As we celebrate the centennial of John Coltrane’s birth, Ars Nova Workshop welcomes eminent Japanese Coltrane scholar Yasuhiro Fujioka for a special presentation exploring Coltrane’s historic 1966 tour of Japan—one of the most remarkable and consequential journeys of his career.

Arriving in Japan at a moment of extraordinary creative intensity, Coltrane and his final ensemble were met with an enthusiasm that reflected the profound connection his music had already forged with Japanese listeners. The tour produced some of the most expansive and searching performances of Coltrane’s final period, documented in recordings that have come to be regarded among the great achievements of his recorded legacy.

Drawing on decades of research, collecting, and scholarship, Fujioka will revisit this pivotal tour through its music, recordings, stories, and historical context, illuminating Coltrane’s relationship with Japan and the remarkable reception his work found there.

Join us September 25 at the URBN Annex Screening Room at Drexel University for a rare opportunity to encounter this essential chapter of the Coltrane story with one of its foremost scholars.