Events

In 2026 we mark the 100th birthday year of John Coltrane – a figure whose influence on jazz and music as a whole still pulses through every note of modern improvisation. You don’t want to miss the Dan Forshaw Quartet’s concert, a rare chance to hear one of the UK’s leading authorities on Coltrane explore his legacy live. Dan has published research on Coltrane’s life and music, focusing especially on A Love Supreme, and brings both scholarship and deep passion to every performance.

Coltrane altered how we think about melody, harmony and spiritual expression. He shifted jazz from swing-based and blues-based roots into something more exploratory. Albums like Giant Steps, Interstellar Space, and above all A Love Supreme paved paths into modal jazz, free jazz, and beyond. His sheets of sound, cascading saxophone lines, and pursuit of transcendence inspired giants from Miles Davis to Pharoah Sanders, from rock and avant-garde artists to modern composers. He showed music could be both technically daring and emotionally overwhelming.

At this concert, Dan Forshaw doesn’t merely replicate Coltrane; he interprets, illuminates, re-imagines. With his quartet he’ll draw threads from A Love Supreme and Coltrane’s other works, showing how they still resonate – in tone, pace, structure. You’ll hear not only the themes and motifs, but the spirit behind them: the drive toward purity, search for honesty, and sheer intensity.

If you love jazz – or any serious fan of music – this is more than a gig. It’s a chance to connect with one of the towering figures of the twentieth century through the hands of someone who has studied him deeply. The concert offers insight, artistry and raw power. Be part of celebrating Coltrane’s centenary year with something worthy of his legacy. Tickets are limited: for lovers of sound, life and jazz, this is essential.