[Dixielandjazz] Mayday for the Music Too

[Steve barbone]

Vaxtrpts at aol.com wrote:
 
> I was going to post this one and then thought better of it, since Steve
> Barbone posts every article known to man on this list.

Heh heh. Nah, there are bunches of articles about the music which I read
every day, but do not post. There is an extraordinary amount of information
about Jazz published every day, which most folks on the DJML never see

> However Steve, your single quote from the article is only partly true, but
> mostly not!

Not "my" quote but a quote from the author of the article. The quote is
correct, the subject of the quote may, or may not be, depending upon the
experiences of the author and the experiences of readers. And, of course,
the "quote" was a merely a device to get the attention of list mates. Kind
of like a circle of fifths. :-) VBG.

> So -- I will post my answer to the guys on the jazz forum list where John
> first posted this.
> I have already had responses from that list agreeing with my  assessment.
> Here it is:
>  
> I really enjoyed that article.  It says volumes about our music and  the way
> it is perceived and promoted. (Or not promoted as the case may  be......)  The
> one part I have to disagree with is the part about creating  a new listening
> audience in the schools.  As many of you know, I am in  schools almost every
> week of the school year around the country, doing clinics  and concerts.
> Here is what I find:
> 1. More than half of the students in jazz bands today can't name 3 people
> who play their instrument.
> 2. More than half of the students in jazz bands today DON'T listen to  jazz.
> 3. Well more than half of the students are only in Jazz Band because it is
> way to compete and beat other schools and win trophies.
> 4. A good portion of the teachers are concert band people who don't know
> much about jazz and some don't even like it.
> 5. A good portion of the teachers are also in it to win trophies -- NOT
> teach music, music theory, sight reading, or even a love of music.  They  view
> their job much the same as an athletic coach.  The band learns four  tunes and
> practices them all year long, in order to get good scores and win
> competitions.
> 6. Most administrators (of whom many are ex athletic coaches), couldn't  tell
> a fine performance from a coke bottle.  They too, need trophies on the  wall
> to figure that the band director is doing a good job.
> Now I am not saying that this is ALL teachers.  I know some very  dedicated
> teachers (including my wife, Peggy), who teach the fundamentals, make  sure
> the 
> kids LISTEN to music, teach the history of the music, and instill a  desire
> in their students to want to know more about the music and to hear good
> music, 
> both live and recorded.
> One of Peggy's technics that I love is having a big poster on the wall  where
> she puts the names of all the students who can play ALL their major scales
> in 60 seconds.  Remember - these are middle school kids - 6th, 7th, and 8th
> graders.  I am amazed at the number of kids who do this before the end of  the
> school year.
> I'm still not sure how to really turn the current trend in schools around,
> but I'm out there, like many of you, going into the schools and hopefully at
> least turning on a portion of the kids to want to know more about music and
> especially jazz music.
> Any thoughts on my "tirade???"

Sure, I loved it and mostly agree. Thoughts as follows:

1. When I was a high school student . . . and in the band, we had a very
strong musical program. BUT there were  neither High School Jazz Bands, nor
High School courses of study about Jazz  . . . NONE. JAZZ was looked down
upon as GARBAGE MUSIC, and jazz musicians were viewed as the socially misfit
dregs of society. So, regarding the current creation of a listening audience
for jazz in the schools, by school bands and programs, today's High School
students are FAR AHEAD of where those of my generation were no matter how
bad the existing programs may be in our eyes/ears. The important thing is
that some do listen. Whether or not they can name individual players is not
really important as a first step to gaining an audience for the music.

2. Barbone Street JB jazz programs in the school systems locally in
Philadelphia are quite successful. BUT, when I encourage others to do the
same, a few self styled jazz police on the DJML bite my head off and state
that folks on the DJML are not interested in hearing about them. (Don't you
just love individuals who are intelligent enough to speak for 500+ list
mates he/she/they don't know?)

3> How to accelerate the trend? There are people around who know some of the
answers and some answers have been the subject of numerous prior posts.
Unfortunately, getting the music to the kids is not a high priority with
most of the Jazz "Cognoscenti"(?) on the DJML, and sadly, probably never
will be.

Cheers,
Steve