From Hard Bop to Expressive Spirituality

Coltrane was both an exceptional technical virtuoso and an eminent ballad interpreter, and during his all too brief career he became one of the most significant saxophonists in jazz history.

Moving from being a leading figure in the hard bop scene of the 1950s, he gradually shifted in a spiritual direction - both musically and philosophically - while also becoming an important role model for a younger generation of musicians in the 1960s. His influence on subsequent saxophonists can hardly be overstated.