Jazz Philosophy Paper

Submitted By 4vracing
Words: 1318
Pages: 6
Open Document
Jacob Hartvigsen
Dr. Dave Camwell
MUS 382: Jazz Methods
Jazz Philosophy Paper
My Jazz Philosophy
A jazz program should have its main focus on a singular jazz band. If there are enough students that want to be in jazz band, form a second jazz band and have tryouts to see who needs to be in the top band and who needs to be in the lower band. A jazz program should also include a jazz combo if there are enough students interested. The combo could be used as a means to introduce students to jazz, playing with others, and can serve as a means of learning how to solo.
Finally, a jazz program should include a listening library to help students learn how jazz sounds, and how masters of this art form play the music the way they do.
There are three ways that one could instruct their students in the jazz idiom. One way is having them look at sheet music and sing the syllables back to you. This is hands­on learning and very effective as a way to teach students the jazz idiom. The next way is to play eight notes in a th straight 8 pattern, then show them the swing pattern. This will help them grasp the feel of jazz

and its subgenre, swing. The third way is to teach students aural skills, and after time the students will be comfortable in playing back intervals that were played. After learning how to articulate,

how to swing, and how to play back intervals, students can then begin to learn how to improvise and be set up to excel in that area.

I felt like I was weakest in jazz syllables and improvising at the beginning of the semester. Sure I could sing back the articulation in jazz band, and I could improvise the best I could over changes but until we did the unit over syllables and improvisation, I lacked confidence these areas. Now I feel that I could sing any jazz articulation in any chart, and teach others to do so as well. As for improvisation, I learned a lot about what works and what doesn’t when you’re soloing and I gained more confidence in my own playing in other situations. My evolution as a jazz educator just started at the beginning of this semester, but I now feel more confident about teaching jazz than I have about teaching other subjects.

As an educator that is continuing to grow, I’m going to continue to work on my aural skills and my air detection. My aural skills are decent but they aren’t exactly where I want them to be. I can play along with songs if they are easy and in an easy key, but I want to be able to be comfortable playing along with anything I hear, simply because that’s the most enjoyable experience for anyone. I want to improve my air detection skills because sometimes I don’t always hear the mistakes that are being made, and the thing that is crucial to a growing band is positive, real feedback into how they are doing and what they made mistakes on. I’m going to

work on my aural skills by playing along with random music tracks to see if I can play along and get better every week. I’m going to improve my air detection just by really listening to live performances of big bands and combos.

My current personality in front of the band is a little bashful, and not assertive. I feel like if I heard someone make a mistake in the band I wouldn’t call them out on it because it’s not in my nature to be assertive. That is a problem that I would have to work on as I develop as a director. If the Indianola big band was mine to director and work with, I would be excited but on the other hand, anxious.

The biggest surprises any new and unexperienced jazz band director would find are, balance and blend, and overall band cohesiveness. Balance and blend issues happen because the balance and blend of most high school bands aren’t the best, and it mainly has to do with the fact that students don’t quite understand how balance and blend work. Band cohesiveness, especially in the rhythm section, is important because if you don’t have cohesiveness, everyone will be off.
If
Show More

Related Documents: Jazz Philosophy Paper

Futura final Essay

Wernigerade, Germany and died in Hodigen, Germany. Renner was raised to have a very German mindset, sense of leadership and duty. He did not enjoy the abstract art that he had seen during this time and also disliked most of the modern types of art as jazz, cinema, and dancing. When Renner created Futura he was bridging the gap and attempting to fuse the gothic and roman typefaces. Renner was a member of the German Work Federation, He wrote multiple works, but two of his major works were (Typography…

Words 438 - Pages 2

Gender Stereotypes In Dorothy Arzner's Dance, Girl, Dance

in the paper, “Lasky Names Woman Director.” Her gender did differentiate her from the rest. But, nonetheless she still dominated the film industry and was, in her words, “a famous director then.” In Dance, Girl, Dance, dance functions in the delineation of different types of women/characters. The two main characters are completely different types of women. Bubbles dances not for artistic transcendence but for the money. She offers a completely different alternative to Judy’s philosophy of dance…

