The Jazz String Orchestra in the Big Band Tradition
July 2, 2019|
Bud Caputo
Why should the wind and percussion students have all the fun?
While the profession of music education leaves teachers with a multitude of choices, there is one common axiom that we all share: we all want what is best for our students . It follows that music teachers must choose the appropriate repertoire for their performing ensembles.
We ask these four questions:
- Is the music I choose too easy or too hard for my group?
- While I want to challenge my students, is the music I choose within their reach so that they will have a meaningful experience in its preparation, and ultimately produce a quality performance?
- Will the repertoire be a balance of what the students like the first time they play it, and what they will be able to grow into as they discover the richness of the essential repertoire that has been chosen by directors over the years?
- Does the music I choose help inspire my students to go beyond the classroom experience and make them life-long learners as performers and listeners?
Along with these choices, directors must fold in music that is rich and meaningful to the cultures from which their students are derived. The music of just traditional, white European composers does not fulfill this need. However, many string teachers who are steeped in this tradition from their own training fail to expand the curriculum to include music that American String Teachers Association (ASTA) has identified as “alternative strings.” Music from Appalachia, Ireland, and New Orleans can meet this need. As jazz is our “national art form,” this is the most meaningful place to start.
Start with One Jazz Selection
First, begin by making the decision to program one selection on an upcoming concert that will permit your string students to perform jazz in the “big band tradition.” This is not the same as playing "back up" parts for the school jazz ensemble, or for the talent show pop vocalist. While that experience may be attractive—just look at the Nashville string studio performers earning six-figure salaries doing this—I am suggesting an approach that will expand your students’ knowledge of jazz, its development through the repertoire, and the chance to “improvise.” I’m asking you to consider a fully functioning Jazz Chamber String Orchestra with rhythm section!
Start by selecting music that puts your students “out front.” Find an ensemble arrangement that will allow them to learn at least one of a wide variety of jazz styles. The selection must also provide opportunities for them to explore jazz improvisation.
When selecting music for the beginning jazz string ensemble, I also suggest that you begin with arrangements in the “Basie swing style.” Initially, they will be more difficult to teach, given the limited opportunities that students may have had to hear this style of music. However, once the group is able to create the feeling of “laying back” on the quarter notes, and swinging the eighth notes, it will be far easier for them to perform the straight eighth-note rhythmic figures contained in Latin and rock selections.
Strategize a Rhythm Section
Borrow a strategy that string orchestra directors use to add interest to their performance repertoire (adding students from the concert band to form a full orchestra). It shouldn’t be difficult to locate a rhythm section of students who play jazz piano, guitar, and drumset. In fact, there may be students enrolled in your string orchestra who already have proficiency on these jazz rhythm section instruments and would love the opportunity to show their additional talents.
If your school has a show choir, there may already be an active group of students who could function as “the house rhythm section” for several different school ensembles. Once you purchase a quality pick-up microphone and small amplifier for one of the bass players, you are ready to expand the curriculum and the horizons of your students by exploring jazz through a new performance ensemble, the Jazz Chamber String Orchestra that is simply an outgrowth of the traditional string orchestra already in place.
Learn by Listening
Be mindful that jazz is an auditory art form. Students and directors must listen to the varied jazz genres to be able to develop a stylistic vocabulary and interpret what’s on the printed page. Verbal descriptions do not suffice. It would be equally inappropriate to teach spiccato bowings in the music of Mozart, or to teach students how to swing eighth notes without having them listen to appropriate recordings. All the teaching techniques that apply to developing good classical style ensemble playing are equally relevant in this context; pitch rhythm, vibrato, tone quality, balance, etc. However, there are stylistic differences that can be learned only from listening to recordings of string and non-string jazz musicians. A discography by jazz educators Darly Anger and John Kuzmich Jr. is referenced in the Resource List at the conclusion of this article.
