John Coltrane. Music 331 Jazz History and Analysis July 3, 2012 J.B. Morford Guest Lecturer

Transcription

1 John Coltrane Music 331 Jazz History and Analysis July 3, 2012 J.B. Morford Guest Lecturer

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3 Early Days Born September 23, 1926 in Hamlet, NC Grew up in High Point, NC His aunt, two uncles, grandfather, and father all died between Fall of 1938 and Spring of Began practicing clarinet obsessively. Moved to Philadelphia in June 1943 heard Dizzy and Bird began performing professionally Joined US Navy on August 6, 1945 Same day as the US bomb on Hiroshima

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5 Coltrane Apprenticeships Dizzy Gillespie Eddie Cleanhead Vinson Earl Bostic Johnny Hodges Miles Davis Thelonious Monk

6 A Quick Word on the Drug Thing Coltrane s heroin use: Began after his time in the Navy Cost him many jobs He completely stopped using heroin in May of 1957 Related to his spiritual awakening Reinvigorated his work ethic Some evidence of experimentation with LSD

7 Guided Listening So What What instruments do you see/hear? Write down 2-3 words/phrases to describe each of the two soloists styles. How are they similar/different?

8 Modal vs. Chord Progressions Modalism improvisation over very few chords (sometimes just one!) John Coltrane was deeply involved in both approaches to improvisation. Developed ideas for both approaches in part through working workingfrom Nicolas Slonimsky sthesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns

9 Giant Steps Groundbreaking because of Harmonic motion Tempo Coltrane s virtuosic playing Has become a proving ground piece for jazz musicians. Origin of title is unclear

10 Giant Steps

11 Landmark Recordings as Leader Blue Train (1957) Giant Steps (1959) My Favorite Things (1960) A Love Supreme (1964) Ascension (1965)

12 Recording Output 114 studio albums 29 live albums 6 compilation albums 8 EP s 7 singles 7 music videos ***About 90% recorded between 1955 and 1967

13 Listening for Development My Favorite Things R & H version (1959 initial publication) Coltrane (Studio Version) Coltrane (Live Version)

14 MFT -Julie Andrews (1965)

15 Julie Andrews vs. John Coltrane ( 61) Lyrics Uses composers structure and content Common Chord Progression 3/4 time (but feels like 1) Retains original function Modified from musical theater No Lyrics Recontextualizes melody Eastern or Indian embellishments Use of Drone Waltz feel New function Vehicle for extended improvisation

16 MFT Coltrane (Studio Version) Recorded in 1960 Released in 1961 List 4 ways that this interpretation differs from Julie Andrews.

17 Coltrane s MFT 1961 vs Much longer solos More dissonant relationship to pedal point Increased density of texture More active (and loud!) accompaniment

18 MFT Coltrane (Live Version)

19 Listening for Development Naima 1959 (Giant Steps) 1965 (Live in Paris) In what ways are these two recordings similar? In what ways are they different? Which do you prefer, and why?

20 Classic Quartet ( ) McCoy Tyner (piano) Jimmy Garrison (bass) Elvin Jones (drums)

21 A Love Supreme Recorded in 1964 and released in 1965 Among the top selling jazz albums in history First among a number of extended works 4-part Suite Acknowledgement Resolution Pursuance Psalm

22 Gong! Tenor Sax intro Things to listen for in Acknowledgement the first 2 minutes: Four-note motive in the bass Drum set ostinato with Latin flavor Quartal harmonies in piano Three-note motive in tenor sax Ascending to a brief climax

23 Things to listen for in Acknowledgement from 2 min to 5 min Slightly different 3-note motive in tenor sax Doubled to create pentatonic Modulation of new motive Away from and back to original tonal center Slight release in tension Build again to altissimo (screechy) register Release of tension again

24 Things to listen for in Acknowledgement from 5 min to end Tenor sax plays the motive from the bass Bass motive is modulated Tension subsides A Love Supreme, A Love Supreme, A Love Supreme, A Love Supreme Piano drops out Drums drop out Bass ends on a strummed chord

25 Experimental Works Ascension Collective improvisation built around single theme Sequential soloing Coltrane acting as leader to young musicians Om Explicit reference to Eastern religious thought

26 New Thing Leader I don t know the criteria capable of differentiating a white musician from a black musician, and besides, I don t believe that it exists. It is entirely a problem of understanding and has nothing to do with questions of skin color. John Coltrane (1966)

27 Second Quartet ( ) Alice Coltrane (piano) Jimmy Garrison (bass) Rashied Ali (drums)

28 Final Recordings Often categorized as free jazz because Not pulsive Harmonic progressions (if they occur) are hard to predict Moments of extreme dissonance, density, and Not free jazz to me, because Repeated use of small-scale structures Seed material exhaustively developed Carefully structured in small and large scales

29 Final Thoughts I think music is an instrument.it can create the initial thought patterns that can change the thinking of the people. John Coltrane (1966)