Jazz Pedagogy
In most of my experience with middle and high schools, jazz band is typically reserved for the more serious young musicians. Whether it be a tough audition or additional time spent beyond regular school hours, students must demonstrate dedication to their craft. Some of the most basic jazz pedagogy, however, could be applied to all ensembles to improve student musicianship.
As I have previously stated, music is a language all on its own. Using a system of symbols developed well over a thousand years, music from the Western Classical tradition can be used to express feelings, convey emotions, and tell stories. While music uses the first seven letters of our alphabet to label pitches, it is the combination of rhythmic symbols that is more like the function of a language’s alphabet. The smallest units are combined in various ways to create words, phrases, sentences, or entire narratives; all of which are contained within a structure of organizational rules just as syntax describes the organization of words in traditional languages. With the rhythmic foundation firmly in place, pitches can eventually be added as elements of expression. Even while adhering to the formal rules, slight interpretation can be drawn from this system of symbols. Take English, for example; the same exact sentence, with absolutely no alterations to the visual representation of its meaning, will have a unique sound when spoken out loud by a person from California, Wisconsin, New York, England, or Australia, for example. Sometimes, two versions of the same language, whether it be American English or British English, can draw a completely different meaning from an identical sentence: “There’s a snake in my boot!”
All too often, music classes are taught like English language classes: Learn the symbolic representation and the vocabulary to find meaning in what the composer has written, further refine an understanding of the syntax to easily interpret more complex combinations of ideas, use this knowledge to read a variety of works, and even begin arranging and rearranging the symbols to create one’s own message. Compare this to any other foreign language class. While there are many similarities within the course curriculums, English classes assume that the students know how the language is supposed to sound, but other language classes put a focus on listening and vocalizations. Although I have never been in an English as a second language class, I would assume that the outside cultural influence benefits the student’s understanding in ways that other language classes are not privy. One could follow all the rules of the English language and still incorrectly pronounce the word “chameleon” if they had never matched the symbolic representation to aural form.
When describing jazz, the Queen’s English is probably the last language that anybody would choose as its acoustic representation, and for good reason: it just would not sound right. Prior to my time at the University of Oregon, I truly thought I understood jazz—at least everything but improvisation. Imagine thinking that about any other language before being able to speak it. I had easily auditioned into big bands, playing both lead and bass trombone, just as easily as I had auditioned into wind ensembles or orchestras. I was good enough for those ensembles, so why should I not think I knew jazz? A clear case of apperception (Herbart). The commonly used phrase, “good enough for jazz,” is the perfect representation of a complete misunderstanding of the artform.
While I fully understand that jazz is not the only type of music to develop a fluency within the musical language, I had never seen the actual attention to detail given by the true masters. Because a large portion of jazz is rooted in dance, during my first private lesson I was given the task of developing bodily rhythmic interdependence. The directions were to master an Afro-Cuban 6/8 rhythm using multiple limbs. Although swing feel is not typically written as a compound meter, this underlying pulse is how it was developed. More than simply tying the first two triplets together to create a long beat and a short beat, the rhythm puts accents on different triplets throughout. Listening to an example of a Miles Davis tune, rather than playing notes in random places, I could hear how he demonstrated a true rhythmic mastery by deliberately placing his notes on this metric framework. Of course, I knew that each beat could be divided in various combinations of two and threes, but further study of Afro-Cuban rhythms helped me realize other ways to divide a pulse. One must think beyond the compound rhythms within a single beat and learn to split full measures, or even multiple measures, using asymmetric divisions. This level of attention will allow a musician to recognize, essentially, the difference in musical dialects. Because “the right note in the wrong place is a wrong note,” this detailed rhythmic mastery is paramount before going any further. These two handouts that I created for my sixth grade beginning band class were designed to teach students how different rhythms can be organized within the context of a measure. While this concept is an absolute must for any musician learning to play jazz, this emphasis of rhythm over pitch is critical for all beginners attempting to speak the language (Gordon’s Music Learning Theory). In this clip, you will observe an advanced rhythm study with a college-level student, using body movements and audiations to reinforce the internalization of time: “… a great player is able to definitively state the time and feel of the music without the assistance of others” (Owen, n.d., p. 12). This second clip contains a lesson given to a beginning band class demonstrating how this same concept can be taught in a more developmentally appropriate manner (Pestalozzian Pedagogy). Eurythmics is a technique created by respected pedagogue Dalcroze for developing rhythm in children using body movements, but there is no reason to save these complex metric divisions for later in a musician’s development.
Aside from the Afro-Cuban dance rhythms, jazz also developed out of vocal traditions. When studying the artform, many will want to go straight to learning about jazz harmony. Personally, that is what I thought would transform my improvisational abilities, but still, it is the subtle rhythmic nuances that allow one to play jazz convincingly. A jazz master must not only be able to play their instrument with the accuracy of a world-class drummer, but they must also be able to mimic the voice. In this capacity, wind players have the biggest advantage outside of the vocalists themselves, but this imitation cannot occur by merely reading notes from a page. When looking at a basic lead sheet for Autumn Leaves, for example, you may only find quarter notes, (dotted) half notes, and whole notes; but when listening to a vocalist, one will uncover many more expressive liberties taken. When singing (or even speaking) the titular second line of the tune, “the autumn leaves of red and gold,” the third syllable should stop the airflow, creating a ghosted note. Without comparing the lead sheet notation to the intended vocal melody, no instrumentalist would be able to communicate the melody correctly. It can be difficult getting younger instrumentalists to feel comfortable singing; but in this clip of a college-level private lesson, my student is given the task of singing the lyrics prior to playing the melody to better understand the musical nuances.
There is plenty of evidence to show why comparing music to a language is an excellent way to develop a musician’s abilities. These handouts demonstrate a method for relating music to the language with which the beginning band class is familiar. This video accompanies the last handout concerning phrasing. Edwin Gordon’s music learning theory and the Suzuki method are two examples of this concept applied to educational methods, but I would argue that jazz pedagogy can improve this idea even further. What good is a language if spoken in a vacuum or merely listened to without a response? Music, like any language, should be used to communicate ideas in a reciprocal manner. No, not every story requires a response or some kind of input from others, but a virtuosic musician must be prepared to do so when the setting calls for it. To take in information, process it, and respond while remaining within the established rhythmic framework requires a musical ability not often found outside of the practices of jazz improvisation (Csikszentmihalyi’s Flow State). Although it sounds like quite the difficult task, it is important to develop these skills in pieces. Even if immersed in a completely foreign country with an unknown language, one must start with short syllabic words and build towards longer sentences, eventually being able to follow the more difficult conventions of syntax. It is common (at least I am told) that a child’s first word is “no,” and even when misused, there is still communicative intent behind the usage. In this same way, young musicians should be developing this skill and musical understanding as early as possible. This handout and accompanying video demonstrate how to develop a framework with which students can learn to communicate successfully (Kodály method). As students mature, more opportunities to practice this communication must be given to improve their musical conversations.
Through my studies with jazz education, I was able to design course syllabi and a whole program curriculum to map out how students can develop this language at a more advanced stage. Without a solid foundation, however, they may become overwhelmed by this type of immersive study, deterring many capable musicians. This comes from first-hand experience as my early music education did not develop a complete musical fluency; by the time I was studying music in college and could learn from true jazz masters, I was unable to keep up. While my desire and determination has allowed me to make up some lost time, I intend to instill these jazz pedagogy techniques in all my students, opening doors early for each one whether they decide to walk through or not.
Daniel F. Galarneau 