Introduce Improvisation
A written-out musical arrangement that includes accurate jazz articulations and helpful expressions and jazz terminology, can be managed quite well by traditionally trained classical musicians. However, improvisation is the heart of jazz. It is this difference that challenges the classically trained musician to meet the creative demands that are unique to jazz. Fortunately, there are many recordings of jazz violin virtuoso improvisers who can serve as models for student improvisers. John Blake, David Baker, Darol Anger, Regina Carter, Christian Howes, and Joe Kennedy have numerous CD’s available. Students should listen to these models so they may gain insights on how to make their string instrument performance a good fit with the jazz idiom. Some string performers who bring forth the traditions of some of the earlier violin jazz giants include Stephanie Grapelli, John Luc Ponty, and Joe Venuti. Students should also hear the wind playing of Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Dizzy Gillespie of the bebop era (1947-1960s). Additionally, some contemporary string soloists’ recorded music reflects the more current styles of funk, blues, and jazz-rock fusion.
The work of the Turtle Island String Quartet (TISQ) is unmatched. This ensemble has dug deeply into the traditional jazz repertoire and published music for the string quartet. These pieces, however, are extremely challenging to even advanced level high school musicians. The virtuosos that make up this ensemble are able to generate chordal and percussion effects from within their quartet instrumentation. In contrast, I am suggesting that the use of a rhythm section creates a greater variety of colors and allows the student jazz chamber string orchestra to concentrate on performing with the support of a rhythm section in the traditions of the “big band” format.
After a few rehearsals the teacher will be able to identify those students who really enjoy and excel at improvisation. This may lead to the formation of small, student-directed combos that offer even more opportunities for improvisation, involving fewer players and less rehearsal time.
Develop a Music Vocabulary
Several publishers have created jazz improvisation teaching materials that are clear, concise, and dispel the myth that improvisation is a natural phenomenon and cannot be taught. While these materials differ from publisher to publisher, the shared concept is that the improviser will develop a memorized vocabulary of musical scales for all the same reasons that we teach scales in Western art music. Traditional major, minor, and whole-tone Western scales, the pentatonic scale, modes, and other special jazz scales, are used over particular chords, or chord progressions, found in those tunes that have been identified as standard repertoire for all jazz musicians.
The music contained in these volumes typically consists of music known as the Great American Songbook, including:
- Songs from the 20’s-40’s, Tin Pan Alley and Broadway showtunes, using the standard 32 measure, A-A-B-A form.
- The 12 bar blues.
- Music from the Latin traditions.
- More contemporary modal and rock tunes of the 80’s onward.
A practice booklet and CD are usually included so students can practice the required skills at home. Refer to the Resources List at the end of the article for improvisation methods and recordings.
Of course, string teachers, like their jazz ensemble colleagues, will need to place responsibility on their students to work on these materials out of class. The teacher can be a catalyst to motivate students to work with improvisation materials by taking time in class to introduce basic concepts and provide listening examples of jazz performers. Then, it’s up to the students to work independently on the improvisation materials with periodic coaching from their teacher.
Final Thoughts
Although there is a growing body of jazz repertoire for the jazz string ensemble, it has been slow to come about. Priority is often placed on other ensemble types, however there are some very effective materials available that stimulate interest in jazz string improvisation and ensemble playing. (Please see the resource list below.)
Consider looking for publications that have a demo CD. This will help to alert student to the limits of the printed notation and help them perform the music in appropriate jazz style. Since a rhythm section combo may not be readily available until your final rehearsals and performances, look for publications that supply a CD rhythm section background track that can be used until the live players become available. (This is not unlike the standard practice of jazz and show-choir directors who use back-up recordings for rehearsals.)
Enjoy the experience that the jazz chamber string orchestra will bring to your classroom and let your string students have the same rich experiences afforded to the wind and percussion students in your school.
Resource List
Jazz String Ensemble Publications:
- Jazz/String Publications by Bob Phillips
- “Blues for Dee,” arr. Bud Caputo
- “Recorda Me,” arr. Bud Caputo
- “Have a Cool Yule,” arr. Bud Caputo
- Jazz String Arrangements by Julie Lyonn Lieberman
Jazz Improvisation Resources:
- Jazz Books by Jamey Abersold
- Approaching the Standards , by Willie L. Hill, Jr.
- Jazz Philharmonic series, by Bob Phillips and Randy Sabien
- Creative Strings Workshops
- New Directions Cello - Chris White
Jazz String Recording Artists:
Discographies:
Recordings:
Professional Organizations and Development:
