Help me understand John Coltrane .... seriously.

Gaining an appreciation for Coltrane is like gaining an appreciation for Charles Mingus, Yusef Lateef, Charlie Parker or Puccini operas. Set the CD to "play," sit back and listen over and over, and soon the understanding will click in.

Frank

gdnrbob ...

A friend of mine is an ex-studio musician (guitar). He loves opera. I couldn’t stand opera and I told him that it sounded like an old fat lady singing. He told me to buy a tape of a Puccini opera and play it in my car constantly. He said that opera is a lot like jazz, in that, appreciating it is a learned experience. Sure enough, eventually, I got into opera.  

On the dissonant/discordant sounds, one thing that helps, is while listening to it, (Coltrane’s Sheets of Sound, for instance), is to realize that he is in complete control of his instrument at all times. Then comes the appreciation for the talent. Then comes the appreciation for the music.

It is the same thing for the wonderful control of a great soprano voice like Renata Tebaldi, Rita Streich, or Victoria de Los Angeles et al. There are times while listening to a beautiful aria that tears come to the eyes. Humans are totally amazing.

Frank

• "Madame Butterfly" is the most moving piece ever written.
• In any genre."

It surely is among the best ever. I have a number of renditions, including my favorite which happens to be on an old London mono LP that I found at a thrift store many years ago. Every time I listen to it, I get goosebumps and it moves me to tears.

Frank