Jazz Opinion – Learn Jazz Standards

Why Is Jazz Important? Here’s Why Jazz Music Matters

James Melton — Wed, 20 Dec 2023 13:36:58 +0000

Why is jazz important? Many studies have shown the benefits of music and music education in schools. Research shows that learning music helps develop many non-music-related skills and important brain functions. We know that music matters, but why does jazz music matter? That’s exactly what we’ll be discussing today! Jazz music is more than a genre or something […]

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Why Jazz Isn’t Defined By Your Personal Taste

Josiah Boornazian — Wed, 13 Jun 2018 22:17:53 +0000

In recent years I’ve noticed what I feel is a troubling trend among some – but, to be fair, not all – jazz musicians and enthusiasts. Sometimes, when someone hears a style, sub-genre, or offshoot (or whatever you want to call it) of jazz that they don’t particularly like, they’ll write it off and say […]

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Don’t Be a Jazz Snob!

Brent Vaartstra — Fri, 20 Jan 2017 15:44:10 +0000

Jazz snobs. I know my fair share of them. Most musicians I know are in the jazz circles, and while I wouldn’t categorize most of them as authentic jazz snobs, there are always the few making the rest of us look bad. What’s a jazz snob? They are actually quite simple characters. Here’s one of those […]

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The Pros and Cons of Being a Multi-Instrumentalist

Brent Vaartstra — Wed, 04 Jan 2017 16:11:08 +0000

I received an email from an LJS subscriber a few weeks ago, which described a fairly common predicament in the music world. This musician was a multi-instrumentalist, and it seemed to be perplexing him quite a bit. It perplexed him because he sensed that to excel as a jazz musician it would require some virtuosity, […]

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How the Jazz Greats Became Great

Brent Vaartstra — Fri, 09 Sep 2016 17:19:01 +0000

Often when we think of jazz greats such as Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Louis Armstrong, Sonny Rollins, and a host of others, we think of them as icons of immeasurable talent. In jazz circles these musicians seem to be considered “gods among men”. You often hear others speak of them, saying: “No one will ever be […]

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Why Scales Are Ruining Your Jazz Playing

Brent Vaartstra — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 15:19:30 +0000

One of the questions I get that makes me cringe the most is “What scales can I play over…(a jazz standard)”. It’s not that scales are bad, or that it’s a dumb question. It’s that thinking about scales as a means to improvise is not the best way to go. In order to play jazz, one […]

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What Jazz Will Sound Like In 10 Years

Brent Vaartstra — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 15:52:34 +0000

Jazz is an evolving music. It’s not a music that is stuck in the past, although some may be either uneducated or mislead to believe that it is. Jazz is flexible, adaptive, and elusive. It’s like a person who looks at the majority crowd and doesn’t want to conform to their trendy ways, but still wants to […]

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One Thing The Best Jazz Musicians Do That Others Don’t

Brent Vaartstra — Fri, 27 May 2016 13:46:04 +0000

Since the very first day I started getting serious about jazz, I’ve pondered over and over again what it is exactly that made the jazz greats so great. Whenever I go to shows of my favorite jazz musicians, I wonder why it was so good. Why do I leave the venue so awestruck? It’s easy […]

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Is Practicing With Play-Alongs Bad?

Brent Vaartstra — Fri, 20 May 2016 15:08:03 +0000

I’ve heard it said before that jazz musicians should not practice with play-alongs: “It’s not how the music should be played!” “It’s not what Bird and Diz and those guys were doing!” “A backing track can’t interact with you, and that’s what jazz is all about!” Instead of being long winded about this, let me […]

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Why Jazz Musicians Can Be The Biggest Jerks

Brent Vaartstra — Thu, 28 Apr 2016 15:04:18 +0000

I just can’t take it any longer. I’ve held it in for a while, but now I just have to come out and say it: Jazz musicians have been some of the meanest, cruelest, whining, egotistical people I’ve ever met! I have my reasons why. It’s not that I’m an outsider looking in. No, in fact […]

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The (Whole) Truth About Jazz Vocabulary

