III. Modal Jazz
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Miles Davis
Charles Mingus
Pharoah Sanders
soprano saxophone
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A. an outgrowth of Cool and Hard Bop
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a precursor to the imminent Free Jazz movement (see Lesson Plan 7) was modal jazz, that is, jazz based on a limited number of modes (particular musical scales), as opposed to a progression of changing chords |
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B. an emotional rebirth
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Several avid hard bop players (e.g. John Coltrane), after struggling with drug addiction and experiencing spiritual rebirth, focused on modal playing, concentrating on agitated rhythms and distorted timbres as opposed to “making the changes” (i.e., having their improvised notes “fit” the chords); without having to be concerned with chord progressions, modal jazz musicians were freer to concentrate more on emotional content |
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C. the first important Modal Jazz recording
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Miles Davis’ 1959 release, Kind of Blue; it featured simple melodies and modal harmony, reflecting both cool emotion and hard edge haunted Hard Bop timbres. It became and remains the best selling jazz album of all time. |
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D. important figures
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E. Play
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Impressions, John Coltrane (IHJ), and/or All Blues, Miles Davis (JIA), and/or Footprints, Miles Davis (JIA) |
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Audio Snippets
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Video Clips
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Video of John Coltrane playing "Impressions"