Words 826 - Pages 4

Humanities Today Paper Assignment Week 1

Humanities Today Paper Assignment Week 1 Fernando Gutierrez HUM/102 June 17, 2015 Instructor: Dr. Murawski Why is it important to analyze or compare movements in time that have shaped our modern society? They would argue; because it’s important to know what has helped society progress, and what has been counterproductive. Humanities helps us research and analyze movements in several areas of our life. Examples are: art, music, architecture, philosophy, and literature. The information…

Words 753 - Pages 4

Mozart: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Mozart Essay

could only be preformed by the Papal Choir. Any attempt to copy the Misererecould have the result of being excommunicated. The brilliance of Mozart had shown some if it’s true potential, he simply heard the piece once and reproduced the entire work on paper. Mozart had been especially pleased with himself, “What a delight this I cannot tell! All this inventing, this producing takes place in pleasure, lively dream” (Kroll 1). When the Pope had heard of this amazing news, he praised Wolfgang instead of…

Words 1807 - Pages 8

Boorstin Critique Essay

William Smith Modern American History Boorstin Critique 29JAN09 American History has been presented in many forms. Students today often receive it in a textbook format or something of that sort. The writing style and format is usually based on giving facts is succession, thus leaving the reader disconnected from history learning. These textbooks are based on a broad fact timeline; they ignore the smaller revolutions that do not occur on battlefields. The Americans: The Democratic Experience by…

Words 2823 - Pages 12

Independent Study Guide

ocr.org.uk) to make sure you understand the concepts you have covered in class. Learn your definitions for key words. Practice calculations for magnification. Work through past exam papers and look at mark schemes to see what examiners are looking for (can be found at www.paperbank.co.uk or www.ocr.org.uk; the papers on the paperbank website are from the old specification but will be very similar styles to the new exams). Use the concept maps in the text book which are found at the end of each module…

Words 5145 - Pages 21

13th Amendment: An Amendment To The US Constitution

13th Amendment – an amendment to the Constitution, adopted in 1865, that has abolished slavery and involuntary servitude 14 Points – the principles making up Wilson’s plan for world peace following World War I 14th Amendment – an amendment to the U.S. Constitution, adopted in 1868, that makes all persons born or naturalized in the United States - including former slaves – citizens of the country and guarantees equal protection of the laws 15th Amendment – an amendment to the U.S. Constitution, adopted…

Words 4746 - Pages 19

Essay on Summary of History of Graphic Design by Meggs

Chapter 1: The Invention of Writing - From the early Paleolithic to the Neolithic period (35,000 BC to 4,000 BC), early Africans and Europeans left paintings in caves, including the Lascaux caves in Southern France. - Early pictures were made for survival and for utilitarian and ritualistic purposes. - Petroglyphs are carved or scratched signs on rock. - These images became symbols for what would be the first spokenlanguage. - Cuneiform – Wedged shaped writing, created in 3000BC. Started…

Words 14951 - Pages 60

Groupon: A Comprehensive Strategy

deals per day in many markets in an effort to acquire more small business clients. Offers will be based upon geographic location and customer’s past purchases and an algorithm will be used to mete out the offers based on that criteria. For instance, a jazz fan in Bronzeville would not receive a deal for half-price bar hopping tour buses in Wrigleyville. Consolidation is another of Andrew Mason’s strategies. In May of 2010, Mason purchased Citydeal, a Berlin based organization. CityDeal is another group-buying…

Words 5468 - Pages 22

Vocab Apush Essay

1. General Court: Massachusetts Bay legislature that tried Anne Hutchinson for heresy; banished leading Antinomians after trial. 2. John Winthrop: First governor and founder of Massachusetts Bay Colony (~1630). Envisioned a “city upon a hill” that would cause Anglicans in England to reform 3. Restoration Colonies: Colonies given to pay off royal debts in return for loyal citizens’ support of Charles II during the restoration. First was Carolina. 4. Leisler's Rebellion: America's response…

Words 5758 - Pages 24