Coltrane 100

Coltrane 100 comes to Barbican Hall on Friday 13 November, a tribute quintet marking the centennial of John Coltrane's birth. The lineup brings together five names from different corners of the jazz world: saxophonists Joe Lovano and Melissa Aldana, pianist Nduduzo Makhathini, bassist Linda May Han Oh and drummer Jeff 'Tain' Watts. It's a collective rather than a single leader's project, and the tour is produced with the approval of Jowcol Music LLC on behalf of the Estate of John Coltrane.

Each player arrives from a different tradition. Joe Lovano has been a central figure in modern jazz for more than three decades, working from the post-Coltrane saxophone lineage. Melissa Aldana brings a contemporary voice shaped by the jazz canon and by questions of narrative and identity. Nduduzo Makhathini draws on South African musical and spiritual traditions as well as the legacy of McCoy Tyner, while Linda May Han Oh adds a globally informed perspective across ensemble writing, film and collaboration. Jeff 'Tain' Watts brings the rhythmic authority he's forged alongside many of modern jazz's defining artists.

Lovano described the group's approach as using Coltrane's compositions as a springboard to explore and express themselves, adding: 'We do not seek to recreate, but rather to create in the spirit of Coltrane.' That's a useful distinction to keep in mind — it's not a tribute band playing the records as they were, but a new ensemble working from that same material.

It's a Friday night at the Barbican, so you'll have the choice of heading in early or making a proper evening of it. Doors open at 19:00 and the music starts at 19:30. Standard tickets are from £36.50, which is £32.50 plus a £4 transaction fee, and access tickets are also from £36.50.