John Coltrane (soprano sax), Eric Dolphy (bass clarinet), McCoy Tyner (piano), Reggie Workman (bass) and Elvin Jones (drums). From the album Impressions (1963).
India is a country located in South Asia, has 1.3 billion inhabitants and is the largest democracy in the world. It is surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. It borders with Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Bangladesh. In the second millennium B.C. they began to compose the first scriptures related to Hinduism, which is the predominant religion in the country. In the 17th century, the country was unified by the Mughal Empire. Later, in the 19th century it became a colony of the United Kingdom. Then, a nationalist movement emerged at the end of the 19th century and later Mahatma Gandhi led India to independence using nonviolent resistance in 1947.
Jones begins with the drums followed by Workman on the double bass playing a hypnotizing melody. Then Coltrane enters with his soprano saxophone playing a soft composition. Next Dolphy joins with the bass clarinet. Coltrane separates throwing notes everywhere, alternating them with the pleasant phrases had played before. With his saxophone he want to get to heaven. He does all kinds of experiments. Now it’s Dolphy’s turn, who enters in a similar line. The sound of the bass clarinet is deep and resounding, and he also performs pirouettes. His imagination is endless. Coltrane returns following his dissertation where he had left it in a more overwhelming way than before, and to conclude they re-state the theme.
© Impulse! Records