Has jazz left DCI?

[cowtown]

what is this jazz thing you speak of....

[ouooga]

Hopefully jazz works its way back. I dig that we left it alone for a little while, but it's time for some balls to the wall jazz shows again!

I heard a rumor that BD's kept "The Phenomenon of Cool Part 2" in the closet in case they need to pull a show out really quick. But there's a few other corps I'd like to hear some jazz shows from too.

[whitedawn]

I'm pretty sure he meant killed them competitively.

yeah.

poor management actually killed them.

[whitedawn]

Care to explain?

sure... when you have to march at 110 for minutes at a time, your visual ge takes a hit, because you can't really do anything with the drill. it's too fast to double time and not fast enough to take big enough steps. you can watch several instances of this in several suncoast/magic shows where a swing/jazz section completely kills the momentum of the show. the music is cool, but on the field, it just doesn't work correctly.

[rut-roh]

sure... when you have to march at 110 for minutes at a time, your visual ge takes a hit, because you can't really do anything with the drill. it's too fast to double time and not fast enough to take big enough steps. you can watch several instances of this in several suncoast/magic shows where a swing/jazz section completely kills the momentum of the show. the music is cool, but on the field, it just doesn't work correctly.

While that's not entirely true in every case, I see where you're coming from. It's a perfect example of one of the reasons why I think the 1988 Blue Devils didn't win. And there we're talking about a corps that totally DID know how to interpret and perform an incredible jazz book. One of the best ever written for a DCI corps. But visually, the show didn't have much in the way of steam of momentum, especially for the second production in 6/8 with the drum solo. Much of the bookends to that production was at, what, 88 bpm? It was a nice show to watch, but it wasn't anything I would call dynamic or particularly exciting visually, and I think it may have played a big role in keeping them from the top spot in the end.

[scottgordon]

Just doing a piece of music that is normally associated with jazz doesn't mean you're playing jazz. Jazz isn't a list of tunes, it's a style, a genre. One of the things normally considered a characteristic of jazz is groove. Corps arrangements today don't seem to be trying to achieve a groove -- quite the opposite -- so I don't see how jazz is compatible any more. If the pendulum ever swings back around so that the music is allowed to (a) maintain a rhythmic groove for a significant period of time, and (b) complete an entire tune in more or less its full form, I think it will be natural for corps to explore jazz again (and I mean in reality rather than just in name). But not until then.

[TealEuph7]

I almost forgot, Bluecoats had some ballin' swing in their 06 show. Their trumpets were freakin awesome.

[Dave]

I think most people are thinking of big band shows when they think of jazz, while others are thinking of more symphonic jazz. Both are jazz, but neither are even close to the entirety of jazz music, and there's a lot out there that could be tapped beyond Maynardized big band charts and Gershwinized wind ensemble literature.

[SomeOtherJoe]

Seems to me back in the '80s when everything went subjective, jazz charts -- especially in terms of percussion arrangements -- took a "hit" and were automatically viewed with a "not as musical" bias when compared to classical arrangements. Jazz phrasing/dynamics garnered little merit when compared to the same in classical charts. A classical chart was deemed more musical right out the box.

When you write to appeal to/appease the greatest common denominator in opinion of those handing out the scores, musical selection, composition, and arrangement will probably refelect the greatest common denominator in opinion of those handing out the scores.

Good or bad, the direction of music selection must be impacted by judging more than anything else.

[kickhaltsforlife]

I feel like jazz has so much more breathing room when it comes to expression. Like a gagillion times more breathing room. People right jazz charts, for them to be interpreted different each time. A Jazz composer usually will not be offended by someone playing their chart differenty than what they intended.

I don't know, when I think of jazz, I feel free to express myself. When I think classical or wind band, i think about expressing the composers intent (although when it is a solo work... #### the composer.. to an extent). I am a classical buff myself... but i really love jazz, all types. Big band is my favorite, but the jazz genre is larger than any genre EVER. There is so much opportunity to make music, so much more than classical/wind band. I wish corps would stop being afraid of that. Take on the challenge, MAKE SOME GOD #### MUSIC! Because that has been lacking in recent summers.... I'm tired of staccato attacks, then running 4 to 5 in the opposite direction... just to play another staccato 8 beats later...