[Dixielandjazz] Sitting In

[Steve barbone]

Always a great thread.

We are a band that encourages sit-ins, but mostly YOUNG KIDS under 20.
Basically because the jazzers I saw/heard in NYC from age 16 up were
friendly towards kid sit-ins and that is how I cut my teeth in a jazz band
environment. They encouraged us, if they thought we were sincere in our
desire to become better jazz musicians. And sitting in at Nick's with Pee
Wee Erwin , Billy Maxted, Billy Butterfield, Tony Spargo et al was an
experience that none of us kid wannabe jazz players ever forgot.

How else are kids going to learn how to play small band jazz well?

But we also have two firm rules about sitting in for both young and old.

1) You must be invited to do so by the band. We do not allow strangers to
just come up and sit in. Especially older ones.
    
2) We tell them in advance there is a one song limit and ask for their input
about which song they would like to play.

If after the initial sit in, the player is both capable and seems to have a
sincere desire to play jazz, we invite him/her back, sometimes on the same
gig, sometimes at a later date and we allow more time for it.

Sometimes the results bring tears to your eyes. This year, we had a 16 year
old trumpeter sit in. Phenomenal player, but couldn't improvise well. He
asked for advice about a jazz mentor/teacher who could help. We suggested
local jazz sax player Larry McKenna (GREAT JAZZ PLAYER HERE IN PHILADELPHIA)

The kid started lessons with Larry and asked to sit in again 3 months later.
Wowie, what a great improvement. We played 5 tunes with him that day. We
were very pleased because we started a kid who had only played High School
Big Band Jazz as lead trumpet, on his way to becoming a small band,
improvising, jazz musician.

We also frankly advised him and his Dad that life as a jazz musician was not
very rewarding monetarily. And highly competitive. No matter said both. It
is what he wants to do.

Will he succeed? Who knows, but right now, he has the desire, and his dad (a
doctor) has enough money to support a son's low pay musical career. So IMO
it is almost an obligation to help him reach his goal.

He is welcome to sit in anytime. And perhaps in a year, like Jonathan
Russell, we will pay him to take a sideman slot in the band on a gig or two.

IMO not enough small bands do this kind of thing, for one reason or another,
which totally mystifies me.

Cheers,
Steve