John Coltrane Centenary: Highlights from 1957–1964

The historic Teylers Museum is bringing four special deep listening sessions to Haarlem Vinyl Festival in collaboration with Pitchblack Playback, FFF Sound System, and Koda. True to Pitchblack Playback’s deep listening concept, each session invites you to experience an album from beginning to end, in complete darkness and without distractions. Put away your phone, close your eyes and give the music your full attention.

The sessions take place in Teylers Museum, the oldest museum in the Netherlands, open since 1784. Surrounded by almost 250 years of art, science and history, the museum’s monumental spaces create a unique environment for this contemporary listening experience. Here, the architecture, atmosphere and music come together to offer a different way of listening.

The music is played through the FFF Sound System, a high-fidelity, four-way horn-loaded system designed and built in Rotterdam by Form Follows Frequency. Created for critical listening, the system combines precision, clarity and powerful dynamics. For each session, the sound is carefully tuned to the specific acoustics of the room, allowing every detail of the music to come through with exceptional clarity.

John Coltrane’s Highlights from 1957-1964 traces a remarkable period in the career of one of the most influential and adventurous musicians in jazz. From his groundbreaking work with Miles Davis and Thelonious Monk to the increasingly exploratory sound of his own quartet, these years capture Coltrane’s extraordinary evolution as a saxophonist, composer and bandleader. Across hard bop, modal jazz and freer forms of improvisation, his playing becomes increasingly searching, expansive and deeply expressive.

For this centenary session, we invite you to listen closely to this transformative period in Coltrane’s music. Heard in the dark and through the FFF Sound System, the nuances of his playing, the interplay between the musicians and the development of his sound can take centre stage.

Tracklist:

1. STRAIGHT STREET - John Coltrane [6:21]
2. TRINKLE, TINKLE - Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane [6:41]
3. BLUE TRAIN - John Coltrane [10:43]
4. MILESTONES - Miles Davis [5:49]
5. SO WHAT - Miles Davis [9:08]
6. GIANT STEPS - John Coltrane [4:48]
7. NAIMA - John Coltrane [4:25]
8. MY FAVORITE THINGS - John Coltrane [13:46]
9. EQUINOX - John Coltrane [8:39]
10. A LOVE SUPREME, PT. 1 - ACKNOWLEDGEMENT - John Coltrane [7:47]

PLEASE ARRIVE BY EVENT START TIME AS NO LATECOMERS ALLOWED!

Important Information: Ticket includes recycled cotton Pitchblack Playback eye mask for extra darkness, and access to the museum.

By entering Teylers Museum, all visitors automatically agree to abide by the museum’s rules and regulations. Please respect the museum, its collections, its spaces and fellow visitors throughout your visit.

This is a deep listening session, not a concert. The artist will not be present. The album will be played in its entirety in a darkened room.

Date: Sunday 4 October 2026
Time: 10:00–11:45
Location: Teylers Museum

Access to this listening session is also included in the Haarlem Vinyl Festival Weekend Pass