The celebration will culminate in a performance by Ravi Coltrane (saxophone) in the Performing Arts Center in Buffalo State University’s Rockwell Hall at 8:00 p.m. He will be joined by COLTRANE Celebration artistic directors Curtis Lundy (upright bass) and George Caldwell (piano), along with Johnathan Blake (drums).

Ravi Coltrane is a critically acclaimed Grammy™ nominated saxophonist, bandleader, and composer. In the course of a twenty-plus-year career, Mr. Coltrane has worked as a sideman to many, recorded noteworthy albums for himself and others, and founded a prominent independent record label, RKM. Born in Long Island, the second son of John Coltrane and Alice Coltrane, Ravi was named after Indian sitar legend Ravi Shankar. He was raised in Los Angeles where his family moved after his father’s death in 1967. His mother, Alice Coltrane, was a significant influence on Ravi and it was he who encouraged Alice to return to performance and the recording studio after a long absence. Subsequently, Ravi produced and played on Alice Coltrane’s powerful, Translinear Light, which was released in 2004.

Curtis Lundy is an American double bass player, composer, producer, choir director, and arranger. Lundy is best known for his work as part of jazz vocalist Betty Carter's band. Lundy has also played on other jazz artists' recordings, including albums by John Hicks, Bobby Watson, the Steve Nelson Quintet and Johnny Griffin. In the late 1980s, he briefly stepped out of the background and issued Just Be Yourself (1988). A decade later, with Justin Time Records, he released Against All Odds (1999) and Purpose (2002). Both albums feature pianists John Hicks and Anthony Wonsey. Lundy's arrangement of "Walk With Me", recorded by the ARC Gospel Choir, was sampled by rapper Kanye West and became the Grammy Award-winning hit "Jesus Walks".

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All ticket holders are invited to the Opening Reception on Thursday, September 28, and the Documentary Screening on Friday, September 29, 2023.

Please click link below for more information:

The John Coltrane Birthday Celebration 2023: Schedule of Events