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 big band, to Miles Davis’ cool jazz, or to John Coltrane’s free jazz; America’s music has been developed and refined countless times through individual experimentation and innovation. In my opinion the most noteworthy artist in the development of modern jazz is John Coltrane. In this paper, I will focus on the way in which Coltrane’s musical originality was related to the sounds of his predecessors and to the tribulations and tragedies of his life.

was born in Hamlet, North Carolina, on September 23, 1926. Two months later, his family moved to High Point, North Carolina. He grew up in a typical black family in the South. The Coltranes were very religious and steeped in tradition. Playing was in his blood. B

Again a jazz icon came to the rescue. This time it was Miles Davis. In the mid-fifties, he was invited to play with Miles Davis and his quintet. The collaboration that developed would change his life. Davis was a star on the rise in the next jazz movement, cool jazz. Cool jazz was a striking contrast to the more traditional jazz popular during the forties. It was characterized by experimentation with musical tones, keys, and modes, improvising on scales rather than on sequences of chords, producing music that at times was very bizarre, but none the less popular. This new movement was the beginning of an experimental stage of jazz that was very popular during the sixties. The time spent with Davis was a valuable learning experience for Coltrane. During this time he developed a style distinctly his own. His style captured the scales of the saxophone at a speed that no one had ever achieved, creating very “dense musical textures.” Again Coltrane was let go from the band because of his continued use of heroin. At this point, Coltrane almost gave up music. He filled out an application to be a postman in New York City. He moved from New York back to Philadelphia in November where he lived with his mother. His life had sunk to an all time low. Coltrane was being controlled by his drug and alcohol addiction. Coltrane realized at this point that he needed to choose between drugs and music. Fortunately for himself and us he chose music.

The world of jazz belonged to Coltrane during the sixties. He pushed the boundaries of jazz, while drawing ever-increasing audiences. But he was still searching for “the mysterious sound” or his own sound. He described the sound for which he was in search of was like holding a seashell to his ear. “However one describes the strange sound, it contained some essential truth for him, existing as an omnipresent background hum behind the façade of everyday life.” In the early sixties, Coltrane explored more and more with different arrangements of instruments and sounds. He became obsessed with attempting to share his musical vision. This obsession drove Coltrane to take LSD. He felt LSD would help him examine himself and his music in greater depth. “For Coltrane and his quest, LSD was a remarkable tool to dig deeper into his own being so he could discover the essential and absolute truth at the center of his being.” To his fans his music in this period was too radical, and too bizarre. Soon he thought he was

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