A Love Supreme

Martin Luther King Jr. The name is synonymous with the American Civil Rights movement of the mid-20th century. When we hear the name Martin Luther King Jr., most minds conjure the phrase "I have a dream..." King was indeed a dreamer, but his ideals were not unparalleled. In the music world, another genius and like minded idealist was sharing his world view, in a time period contemporaneous to that of King's "Beyond Vietnam" speech.

In 1964, jazz giant John Coltrane had an epiphany; he found his faith in God after a long period of heroin addiction and other negative influences had polluted his life. Coltrane composed his piece, titled A Love Supreme, as an ode to not only the God he had faith in, but the universal force of love, a force which King speaks so strongly of. Coltrane's music is deeply rooted in the opening mantra which the bass plays. The rhythmic and harmonic progression are a consistent motif throughout the piece, over which Coltrane shouts his praise. As the composition modulates through the harmonic cycle of keys, the rhythm and mantra remain unchanged, culminating in the chant towards the end of the album's first track, "Acknowledgement." Coltrane recorded his voice several times over in harmony, mimicking a chant similar to that which would be performed at a Mass. "A love supreme," the euphonious voices repeat, until the piece closes with the bass fading out on the mantra.

Coltrane and King were rather similar in their belief of a universal belief in love and human harmony. Coltrane creates a heavenly vision the only way man truly can: through art. King, on the other hand, describes the impossible means required to reach the state of Earthly unity become heavenly splendor. These men of faith both expressed their ideas and ideals through mediums normally contrasted, but when combined create harmonious vision of a sublime universe.