, was one of the most cultural-ethical leaders of avant-garde jazz, in the 1960’s. He was an innovative composer and artist who pushed the boundaries of contemporary jazz. Avant-gardism liberated artists from the traditional form of jazz and pushed them to question and change the whole idea of jazz itself. Coltrane was the type of musician who believed that he could always be better than he already was. It was not unusual for someone to see him always practicing

musical periods we have discussed in this course have influenced and show a strong relation to jazz music and also jazz musicians. Among these musicians, is John Coltrane, considered one of the greatest jazz saxophonists and composers of all time. He was also one of the most important and influential musicians of the twentieth century. John

John Coltrane was born September 23, 1926 in North Carolina in the city of Hamlet. It was almost guaranteed that he was going to be a musician because music was all around him. His father played many instruments and that is what sparked his interest for music, he became focused on jazz music in particular after listening to the records of Lester Young and Count Basie. when he was a young teenager he began to play the saxophone, he was very good at it and enjoyed imitating other musicians styles.

Miles Davis and John Coltrane Miles Davis was named as one of the most important musicians (trumpeters) of the twentieth century. John Coltrane – a groundbreaking acclaimed American saxophonist. It is impossible to go into the genre of jazz or talk about American contemporary music without mentioning their names. Hard bop, modal jazz were their main musical features that to this day are an influence of most jazz today. Both born in 1926, they each had their own path to success and fame. At just the

beginning of Coltrane 's "Alabama" with King 's speech. Hearing a recording of the two overlapping is much more obvious but you can still see how some of the words can fit into the rhythms Coltrane played. I personally believe Coltrane did this on purpose. Of course, we have no way of know but there are some points in the speech and music where it lines up so well that it 's unmistakable. There are also parts that do not mix well together, some of which you can see above but maybe Coltrane did that on

of in specific detail in order to portray the intent as well as possible. For example, in this work there are three distinct sections and for each new section, there is a new song that is played. The songs used in this work are ‘Something About John Coltrane’ by

the musician (Larson 2). John Coltrane was one of many musicians that used jazz as this medium. Through his early works in the bebop and hard bop styles to free form and more spiritual styled music later in his career, Coltrane pursued deeper expression from his music (Wikipedia). John Coltrane’s upbringing and early interest in music led to a successful career of highly innovative works that have left a lasting legacy and influence on the jazz community. John William Coltrane was born September 23

In the air lays an intense tension, an intense concentration, nearly palpable to all those engaged within it. All people are focused in, perhaps on a single leader, perhaps on the slightest breath or noise. And all of this happens within the blink of an eye, merely an instant, but in the eyes of these musicians, it may be the instant that matters the most. It may in fact be the instant that sets the tone of the entire performance to come. The moment that decides whether all of those extra hours of

influencing jazz from the start of the swing era (Gioia, 2011). Jazz Pianists were often on the forefront of the ongoing development of jazz music. However, when the bebop era dawned, piano seemed to move into the background, with people like John Coltrane and Miles Davis leading the charge. However, this did not mean the piano disappeared, far from it; Jazz music is a genre that is in constant flux, driven by the players in the music. Often, the most famous jazz musicians were the most innovative

Prestige, with several different combos. While the people of the recordings varied, the lineup often featured Sonny Rollins and Art Blakey. Davis was particularly in love of Rollins and tried several times, in the years that preceded his meeting with John Coltrane, to recruit him for a regular group. He never succeeded because Rollins was prone to make himself unavailable for months at a time. In spite of the casual occasions that generated these recordings, their quality is almost always quite high, and

As inspiring as the music of Coltrane itself, “Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary” unfolds the life of the galactic saxophonist whose soulful approach to music incessantly spread light, peace, and love into the world. Coltrane put his life in music, resorting to a unique timbre, accurate technique, and an unshakeable spirituality, delivering quintessential records that still sound modern and bold today. I believe that every true jazz fan was touched in a way or another by the art of this