How does Jazz Band work?

[AmericanWeiner]

As a guitarists wanting to enter a junior college jazz band, what do I need to expect?

I know that I'm going to be metronoming 4/4 backing chords, but what should I know?

[halfdeadhippo]

You need to know:
a.) lots of chord inversions
b.) how to play those inversions in a manner that your hand doesn't have to move up and down the neck too drastically from one chord to another
c.) how to voice lead and/or substitute some chords for others (if you want to make it sound sweet)
d.) how to improvise solos over those chord changes on the off-chance that they give a solo spot

That's really all I can offer, considering I've never really played guitar in a jazz band before, only trombone. Good luck! :thumb:

[GhostNote]

That's good advice. Make sure you use proper dynamics aswell, if you're playing pieces and pretty much just in general, makes it more interesting i think. Are they going to test your theory in auditions also?


-GN

[masada]

You need to know:
a.) lots of chord inversions
b.) how to play those inversions in a manner that your hand doesn't have to move up and down the neck too drastically from one chord to another
c.) how to voice lead and/or substitute some chords for others (if you want to make it sound sweet)
d.) how to improvise solos over those chord changes on the off-chance that they give a solo spot

Basically what this person said. In the jazz band here, I almost always got charts with the rhythm and whatever chords, and everyone once in awhile some single-note things thrown in. And if your school is poor like mine, you may have to play from a piano chart, doubt it though.

[uberj4]

act like a total prick and get thrown out

[AmericanWeiner]

Basically what this person said. In the jazz band here, I almost always got charts with the rhythm and whatever chords, and everyone once in awhile some single-note things thrown in. And if your school is poor like mine, you may have to play from a piano chart, doubt it though.

I think if I have a day to practice, I can manage to get a song down (from piano chart even- I prefer the lack of leger lines), but I doubt I could sight read day-of without making a total fool of myself.

So, I'm primarily looking at cramming chord knowledge right now?

If I went over...say...7th, extendeds, 6th, and basic altered chords (say...one or two accidentals) in bass and melody voicings plus arpeggios every day, plus...I don't know- a list of the top 10 tunes I'll probably play, would I be hitting a pretty good chance of not being **** at this?

PS: What would that top 10 list be?

[masada]

I think if I have a day to practice, I can manage to get a song down (from piano chart even- I prefer the lack of leger lines), but I doubt I could sight read day-of without making a total fool of myself. I wouldn't worry about it much. I made a total fool of myself for about half a year, since it took me awhile to get used to staring at a paper and playing at the same time. If the band practices the songs daily or frequently, you should get the hang of reading them, or memorizing them.

So, I'm primarily looking at cramming chord knowledge right now?

If I went over...say...7th, extendeds, 6th, and basic altered chords (say...one or two accidentals) in bass and melody voicings plus arpeggios every day, plus...I don't know- a list of the top 10 tunes I'll probably play, would I be hitting a pretty good chance of not being **** at this?

It's probably best to have all that stuff known well. But, it never really hurts if you just play the basic chord (in most incidents) if you find it hard to get to a certain chord or can't remember the fingerings and all that. The songs you play really depends on the director and what music the school has purchased. For me, we played a lot of swing songs similar to the Glenn Miller Orchestra. If possible, you should try to get a list of some of the standard songs that they play from the director. I doubt it would be any trouble learning the songs, though, since most a lot of the guitar work tends to be very minimal in a rhythmic sense (I found that I usually played quarted notes a lot). Some songs require a lot of switching around, sometimes every one or two beats.

I hope that helps; it's a little bit scatterbrained as I'm not necessarily an expert or anything.

[halfdeadhippo]

For sightreading practicing, search around Google for lead sheets, and work your way through every one of the chord progressions. Don't spend too much time on each one, but try to get all the way through each song. For some challenge, try playing the melody on top of the chords.


http://guitar-primer.com/Charts/index2.html is one you could try, for starters.

