Sacred Jazz: The Tradition of Spirituality in Jazz Music

Duane Deterville

“The first instrumental voicings of New Orleans Jazz seem to have come from the arrangement of the singing voices in the early Negro churches, as well as the models for the “riffs” and “breaks” of later jazz music. The Negro’s religious music contained the same “rags”, “blue notes” and “stop times” as were emphasized later and to a much greater extent in jazz.”

From “Blues People” by Amiri Baraka/ Leroi Jones. 1963.

Jazz music is oftentimes thought of as secular music; the sounds that black folks partied to on Saturday night before attending church the next day. However, in Black music, as with all things African, there really is no separation between the sacred and the profane. It’s all spiritual/sacred music.

One of the earliest recorded instances of Jazz musicians addressing the spiritual in their music was the Duke Ellington composition “Come Sunday”, which was part of the “Black, Brown and Beige” suite premiered in January, 1943 at Carnegie Hall. He subsequently recorded it again with gospel legend Mahalia Jackson as the featured soloist. Ellington performed “Come Sunday” again in San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral in 1965. It was the first concert that Ellington ever performed in a church and, significantly, at the close of that performance he said, “I’m sure this is the most important statement we’ve ever made.”

The tradition of exploring the spiritual side of the music and its relationship to the Black experience continues in recordings by the newer generation of contemporary players such as trumpeter Wynton Marsalis and saxophonist Steve Coleman. Marsalis explored the beauty of the church service in his recording “On this day in this House” and Steve Coleman collaborated with the music group Afro Cuba de Matanzas on his recording “The Sign and the Seal” which explored the African Lucumi/Yoruba religious music found in Cuba.

It is said that Jazz was conceived at Congo Square in New Orleans where enslaved Africans were given freedom on Sundays to practice their traditional religious music. When this history is considered, we can see that both the form and content of Jazz have always had a spiritual and religious basis.

“John Coltrane, Albert Ayler, Sun Ra, Pharoah Sanders come to mind immediately as God seekers.”

From “Black Music” by Leroi Jones/ Amiri Baraka 1967.

In the 1960s Jazz musicians began to consciously emphasize the spiritual nature of their music. One such recording is tenor saxophonist Gene Ammons’ little known album from 1962 entitled “Preachin’”, which covers traditional spirituals such as “Holy Holy”, “Abide with me” and “Blessed Assurance” with masterful sensitivity. Probably the most famous of the 1960s recordings was tenor saxophonist John Coltrane’s “A Love Supreme”, which stands as one of the most touchingly earnest expressions of spiritual passion and surrender ever recorded. Coltrane continued in that spiritual vein until his death with compositions entitled “Meditations”, “Ascension” and “Dearly Beloved”. Tenor saxophonist Albert Ayler and his brother trumpeter Donald Ayler recorded extensively music that emulated the energy and ecstasy found in sanctified churches and Haitian Vodun ceremonies alike. They recorded compositions with titles such as “Ghosts”, “Spirits” and “Holy Spirit”.

After John Coltrane’s death in 1967 probably no other musician made spirituality the central motif in their music more so than his wife Alice Coltrane. Beginning in 1968 with the recording “Monastic Trio” which contained compositions such as “Lord Help Me to be” and “Gospel Trane”, Ms. Coltrane brought a highly individual voice to the piano, harmonium and harp in Jazz music. Her spiritual journey led her to the eastern religions of India, and as a result she recorded ingeniously unique music that blends Black gospel styles with traditional Indian devotional music. The 1977 album “Transcendence” is an example of this type of music.

Duane Deterville is a writer, visual artist and Co-founder of Sankofa Cultural Institute.