John Coltrane and the “replacement child” syndrome

Authors

  • Bertrand Lauer La Sorbonne

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/jazz.v3i1.105

Keywords:

John Coltrane, Replacement Child, Born Again

Abstract

John Coltrane is a singular character: few musicians have developed such a creative, dense and dazzling career. He is also singular in the obsessive, almost manic way he is said to have practiced his instrument all his life. Singular indeed, if we consider his evolution from self-destructiveness to rebirth, through the Born Again doctrine. He stands as an enigmatic, mythological even messianic figure among music lovers and those who played with him. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate that the saxophonist’s development was conditioned by his being a “replacement child”, as it was the case for Vincent Van Gogh, Salvador Dali, Ludwig van Beethoven, Chateaubriand, Camille Claudel, Stendhal .

Author Biography

  • Bertrand Lauer, La Sorbonne

    Bertrand Lauer is a musicologist and a saxophonist. He studied at the Paris National Superior Conservatory of Music and at the Berklee College of Music. He is currently completing his PhD at La Sorbonne in Paris.

References

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Published

2010-04-12

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Lauer, B. (2010). John Coltrane and the “replacement child” syndrome. Jazz Research Journal, 3(1), 105-117. https://doi.org/10.1558/jazz.v3i1.105