Bach meets Coltrane in upcoming Slee Hall performance

Pairing the works of Johann Sebastian Bach and John Coltrane may at first seem odd.

After all, they were born 241 years apart on different continents. They worked in dissimilar music fields: Bach is a towering figure of Western classical music, while Coltrane is widely regarded as one of the most innovative and important figures of 20th-century jazz.

Yet a closer examination offers similarities. Themes of spirituality, devotion and the universality of music run deep in each artist’s compositions. And both wrote genre-defining works whose influence continues to grow.

This — along with the poetry of noted jazz critic and scholar A.B. Spellman — is the foundation that UB music professor Jeffrey Scott drew upon to create “Passion for Bach and Coltrane,” the 2024 Grammy-winning composition that will be performed on April 25 at Slee Hall.

Scott recently sat down with Driven to Discover, the University Communications podcast that explores the depth and richness of UB’s scholarly activity, to discuss the project and upcoming performance.

“I love classical music, love Bach,” Scott says, “but I also love jazz and I love blues, and I love merengue, and I love salsa, I love samba and, yeah, I wanted to have an opportunity to put all of that into one big project, and this was the project.”

During the discussion, Scott also delves into his life and career — which has included touring with Ray Charles, Wayne Shorter and Barbara Streisand, as well as performing the songs of “The Lion King” on Broadway — and shares his future plans at UB.