[AmericanWeiner]

For sightreading practicing, search around Google for lead sheets, and work your way through every one of the chord progressions. Don't spend too much time on each one, but try to get all the way through each song. For some challenge, try playing the melody on top of the chords.


http://guitar-primer.com/Charts/index2.html is one you could try, for starters.

I've got a real book, but thanks anyways.

My private teacher has set me up with what he calls an impressive audition but seemed furious over the fact that I've only given him a month or two to tell me what I need to know.

He set me up with-
Girl From Ipanema
Cantaloupe Island
Blue Monk
Satin Doll
I Could Write A Book
Anthropology

He wants me to memorize the heads and chords and be able to improvise over them. Apparently, him and the music section of my local college are at odds (he has "impressive creditials and does not like to kiss ***") and he's probably going to kill me if I go in and play sloppily.

[some jive turkey]

act like a total prick and get thrown out

-Because nothing verifies genius like dropping out or even bettter: getting thrown out of music school. All of the greats did.:p

[masada]

My instructor tolerated me playing country songs and making a lot of retarded noises while he was talking

:cool:

[some jive turkey]

^
It pays the same.


haha

[AmericanWeiner]

My instructor tolerated me playing country songs and making a lot of retarded noises while he was talking

:cool:

did he have pieces played in carnegie hall, sessions with jaco pastorius, an experience as a guitar teacher at a major university?

yeah...we're talking paid trips to paris to hear people play his music. He tells me that auditioners have told his former students that they had higher expectations because they were his students. :X


edit: if you were replying to me saying that I'm pretty much his tool to show off his teaching abilities if I do well

[DavidB92]

Be aware that you, a bass player, a keyboard and a drummer will often start a piece (although often the rest of the rhythm section will come in before you).

[masada]

did he have pieces played in carnegie hall, sessions with jaco pastorius, an experience as a guitar teacher at a major university?

yeah...we're talking paid trips to paris to hear people play his music. He tells me that auditioners have told his former students that they had higher expectations because they were his students. :X


edit: if you were replying to me saying that I'm pretty much his tool to show off his teaching abilities if I do well wait.. what did this have anything to do with what i said?

[AmericanWeiner]

wait.. what did this have anything to do with what i said?

I was implying that my teacher has a huge list of credentials and is fairly strict and would have killed me if I tried what you said

but I thought you were replying to me instead of just talking- that's why I edited that note in

[Rubes9492]

Unless you have a nice 5 to 7 person jazz band you're probably don't even have to be good. I was in jazz band for awhile and quit after about a month because it was so boring just playin 7 chords on off beats for entire songs.

[masada]

Ah okay AW. Got confused.

Rubes: that's the fun thing about it for me. doesn't require much work and i get a credit for it

[AmericanWeiner]

oh **** its worth hours?

I didn't even realize

[masada]

Jazz band at my school counts as a class. I don't know about yours or whatever though.

[StrawberryFieldsForever]

I play bass in my schools Jazz Band (which might get cut this year because of Time Constraints...DAMN YOU JAZZ CHOIR!!!)...but I play bass and that's much different from guitar...you'll basically have to know your chords.

In school Jazz Bands most of the focus is on the horns...if you don't play the right chords then the bass won't be right, and if the bass isn't right, the horns aren't right...lucky drummers don't have notes those bastards.

[White Riot!]

no.........we only have to keep time for the whole band while swinging!

[(*The Noonward Race*)]

I play bass in my schools Jazz Band (which might get cut this year because of Time Constraints...DAMN YOU JAZZ CHOIR!!!)...but I play bass and that's much different from guitar...you'll basically have to know your chords.

In school Jazz Bands most of the focus is on the horns...if you don't play the right chords then the bass won't be right, and if the bass isn't right, the horns aren't right...lucky drummers don't have notes those bastards.
What school do you go to? I live in winnipeg also.