I find this entire album fascinating- both for McCoy's choice of chords and Coltrane's lines and their interplay (not to mention the drumming and bass playing). I hope you find the transcription valuable and that it supports your appreciation for the music and those who made it.
Here are some words about the process and reasoning behind the transcription:
There was a moment near the end of 2013 when I heard this album for the first time in a few years. The listening experience was so powerful that by the time I reached the end of Pursuance I made a decision to transcribe it all. After getting started, the beauty of the album kept me going. By the fall of 2014 I had a draft of the entire thing.
The recent shelter-in-place orders encouraged me to revisit my old projects, so I decided to finally complete this project. It turned out that I had to revise the transcription because some parts were still in rough draft form (the lengths of the piano chords, the saxophone notes, and the content of some of the piano chords, and more of course). After making the edits, asking friends to review my work and applying their suggestions, I decided it was done, although there are always more details to consider.
Some more technical notes on the transcription:
The piano part was transcribed as accurately as I could within the limitations (variable factors include the harmonics of the bass, drums, saxophone, other notes on the piano, mic distortion, etc.). Most of the chords ended up being decided based on what is the most likely chord McCoy Tyner would play given what I think he's played in other situations.
I don't transcribe drums often, so it was an interesting challenge.
The timing of Coltrane's lines is very complex and often impossible to notate, so the rhythms you see are approximations for readability's sake.
Occasional chord symbols beneath the piano part:
Those are there to show that McCoy Tyner is superimposing a different chord over the original chord that would typically happen at that measure.
Articulation:
A lot of the articulation is left out on purpose because in this style, many articulations are implied; many slurs are left out of the piano chords and saxophone lines. There are still discrepancies in the level of detail of the articulations. If you choose to play this, hopefully some of them will help.
Psalm Poem:
I included the poem words because I think they are an important part of the music. The lyrics showcase John Coltrane's emotional investment in the project.
Endings:
The piano arpeggiation isn't notated in the endings of the parts; generally the chord written there is arpeggiated up and down the keyboard.
I hope fans of Coltrane's music find this interesting. If you would like the complete sheet music you can get it here (includes individual parts and parts in Concert):
