The group I assembled was an instrumental jazz ensemble/combo. It was open to 7th-12th grade band students but was non-auditioned and any instrumentation was welcome, regardless of whether or not it was a “typical jazz instrument”. For percussionists, I gave them the option of signing up for drum set, mallets, or auxiliary. Only students from 7th-10th grade participated, with most of them being 8th graders. Since we were competing with the upcoming winter concerts, festivals, detention duties, and elementary band rehearsals, the rehearsal schedule was somewhat irregular (two Friday mornings and a Tuesday afternoon). It was an elective group which met outside of school time. There were no official grade incentives but I provided snacks for those who attended. Not all participating students were able to attend all three sessions, and some who signed up did not make it to any. In total, there were nineteen students who attended at least one rehearsal.
There was a wide variety of abilities, as there was a large age difference in participants. However, all participating students had multiple years of experience on their instrument prior to this series of lessons. The only exception was one student who only showed up to the first class because they heard that I was bringing snacks. This school has not had a jazz band in many years and the students had no jazz improvisation background unless they learned it outside of school (which was only the two trombonists). The program is looking to rebuild the jazz band this spring, and my improvisation ensemble/class will hopefully help to increase interest and provide a sufficient foundation for them.
My culminating goal for this group is for the students to be able to improvise over a 12-bar F Blues. My hope is that the knowledge and experiences they gain from these sessions will give them the resources to know how to improvise over any basic chord progression.
Students will learn and execute the following concepts, strategies, and musical skills:
-Call-and-response
-Swing style and rhythmic feel
-Meaning of basic chord symbols and how to improvise over them
-Mixolydian and Dorian Scales (only those that appear in F Blues)
-F Blues Scale
-Quoting the melody and other soloists (each other)
As a part of this experience, students will develop skills related to the three artistic processes of creating, performing, and assessing.
-Creating: Students will improvise in various ways under various guidelines.
-Performing: Students will play both written and improvised melodies on their instrument.
-Assessing: Students will be able to assess themselves and each other by listening to each other and using others’ ideas to influence their own.
Instrumentation and Grade Levels of the ensemble
-3 Clarinets (All 8th graders)
-3 Alto Saxophones (Two 8th graders, One 10th grader)
-1 Tenor Saxophone (10th grade)
-3 Trumpets (One 7th, One 8th, One 10th)
-3 Trombones (One 8th, One 9th, One 10th. The 9th and 10th graders were already proficient improvisers)
-2 Baritones (Both 9th graders)
-4 Percussionists (One 7th grader who had prior drum set training, Two 8th graders, One 9th grader who had never
played percussion before)
There was a wide variety of abilities, as there was a large age difference in participants. However, all participating students had multiple years of experience on their instrument prior to this series of lessons. The only exception was one student who only showed up to the first class because they heard that I was bringing snacks. This school has not had a jazz band in many years and the students had no jazz improvisation background unless they learned it outside of school (which was only the two trombonists). The program is looking to rebuild the jazz band this spring, and my improvisation ensemble/class will hopefully help to increase interest and provide a sufficient foundation for them.
My culminating goal for this group is for the students to be able to improvise over a 12-bar F Blues. My hope is that the knowledge and experiences they gain from these sessions will give them the resources to know how to improvise over any basic chord progression.
Students will learn and execute the following concepts, strategies, and musical skills:
-Call-and-response
-Swing style and rhythmic feel
-Meaning of basic chord symbols and how to improvise over them
-Mixolydian and Dorian Scales (only those that appear in F Blues)
-F Blues Scale
-Quoting the melody and other soloists (each other)
As a part of this experience, students will develop skills related to the three artistic processes of creating, performing, and assessing.
-Creating: Students will improvise in various ways under various guidelines.
-Performing: Students will play both written and improvised melodies on their instrument.
-Assessing: Students will be able to assess themselves and each other by listening to each other and using others’ ideas to influence their own.
Instrumentation and Grade Levels of the ensemble
-3 Clarinets (All 8th graders)
-3 Alto Saxophones (Two 8th graders, One 10th grader)
-1 Tenor Saxophone (10th grade)
-3 Trumpets (One 7th, One 8th, One 10th)
-3 Trombones (One 8th, One 9th, One 10th. The 9th and 10th graders were already proficient improvisers)
-2 Baritones (Both 9th graders)
-4 Percussionists (One 7th grader who had prior drum set training, Two 8th graders, One 9th grader who had never
played percussion before)