a basis for jazz education

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Jazz Education comes of age

A Basis for Jazz Education

by

Dr Charles Beale



I. The Basis



1974: A Basis for Music Education byKeith

Swanwick



3 Strands

1. The main activities: performing, composing,

listening allows possibility for improvising

2. Music in education as reflecting the stylistic

diversity of music in the real world

3. Development and progression as common

across styles



Improvising =

Performing

Listening

Composing

in the moment




Swanwick

1988: National Curriculum - GCSE



Jazz at Key Stage 2

Controlling sounds through singing and playing performing skills

1 Pupils should be taught how to:

A. sing songs, in unison and two parts, with clear diction, control of pitch,

a sense of phrase and musical expression

B. play tuned and un-tuned instruments with control and rhythmic accuracy

C. practise, rehearse and present performances with an awareness of

the audience.

Creating and developing musical ideas composing skills


A. improvise , developing rhythmic and melodic material when performing

B. explore, choose, combine and organisemusical ideas within musical structures.

Responding and reviewing appraising skills


A. analyse and compare sounds

B. explore and explain their own ideas and feelings about music using

movement, dance, expressive language and musical vocabulary

C. improve their own and others work in relation to its intended effect.



Jazz at Key Stage 3

During the key stage, pupils should be taught theknowledge, skills and understanding through:

� a range of musical activities that integrate performing,composing and appraising

� responding to a range of musical and non-musical starting points

� working on their own, in groups of different sizes and as aclass

� using ICT to create, manipulate and refine sounds

� a range of live and recorded music from different timesand cultures, including music from the British Isles, theW estern classical tradition, folk, jazz and popular genres,and by well-known composers and performers.



Jazz at GCSE

� Students study improvisation in the context of manystyles (Indian music, African music) including jazz;

� They can do jazz for their solo performance as long asa chord scheme is provided

� can do a solo improvisation option;

� in their ensemble performance they can also doimprovising as part of an ensemble;

� Can compose in jazz styles

� and in listening and appraising, all students arerequired to identify improvisations and identifystructural features within improvisations



Jazz at A Level

� [The EdExcel specification] recognises that we live in an age of cultural diversity and the Areas of Study cover a wide range of music: classical,world, popular and jazz.

� Jazz appears as a composition topic twice: first as The 32 bar jazzstandard and also under fusions

� In Unit 3, we findLouis Armstrongs W est End Blues, Duke EllingtonBlack and Tan Fantasy and Miles Davis Four .Students will learn how to

understand the social and cultural conditions that have influenced thecomposition and performance of the music

identify musical characteristics and understand how musical elementsare used

understand and analyse formal characteristics investigate the use of musical resources.

� A level allows for improvising in the Solo performance paper,inPerforming during the course and in the Recital.




Swanwick

1988: National Curriculum GCSE

1998: first ABRSM Jazz exams.



Jazz in ABRSM exams

� Defines new standards and progression - what a jazz student should be able to do after 1-5 years

� Establishes core repertoire, technique, the role

of reading music� Idiomatic skills: rhythm, blues, improvising

� Other skills in common: ear, memory, ability toplay instrument

� Embeds improvising in every performance

� Combines creative and recreative performing



II. Building on the Basis

Questions



Progression

� Repertoire:

Are some styles of jazz harder than others? Should everystyle be available at every level?

� History:

What history should be taught to beginners? And what tothe more able? What to generalists? And what tospecialists?

� Level:

How many standards should you know by the time you do Alevel? Or leave college? Or even enter the profession?

Is it important to continue to use simple starting points (say,C Jam Blues) at every level?



Progression and assessment

defining easy and hardSkills:

� Sight-reading: is reading a lead sheet (chord symbols, words, nophrasing, articulation, dynamics) the same skill as reading anorchestral part? What tunes should you be able to read at KS3,GCSE, A level, Degree, Masters, and why?

Interpretational difficulty:

� What sorts of jazz are harder to interpret than others?

Rhythm skills:

� Are some jazz feels intrinsically harder? Or does that depend onyour musical background or culture?

� Some jazz rhythms are easy to hear, but hard to write down usingstave notation. How does that affect the learning process?

� Are some jazz skills (eg harmony, muscle memory) harder to learn if youve learnt another style first?



How do we integrate jazz into music

education?

� Is jazz equally appropriate for all students? Or is itparticularly useful for:the creative; the poor reader; theunder-achiever; the bored classical player; the more hip;the less hip?

�What if a student comes to jazz from another stylefirst?Rockand pop? Classical music?

� How do we ensure that students with jazz talent reach theright teacher?

� Should all students have a classical technique on their

instrument before they start? How does that make it easierfor them? How does it make it harder?

� Is it sensible to do jazz as a bit of fun at the end of alesson?



And

� Parental attitudes

� Jazz as part of the establishment

� Teacher skills: instrumental and

classroom



Jazz Education comes of age

A Basis for Jazz Education

by

Dr Charles Beale

a basis for jazz education

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