1. Free Jazz and Fusion MUH 271

2. Free Jazz/Avant-Garde  “avant-garde” is often associated with free jazz but encompasses a wider range of styles and artists  John Coltrane is “in the spectrum” but not typically considered a free jazz player  Free Jazz:  Improvisation free from conventional practices  3 characteristics of free jazz according to Gary Giddens:  No consistent chord progression – emphasis on “melodic structures”  Use of nonstandard meters or avoidance of consistent meter  Disregard for standard form.

3. Major proponents of free jazz  Ornette Coleman  Saxophonist, but played many other instruments; composer  Controversial, particularly at the time; Miles Davis said that he was “all screwed up inside”  1959 appearance at the Five Spot in New York  “harmelodics” – Coleman’s improvisational concept, which focused on melodic development (a contraction of “harmony,” “motion,” and “melody.”  Cecil Taylor  Piano player and composer  Extensive formal education in music  “the most explosive and aggressive pianist in the history of jazz”

4. John Coltrane  Tenor saxophone, composer  Born in Hamlet, NC Sept. 23, 1926  Played in Miles Davis’ quintet in 1955, left for a time in 1957, returned for Kind of Blue  Performed and recorded with Thelonious Monk, Cannonball Adderley, Bill Evans, and others  Began playing soprano saxophone in addition to tenor around 1960  Formed his own quartet in the early 1960s  "In his final years and after his death, Coltrane acquired an almost saintly reputation among listeners and fellow musicians for his energetic and selfless support of young avant-garde performers, his passionate religious convictions, his peaceful demeanor and his obsessive striving for a musical ideal."