Q&A Chaired By Rick Poynor

From music writer Alex Coles, Fusion! From Alice Coltrane to Moor Mother traces the origins and legacy of blended musical genres by focusing on twelve dynamic collaborations. From Alice Coltrane working with Carlos Santana in 1974 to Moor Mother sharing the mic with Wolf Weston in 2022, the collaborations-cum-chapters reveal how musicians pursue fusion as a process.

With sonic fusion always premised on cultural fusion, each of the collaborations find musicians using the mixing of genres to explore fusions of generations, eras, philosophies, sensibilities, idioms, histories, and even continents. When the musicians hail from contrasting musical genres their collaboration leads to a dynamic tension, typified by free jazz trumpeter Don Cherry recording with Lou Reed, Kendrick Lamar cutting tracks with saxophonist Kamasi Washington, Miles Davis playing with electric guitarist John McLaughlin and synth player Danalogue joining Shabaka Hutchings and Max Hallett to form the Comet is Coming.

Fusion! pushes the music of overlooked musicians—such as post-punk singer and saxophone player Lora Logic—to the fore while emphasizing overlooked aspects of the oeuvres of better-known figures such as Herbie Hancock, Joni Mitchell, Neneh Cherry and FourTet. To characterize their unique approach to fusion, each of the examples Coles explores are driven by a dynamic sonic principle coined by the musicians themselves.

Alex Coles is an author and academic drawn to the borders between disciplines and genres. Coles' current writing is devoted to music. Exploring the archetype of the intimate ballad singer, Crooner was published by Reaktion Books in 2023. Developing an analysis of the twisted love song, Tainted Love: From Nina Simone to Kendrick Lamar (Sternberg Press, 2023) followed and was launched with a roundtable debate at the Whitechapel Gallery and featured on Chris Hawkins' BBC6 breakfast show. Tracing the role of jazz as a catalyst in popular music, Fusion! From Alice Coltrane to Moor Mother is published by Sternberg Press in October 2024.

RICK POYNOR:
Rick Poynor is a British writer, lecturer and curator, specialising in design, photography and visual culture. He was formerly Professor of Design and Visual Culture at the University of Reading. His latest book is Why Graphic Culture Matters (Occasional Papers, 2023), a collection of his essays. A frequent speaker, he has appeared at public events, conferences and design schools throughout Europe, the United States, Australia and China.