A visionary artist of spiritual transcendence
Legacy
Alice Coltrane is firmly established as a landmark figure in modern American culture. Musician, spiritual leader and mother, she produced a prolific and significant body of musical work and spearheaded a faith-based community centered around integration and inclusivity, all while balancing a dedicated family life.
Alice was born in Detroit. Encouraged by her mother, a member of the church choir, and her brother who became a professional jazz bassist, Alice’s foray into music began with early classical studies at age seven, followed by a stint as organist at the local Mount Olive Baptist Church at age nine. By sixteen she’d been promoted to playing with the esteemed Lemon Gospel Singers at Church of God in Christ, deepening a connection to gospel music that would remain a prominent thread.
Early career
Music became her focus and eager to explore ideas and opportunities beyond the local landscape, Alice and her then-husband Kenny Hagood, a jazz singer, spent several months in Paris during the late 50s. During this time she surrounded herself with a community of important artists, not least of whom was Bud Powell, one of the central figures in the bebop movement, whom she befriended and received guidance from. She also worked at the acclaimed Blue Note in Paris playing intermission piano in 1960.
Alice returned to Detroit and its increasingly vibrant music scene with an impressive resumé yet nonetheless had to work tirelessly to play with her bands and establish herself in a male dominated arena while also raising her daughter as a single mother. She took countless local jobs and accepted a demanding touring schedule with vibraphonist Terry Gibbs among others. While on the road with Gibbs in the summer of 1963 she met John Coltrane.
Their connection was initially quiet, but immediately profound as Coltrane courted Alice with subtle words and impassioned music. By 1967, John adopted Alice’s daughter Michelle, and the couple had three sons John Jr, Ravi and Oran.
Artist, Wife, Mother, Creative Force
John and Alice were on a journey of musical and spiritual expansion, unified and grounded in foundations of love and family. Alice had replaced McCoy Tyner in John’s famous quartet and the group was at a pivotal moment, moving away from existing conventions and exploring different musical ideas. Pushing boundaries together, they defined an era in jazz while masterfully translating a belief in the sanctity of all God’s work and commitment to the world through their singular musical language.
The second half of the 60s was a fertile period with John’s far-reaching expressions in free jazz and the avant garde, Alice’s burgeoning as a bandleader and trailblazer in the evolving jazz movement, and the couple’s collective transcendence into groundbreaking spiritual and artistic realms. Their earthly journey together remained inspired throughout its short span, as John tragically passed away in 1967 at age forty, months after the birth of their youngest son.
Spiritual Calling
Alice and her children remained at their Long Island home into the early 70s. She presided over her late husband’s estate and posthumous album releases, rigorously documented her own music, cared for her four young children, and took a deep dive into Eastern spiritual practice. She had met Swami Satchidananda, a leading guru and yogi in San Francisco, and moved the family to Southern California in 1972 where she began practicing Indian religious rituals under his guidance. Driven and inspired, she started frequenting Eastern faith centers in the Bay Area and traveling to India to learn the teachings of guru Sathya Sai Baba. Having relinquished her secular life entirely, Alice was endowed with a new name inspired by these practices, Turiyasangitananda. She had found yet another calling in bringing these Eastern ideas and rituals to the United States.
By 1975 she’d founded her own spiritual center at the Sai Anantam Ashram and Vedantic Center in the Santa Monica Mountains outside of Los Angeles. The compound housed followers who lived, ate, and practiced on the property, guided by her weekly sermons and musical offerings.
Musical Expansion
Over the years since John’s death, Alice was managing to amass a serious body of musical work alongside all the responsibilities of the
ashram, and demands from her still very young children who required constant presence and support. She signed with Warner Bros. Records and, as primary composer, bandleader, pianist, organist and self-taught harpist collaborated with the likes of Carlos Santana, Ornette Coleman, Pharoah Sanders, and Kenny Burrell. The albums released in this era are widely regarded as having expanded the language of jazz
Turiyasangitananda
During the summer of 1982 tragedy struck the Coltranes yet again when John Jr, the oldest son, was killed in a car accident. Once again Alice found solace in her music and through the thriving ashram community. The Alice Coltrane sound was now one of unmistakable worship, her recordings featuring members of the Vedantic Center’s inner circle in collaboration with famous jazz players uniting to achieve a unique and ecumenical harmony.
“Peace and love and perfection throughout all creation,” is a prayer for humanity and the cosmic world that guided Alice Coltrane Turiyasangitananda through her entire earthly life and continues to inspire her fans and followers to this day.
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