John Coltrane
John Coltrane (1926–1967) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer whose work helped shape bebop, hard bop, modal jazz, and free jazz.
Coltrane changes: A harmonic progression Coltrane devised for “Giant Steps,” cycling through three tonal centers in major thirds. The progression’s rapid tonal shifts exemplify the harmonic problem-solving that marked his early mature style.
Giant Steps: A 1959 John Coltrane composition whose fast-moving chord changes became a demanding jazz improvisation standard. Its cycle of tonal centers showcases the harmonic ingenuity associated with Coltrane’s early landmark period.
Miles Davis: An American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer who helped define several major jazz styles. Coltrane’s 1955–1960 membership in Davis’s quintet sharpened his improvisation and broadened his musical reach.
Bebop: A jazz style that emerged in the 1940s, marked by fast tempos, intricate melodies, and advanced harmonies. Coltrane absorbed bebop’s harmonic language before extending it through his own improvisational methods.
Jazz standards: Songs widely performed and reinterpreted by jazz musicians across generations. Coltrane’s versions of “My Favorite Things” and “Body and Soul” became influential reference points.
Sheets of sound: A jazz improvisation approach using fast streams of arpeggios and scales to create dense, layered lines. Critic Ira Gitler coined this phrase for the cascading runs heard in Coltrane’s mid-1950s playing.
My Favorite Things (album): A 1961 John Coltrane album featuring an extended soprano-saxophone interpretation of the Rodgers and Hammerstein song. Its modal treatment and soprano saxophone helped establish a new direction in Coltrane’s music.
Thelonious Monk: An American jazz pianist and composer known for distinctive melodies, angular harmonies, and rhythmic phrasing. Playing in Monk’s quartet in 1957 helped Coltrane develop extended, harmonically adventurous improvisations.
Hard bop: A jazz style that developed in the 1950s, combining bebop with blues, gospel, and rhythm-and-blues influences. Coltrane’s early albums and ensemble work made him a leading hard-bop saxophonist.
Spiritual jazz: A jazz approach that connects improvisation with spiritual, religious, or transcendent themes. “A Love Supreme” helped establish a powerful model for spiritually oriented jazz.