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  • Essay / John Coltrane vs. Miles Davis: Two Famous Jazz Artists

    John Coltrane and Miles Davis are both very famous jazz artists who experimented with different styles of jazz music and each had their own famous small groups, but Coltrane and Davis differ in their level of daring and their subsequent legacies. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essayJohn Coltrane and Miles Davis are, for the most part, household names when referring to jazz music. Coltrane and Davis were also both innovators and inspired the modern jazz genre. Additionally, Coltrane and Davis both had their own small groups, with Coltrane having his own quartet from 1962 to 1965 and Davis having his own quintets from 1955 to 1958 and 1964 to 1968. Although Coltrane and Davis share many similarities, they differ greatly in terms of their level of daring and risk-taking in their music as well as their impact/legacy on the jazz world. Coltrane was undoubtedly taking risks. It was rumored that during his performances, Coltrane would have 45-minute solos, which is not only shocking to hear but also a bold move on his part. Following this bold trend, in Coltrane's 1963 song "Alabama," Coltrane plays the tenor saxophone in an elegant yet commanding manner. For me personally, his song has a spontaneous touch, as it lacks a strong presence of the percussion instruments. In “Alabama,” Coltrane uses the tenor saxophone to really carry the song and add that excitement to an otherwise mellow and quiet song. I could easily imagine the tenor saxophone playing on its own without the rest of the instruments and so I feel like Coltrane took more risks in giving such a dominant role to the tenor saxophone in this piece. Coltrane's legacy, I believe, had an extremely important impact in introducing new improvisation techniques such as longer solos and adjusting the dominance of instruments. Compared to Coltrane, Miles Davis played his music more safely. In his 1966 song "The Sorcerer", Davis uses the trumpet to a large extent but creates a balance with the use of drums, piano and bass, so the song is not too overwhelming. Davis also makes great use of breaks and allows each instrument to have its own solo, which I think made the song more complete, but at the expense of the excitement of the song. I think Miles Davis had a bigger impact on the jazz world. Often the first name people think of when they talk about jazz is Miles Davis and I think that's because Davis had more star power and his songs generally spoke to his audience, but I feel also limited in its ability to take the same risks as Coltrane. .Keep in mind: This is just a sample.Get a personalized essay from our expert writers now.Get a custom essayI chose to listen to “Weaving and Awaiting” by Nguyen Le because of the softness of the singing and also the relaxing and gentle side of the song. nature. Even though I don't understand the words of the song, I can't help but feel soothed by the singing. The voice is very soft and calming, but it also has this sophistication and mystery that I can't really describe because I don't know exactly what's being said, but I can feel it. The song also has this warmth and happiness that I get from the tone of voice. The vocals seemed very well integrated into the song and the language in which the song is sung really compliments the musical instruments. I also really appreciated.