Ornette Coleman was born on March 9, 1930 in Forth Worth, Texas. He started playing alto and tenor sax as a teenager and had gigs “in dance bands and rhythm-and-blues groups.” His style was unorthodox and was rejected in Los Angeles. He kept working on his unorthodox sense of harmony while working as an elevator operator and playing on a plastic saxophone. In the late 1950s Coleman formed his own quartet so he could solo as he wished. After recording two albums he moved to New York where his radical style for improvisation was still not accepted. In the 1960s Colman taught himself to play violin and trumpet in unorthodox ways. By the 1970s he was performing erratically and preferred to spend his time composing music. He continued to play in many different groups in the coming years and traveled the world giving performances. In 2005 Coleman recorded a live performance in Italy of a song called Sound Grammar. It was said to reflect back on his music of the 1960s and he was “awarded the Pulitzer Prize for music in 2007.” Coleman influenced other saxophonists and other jazz soloists. His music still influences young musicians today.
John Coltrane was born on September 23, 1926 in Hamlet, North Carolina. His father played several instruments, so Coltrane learned to play the clarinet and E-flat horn. In high school his music interests changed and he learned to play the alto sax because of his change in music. He continued his music education in Philadelphia while he went to school and worked at a record company. He was called to service during World War II and served in Hawaii in the U.S. Navy Band. After the war he played tenor sax in a band. He played with different groups, but it wasn’t until he performed with Miles Davis in 1958 that his own musical awakening began. By 1960 he had formed his own quartet. It was with his group that his musical brilliance came out. He recorded many of his most famous songs during this period of time. John Coltrane died in 1967 after liver disease claimed his life, still years and years after his death his music still lives on in motion pictures and TV shows. His music is referenced in many film projects, such as Mr. Holland’s Opus. I still remember watched that movie in 9th grade Life and Careers class. Even though he died at the age of 41 his music lives on and on. Good musicians who have the talent to influence others decades after their death are the best of the best. John Coltrane is one of the best of the best. His music received many awards after his death, including Grammy Award for Best Jazz Soloist Performance for his album “Bye Bye Blackbird” and in 1997 was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award.I listened to some of Ornette Coleman’s music. It is interesting to say the least. His style is not something I would want to listen to all the time. It sounds like a bunch of annoying squawks and there is so much dissidence that I had to stop listening to it before I ripped my hair out. It sounds like a bunch of chaos as they all solo at the same time. I guess I just prefer musicians who play the correct chord changes and solo one at a time with a good groove going in the background.
I also listened to some of John Coltrane’s music. He is so much better after listening to Coleman. His music is more structured and actually has a melody instead of random notes and runs everywhere. I listened to one of his more famous pieces May Favorite Things. This song was used in the movie The Sound of Music. I like the jazzy feel of it while I follow the melody and words I learned from the movie. His music is nice to listen to. Plus saxophones are bomb. Yeah, I play the alto saxophone.
These two men changed the way jazz was played, listened to. In brief they helped to revolutionize jazz music.
For more info see:
http://www.biography.com/articles/Ornette-Coleman-9253139
http://www.johncoltrane.com/biography.html
Pictures from:
http://www.born-today.com/btpix/coltrane_john.jpg
http://home.att.net/~dawild/oc.gif
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