The Sorcerer

Wayne Shorter (tenor sax), Miles Davis (trumpet), Herbie Hancock (piano), Ron Carter (bass) and Tony Williams (drums). From the album Sorcerer (1967).

The sorcerer is a person who can modify events, acquiring the ability to heal, communicate with spirits or gods and have powers of divination. In the ancient tribes he had the functions of priest, shaman, magician, healer or physician, and he used to be the one who made the most important decisions. He also maintained contact with other neighboring tribes, made exchanges with them and ensured good harvests.

In the Middle Ages, the sorcerer takes the form of a magician, who is someone who practices magic derived from supernatural, hidden or arcane sources. It appears in literature, mythology, legends and folklore. In medieval knightly writings, the magician appears as a wise old man whose function is to be a master, like Merlin in the stories of King Arthur, Gandalf in Lord of the Rings and Albus Dumbledore in Harry Potter. Other magicians, such as Saruman in The Lord of the Rings, appear as evil villains. Magicians are often represented as old men with white hair and long white beards.

Shorter begins to expose the theme at a swift pace and then Davis joins him. Then the two share four-bar solos giving rise to a lively and intrepid discourse in which their understanding stands out. One could say that a single musician is playing with two different accents and they cause an effect of original melodic richness. Then, they present the theme again with energy, giving way to Hancock’s solo, whose melodic line is bold and enthusiastic, before the group re-exposes the theme.