Written and Directed by: Michael Sean Wright, Nice Fish Films
Original Concept and Music by: Lanny Cordola

Can One Man’s Music Change the World?
Maybe it Did.

John Coltrane believed that music could heal and that we are to give our art as gift to the World so that we may be: “A Force for Good, Real Good.” His mission to raise the consciousness of his audience has been felt and heard around the globe. Those who have come in contact with the higher meaning of his work have been forever changed.

This documentary examines the impact of Coltrane’s Mission, the dedication he had to his craft and the expression of his heart for humanity. The film features interviews from notable musicians, poets, filmmakers, writers, inventors, philosophers and scientists- the Artists who continue to be touched by the concepts and dedication of Coltrane to his craft and the purpose of his Art. It has been written that Coltrane’s ideals marked a change in the consciousness of artists around the globe who were inspired to find the higher purpose of their work. Can Jazz heal? Coltrane believed so.

Coltrane sought to understand his world by being a student of humanity and his craft. His obsessive dedication to his instrument was driven by the goal of finding the notes, tones and expressions of emotions that he felt for his fellow man. Artists have found that this approach to life changes the very reason for their art.

Coltrane, in his liner notes for A LOVE SUPREME, stated: Words, sounds, speech, men, memory, thoughts, fears and emotions-time-all related...all made from one...all made in one.

The artist Bono, lead singer of the group U2 and founder of the ONE Campaign, came in contact with Coltrane while in a hotel room in Chicago. Feeling a deep sorrow and at a loss to understand the meaning of God, he received an understanding of what Jazz could be from listening to A LOVE SUPREME. From that awakening he set out to bring a higher purpose to his work. He found the Jazz of his heart.

The artists who found the meaning of Coltrane’s work have carried forth the hope that art does change our world. Coltrane and the purpose of his expression have resonated in the sensitive spirits of the creative world and, has indeed, brought us closer to an understanding that to study our craft is to study the needs of humanity, to bring a healing to the wounds of a destructive self.

The Music and Mission of John Coltrane can be found in the expressions of the scientists who seek to understand the meaning of the universe, the explanation of time and space. The desire to be a Force for Good can be found in the heart of the inventor who seeks to answer a problem with the solution of deeper connection. The Jazz of inspiration can be found in the mystical surfer who seeks to bring his fellow man into contact with the healing nature of the ocean through innovation. The healing expression of Love can be found in the pen of the Japanese poet who responds to the destruction of war with the forgiveness of Love. The imagination of music can be found in the Indian musician who seeks to understand what it means to be a light in a dark world. Coltrane’s mission can be found in the film that attempts to understand the complexities of what it means to be human and the wish that the Force be with us all. A LOVE SUPREME can be found in the heart of the man who seeks to find family for the AIDS orphan from Africa. 

We seek, as artists, a connection to our world, a connection to the heart of what it means to be One, it is then that we begin to understand what Coltrane was saying when he expressed: “I believe with brotherhood there would be no more poverty… with Brotherhood there would be no more war."

(c) Nice Fish Films

This overview and description of the Film, THE MUSIC AND MISSION OF JOHN COLTRANE: A LOVE SUPREME is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

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