Jazz & The ‘Whys’ of Life by Sean Jones Sounds of elementary chit chat between Malaika and her friends about the newest moves on roblox. Brinae’s frantic typing as she prepares for a hectic week, gearing up for the first virtual Tapology Tap Festival. Phoebe’s dialogue transitioning frequently between “DaDas,” cries and laughter. All a […]
Let’s Go Beyond The Classroom By Sean Jones In 6th grade, my band director Jessica Turner noticed that I was always the first student to arrive at band rehearsal. She also noticed that I’d be practicing sections of the book that were a bit further along than the other band kids. So, she decided to […]
It’s Deeper Than The Notes by Todd Stoll This is my final column as your JEN President, and while I am not inclined to reminisce about the past two years, I will miss these monthly missives. I find it that funny now, given I actually tried to get out of writing these. I asked […]
Jazz in the Time of Corona by Todd Stoll I am sure that none of us could have imagined how dramatically the world would have changed since my last missive. Nearly all of us are working from home, valiantly transferring our years of experience with face-to-face programming to an unknown and (for many) uncomfortable virtual […]
Remembering Ellis Marsalis by Todd Stoll Reprint by Wynton Marsalis This has been a tough couple of months for our jazz community. Between extreme economic uncertainty, social and physical isolation, and the passing of a number of beloved figures, it feels like one unbearable thing after another. I do thoroughly believe we will get through […]
Some thoughts on jazz adjudication… by Todd Stoll I attend a lot of jazz festivals…especially those for high school jazz bands, the Essentially Ellington program alone has 23 this year, and while I don’t attend all of them, I do get to many, as well as a few others. I am always equal parts inspired, […]
Community by Todd Stoll Let’s talk about “community.” Google defines community as a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common. Additionally, it is a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals. When I was young, about 11 or 12 […]
Dave Brubeck: 20th Century American by Darius Brubeck December 6, 2020 is the 100th anniversary of Dave Brubeck’s birth in Concord, California. He died at his home in Wilton, Connecticut a day short of his 92nd birthday, having lived for most of the twentieth century. Visitors to the Jazz Education Network Annual Conference in New […]
TEACHING IMPROVISATION by Todd Stoll As I meet with jazz educators around the country, my go to question is, “what is the one thing that would help you be more effective teaching our music”? Ninety percent of the time the response is, “how do I teach improvisation”? This question is always a bit puzzling to […]
Are We Doing This All Wrong? by Todd Stoll For those of us who work in jazz, whether it’s performing, teaching, advocating, or retail sales, we hear or say “how’d did they sound” at least ten times a day. We can be referring to bands, individuals, auditions, gigs, solos, recordings, videos; the list goes on […]