Josiah Boornazian — Wed, 13 Apr 2016 15:04:11 +0000

Guest post by Josiah Boornazian. An Important Question In this post, I want to focus on some of the philosophical and practical concerns that arise when we ask the question “how do I learn and develop jazz vocabulary?” (Just to be clear, when I say “jazz vocabulary” here I mean actual music – not words. […]

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The Most Important Jazz Albums of All Time

Brent Vaartstra — Thu, 31 Mar 2016 14:42:10 +0000

Normally, I would go ahead and list for you a handful of jazz records that historically have been noted as “the most important” time and time again; the ones everyone can agree upon. But I want to do something different today. This time I want to hear from you. Which jazz albums do you think […]

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How Much Should You Spend on Your Instrument?

Camden Hughes — Mon, 28 Mar 2016 17:18:58 +0000

We are all in different musical situations. For some, their instrument is a tool to help them make money. For others, their instrument is a beloved hobby, a leisurely pastime, or a distraction from their normal life. Others might not be professionals yet, but they are SERIOUS about improving and sounding good. For many, their instrument is […]

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A Reality Check for Jazz Musicians

Brent Vaartstra — Thu, 24 Mar 2016 20:42:45 +0000

There are three types of jazz musicians in the world today: the professionals, the students and the hobbyists. All three are equally important for the survival of each other and the survival of jazz music itself. The Hobbyists: Individuals who either love listening to jazz as a pastime, or play jazz as a pastime. Jazz is purely a […]

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The Existential Problem with Jazz Band

Camden Hughes — Tue, 01 Mar 2016 02:38:56 +0000

Jazz education has been institutionalized. For decades now, you have been able to find a form of jazz education in countless middle schools, high schools, and colleges. In a way that helps to propel the music forward, passing it on to the next generation. Jazz education is alive in the schools. That’s a victory for […]

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Why “Vibing” is Bad for Jazz

Camden Hughes — Mon, 22 Feb 2016 07:22:31 +0000

What is “vibing” in jazz, and why does it happen? If you’ve been around the music very long, you may have experienced “vibing.” “Vibing” is a mean-spirited attitude toward other musicians and the way they play the music. “Vibing” is when the house guitarist at the jam won’t talk to the singer sitting in. “Vibing” is […]

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The 3 Most Important Jazz Guitarists of All Time

Brent Vaartstra — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 17:03:27 +0000

I get asked time to time, who I think the most important jazz guitarists are. This can be a tough question to answer because jazz guitar has had such a rich history of incredible guitar players. There are so many jazz guitarists that not only were phenomenal players but pushed the envelope of what we […]

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Who Hijacked The Jazz Economy?

Camden Hughes — Mon, 21 Dec 2015 00:29:43 +0000

Sixty or eighty years ago, the jazz economy was healthy. Things were different. There was a healthy club scene in many metropolitan areas. Jazz was in vogue. It was relatively easy for a good musician to gig 5 nights a week. There was an entire economy based around the performance of jazz music. People went to […]

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Top Ten Underrated Jazz Musicians

Camden Hughes — Mon, 07 Dec 2015 08:04:22 +0000

Miles Davis, Louis Armstrong, John Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Count Basie, Duke Ellington…these names are synonymous with jazz, and their brilliance shines bright. There are other players-Sonny Rollins, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny, Oscar Peterson, Bud Powell, Thelonious Monk, Cannonball Adderley, Art Tatum-whose stars shine very, very brightly, though they may not quite […]

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Musicians Must Get Paid!

Brent Vaartstra — Tue, 03 Nov 2015 12:33:03 +0000

This article is a follow up to 3 Reasons Why You Need To Stop Playing Gigs For Free, in which I talk about how our musical economy has been severely damaged by musicians playing gigs for no compensation, ultimately devaluing the profession. I read this ad on Craigslist recently: Seeking jazz and folk musicians for […]

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Sex, Drugs, Alcohol and Jazz

Brent Vaartstra — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 15:44:56 +0000

Anyone who has ever studied jazz history probably knows that its unruly cast of characters was often loaded on drugs and alcohol. Charlie Parker, one of jazz’s most iconic heroes, died very young because of his ravenous addictions to heroine and alcohol. He had drugged and drank himself to death. The coroner estimated that Parker was […]

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