[Dixielandjazz] Violin in OKOM

[Steve barbone]

"Mike C." <mike at michaelcryer.com> wrote

 
> With a trumpet on the melody, clarinet a third above the
> melody(typically) and trombone on the harmony what role does the fiddle
> player play in the front line?

Hi Mike:

When Barbone Street plays with young violinist Jonathan Russell, he takes
melody on in and out chorus'. Rest of front line plays counterpoint. Why?
Because he like it that way. (and therefore so do we)

Without him, we rarely have clarinet a third above any melody except Fidgety
Feet or something like that. (High Society Trio etc). As a general rule, we
just don't "arrange" our Dixieland.

Trumpet plays lead, clarinet does obbligato counterpoint and Trombone
counterpoints, tailgates and smears. This is our personal way of doing it
and not everyone agrees. We feel if we are going to arrange more than just a
few bare essentials, it might be jazzy, but it ain't really jazz.

Right or wrong, we have adopted the Tom Bostelle attitude about his "art".
(He hung this sign above his studio door)

All ye who enter here
Reserve your praise
Or your condemnation
I don't give a damn
For either
I know what I'm doing.

It never bothered him if an individual liked or disliked what he painted.
After all, he reasoned that he "wasn't necessarily doing it for you."

Cheers,
Steve Barbone