Q: For the
technophobic, what horns do you play?
A: Great word Lance. Mainly I play trumpet & trombone,
occasionally tuba or euphonium.
Q: The big one – how do
you see the future of jazz?
A: This is a hard one and glad you left it till the last
question.
The future of jazz is of course with the young and upcoming
musicians. There are a lot of talented kids out there, with incredible
techniques and range, but to be honest if I put on a current big band CD of a
chase between 2 trumpets or 2 saxes, I can not tell who is who, they all sound
the same, no individual style as in the past. On the other hand, if I put on an
old album I can tell who it is without looking at the notes. Musicians had their
own unique style. You could tell immediately if it was Dizzy Gillespie, Clark
Terry, Roy Eldridge (trumpets) or Jack
Teagarden, Tricky Sam, Frank Rosolino (trombones) or Johnny Hodges, John Coltrane, Coleman
Hawkins, (Saxes).
In the UK , I do not seem to
find many young jazz enthusiasts in the audience. It is mainly the older
generation who support the jazz bands.
This does not seem to be the case in Europe and certainly not here in
Hong Kong and Asia . There seems to be a developing interest
amongst the young people here.
I also note that the term " jazz" is used for a wide range of of music that has nothing to do with the
subject. Vocalists are called jazz vocalists but they are really standard
or pop singers.
In my earlier days you
had New Orleans , Dixieland (Trad), Swing
(Mainstream) Be-Bop, Avangarde, Jazz Rock, Latin Jazz. Now we have Acid Jazz,
Lounge Jazz, Hip Hop Jazz so where does one draw the line.
Another valid observation is that in the past "good old
days", radio was the main media and folks would enjoy tuning in to jazz
shows and big band live telecasts. The whole music industry is now marketed and
enjoyed mainly through YouTube channels. I myself have created my
"Nostalgia channels" and “China Coast Jazzmen” channel on YouTube and
am encouraged to have over 2,000 subscribers to my channels, Ages range
anywhere from young teenagers who simply love the songs and melody to 80 year
olds who love reminiscing to the music they remember. There have been some
lovely comments on the type of music uploaded for all to enjoy.
It's also rather disappointing to see that a lot of the famous
jazz festivals, such as the North Sea Jazz Festival and Monterey Jazz Festival
now feature artists who do not come into any jazz field, so in fact,
these festivals should be re-branded as Jazz & Pop Festivals. For
example, just recently here in Hong Kong we
were supposed to have the North Sea Jazz Festival. This was was cancelled due to the occupy central
movement demonstrations, The main artists were going to be Joss Stone, Yuna,
Laura Fygi. Now I have no idea what they have to do with jazz, maybe the odd
solo from a horn or guitar, but to me they are not jazz artists.
I believe that an audience should be entertained. When you
look at most bands who made it big whether it be Kenny Ball or Duke Ellington -
they all had their spot to involve the audience, and at the end of the day,
jazz started off as dance music, I do feel that when a musician attempts to use
jazz as an art form expression in some ways it loses its appeal, but some do
pull it off, I do think it is very hard for jazz to take on classical music in
the concert hall. As for myself, I will
continue to entertain as well as play for the audience, and most of all have
some fun.
Keep Swinging
Colin Aitchison (Bandleader)
Ned Kelly's Last Stand
Great stuff, Colin! First the bestselling book. Then Ned Kelly's Last Stand - the Movie!
ReplyDeleteWell said, Colin. Most of what is marketed as "jazz" today would not be recognised as such by Armstrong, Parker, Ellington et al. I'm both amused and saddened when I read a "jazz" magazine nowadays to realise that I've never heard of 95% of the people referred to, and the other 5% are people like Jamie Cullum...........
ReplyDeleteI do so agree. The difference is that where once becoming a jazz musician was a vocation - it has now become a career move. There is no doubt that there have never been so many highly skilled instrumentalists - they have fluency - but often have nothing to say. There are of course exceptions - but they are exceptions.
ReplyDeleteWe are in an era of striving to perform - the heroic solo. Never mind any emotional content - just watch the technique.
Jazz education is also teaching that anyone can write original material. This is complete tosh. One can learn it to a degree but there is no doubt that the ability to be able to produce original compositions is given to very few - and in fact often has no direct relationship of high level technique. For example Tadd Dameron - not a great soloist - but what fantastic originals.
Europe is rather different to the UK in terms of audiences. Much greater age range and musically literate.
Finally an almost complete disinterest among many younger musicians about the history of jazz, its performers, and its sounds.
I agree with everything you say, Peter, particularly your points about European audiences and musicians. I am continually astonished at the level of ignorance demonstrated by jazz musicians (actually, both young and old) and audiences in respect of the music they profess to love.
ReplyDelete