On a recent teaching visit to a wonderful jazz school - Fridhems Folkhogskola in Sweden ‚ I was talking to the head of the programme, Mats Holtne, about the courses they run there, and he mentioned to me that they were now doing some classes in which they discussed the philosophy and aesthetics of playing this music. I was really impressed by that, and it set me thinking about this whole area and how neglected it is in the normal format of jazz education.
I'm not sure how many jazz schools put aside time purely for the discussion of the aesthetics of the music, and its importance (or lack of it) in the grand scheme of things. I'm sure any school that does have discussions of this nature will let me know, but I candidly admit, this is not something we do in my school. For myself I have always been interested in the philosophy of the music and its practitioners, and have always been happy to discuss it with my students, but I'd never thought of formalising it as a subject and giving it a place in the timetable. However I'm now determined to change this, because to my mind, this is something of great importance and something we should discuss with our students as a matter of responsibility.
The International Association of Schools of Jazz (IASJ) schools alone take in hundreds of students every year, and graduate approximately the same number each year. The school room has taken the place of the night club and jam session as the learning ground for aspiring jazz musicians. Yet the school room ‚ unlike the night club ‚ is not the real world. The modern student learns the music in a hot-house atmosphere, where they are surrounded by people ‚ their teachers and fellow students ‚ who believe in the importance of this music.
But of course, in the real world, most people are NOT interested in jazz, and indeed some people are actively hostile to it ‚ often people who are in positions of economic power over musicians, such as promoters, arts administrators, recording executives and radio and TV people. What a blow it can be for a student to step from the academic world - where jazz is seen as a great art form, peopled by our heroes, and where the music forms an all important part of everybody's lives ‚ to the real world, where jazz is accorded almost no importance, where work is hard to come by, and where the environment is such that the student must inevitably, and eventually, question why they spent so many years perfecting their craft, only for it to be dismissed out of hand by the vast majority of the general public.
Many students can't wait to finish school, (and who can blame them!) but often they get a rude awakening when they leave as they see how much differently the art form they love and have worked hard on, is regarded in society. In such a reality I believe a young musician needs a strong focus on the reasons why they play this music and work in this field, in order to retain their enthusiasm for the music. I also believe that it should be part of our mission as schools, and individually as teachers, to help them find that focus ‚ to impart them not only the how of jazz music, but the why as well.
I know from my own experience that in order to maintain a sense of my own artistic development I need to believe in the importance, at least to me, of what I do. That sense of personal mission can easily be buffeted by the day to day realities of life as a jazz musician in today's society, and in order to create a shield against these buffets, I need to understand, almost on a daily basis, why it is I do what I do. I know most of you know what I'm talking about here ‚ the personal philosophy and love of this music that we carry with us at all times and which allows us to be who we are.
But do we discuss this type of thing with our students? Or more accurately (because I know teachers will always discuss this stuff if it comes up in a class), do we make time for this area to be explored and discussed? In the focussing on the learning of the techniques of the music, it's very easy to ignore the bigger picture because of our focus on the fine details of the playing of the music. Having thought this over recently I'm now firmly convinced that we all should provide time for our students in which the aesthetics of the music and the development of a strong personal philosophy can be discussed and explored.
So what could we discuss with them, and how should we approach it? Of course there are many ways for us to do this and I'm sure everyone will have good and valuable suggestions to make ‚ for myself I think we could discuss things such as ‚ "What do you see yourself doing in 10 years time?" (and refusing to take "I don't know" as an answer!). This long term focus forces the student to think about what they're doing now and why they're doing it. I will also ask them to explain what value they place on the playing of this music in their own lives ‚ why they want to play (and/or write) this music, what brought them to the music, what intrinsic value do they place on the music as an entity in itself - apart from the means of earning a living. This kind of discussion can also feed into other areas, such as the business of music, the future of jazz, (of which they're a part), and the history of jazz.
Other things that could be discussed could be for example ‚ why make a CD? In a recent discussion with my students I gave them some idea of the reality of the sales of jazz CDs and what low numbers are sold even by people whom they consider to be big stars ‚ I could see it shocked them. This is the sort of thing that needs to be teased out before the aspiring player starts setting about making their own CD and trying to get it out there. The goal here is not to discourage, but to illuminate the real value releasing a CD, (a document of one's development for example), and by the discussion of these things, make the student think hard about the things they consider to be of value to them.
I think we all have a duty to bring the area of the philosophy and aesthetics of jazz into the classroom ‚ and not for any lofty intellectual reason, but for a very practical one. Armed with a greater knowledge of who they are, and what it is they want to achieve through this music ‚ as well as with a knowledge of the techniques of their trade ‚ I believe they stand a much better chance of having a long and satisfying career in creative music ‚ and if we can help them achieve that, then surely we will have done something valuable indeed.
Ronan Guilfoyle, June 2002