This is a great way to spend 9 minutes and 7 seconds of your life. This is also as “Grown” as it gets. When I was a kid I did not get John Coltrane at all(it’s funny I’ve heard Branford Marsalis make the same declaration in interviews) but now that I’m somewhat “Grown”… that’s why it is very difficult for me these days to listen to certain kinds of music that prominently feature saxophone players.
It’s not that I’m wanting players to be Coltrane clones(there’s enough of them already) but it’s that spiritual, emotional connection that I hear in his playing beginning at 2:41 that by and large I don’t hear from some folks so consequently I choose not to listen. Coltrane is preaching here, everything is in there: the flourishes, substitutions, you name it and what does he do near the end of his solo? He plays the Blues. I can’t help but think that was his way of showing all of us that I can take this music as far out as I want but I’m still rooted in the tradition, the essence.
Maybe that’s a better explanation as to why I choose not to listen to certain musical offerings. I don’t hear any preaching, teaching or respect for the music. What I do hear is just a whole lot of playing and while that worked for me when I was a kid(musically), the older I get(musically) I yearn for more. Sometimes the only places that I can find that more is in what’s come before.
Ivan Orr is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, performer, and writer. A native of Charlottesville, Virginia Ivan was involved with the forming and nascent days of The Music Resource Center as its first Program Director. A graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Department of Music, Ivan currently resides in Richmond, VA where he maintains an active performance and production schedule while serving as the Music Editor for Grown Folks Music, a position he has held since 2010.
Thank you sir! Yes we need to get together and have that roundtable discussion!
Kudos Ivan! Well put. I feel another discussion comming on about being “Grown” in music.