How do I know if I'm practicing enough?

I can't tell you if you are practicing enough, because I think you probably have the answer to that stored deep down in places you don't talk about at parties (Jack Nicholson - "A Few Good Men") .    For what it's worth, I found out that in a conservatory college, the really successful kids practiced on average about 2 to 4 hours a day.  That might seem like a lot to you, and in High School, that's pretty much undo-able.  So lets say you have a half hour to an hour to work with, you are going to need to make the most of it, right? 
If you split it up into...
1)  Long tones for 5-10 minutes (pick a scale and hold the notes as long as you can while still making them sound round and full and unwavering).  That way you get a scale down, and your sound worked out in one foul swoop.  Or is it a fowl swoop?  Do I care?
2)  Next, really practice something that is giving you trouble reading wise - slow it down if you have to, and if I know you like you know you, you probably do.  Work out the fingerings, the rhythms and the articulations for about 15 - 20 minutes.  Don't play the parts you already know, play the hard parts. 
3)  Then try to write out, or just figure out, on your instrument, some familiar tune you already know by ear for about 10 -20 minutes, or take a lick and work it out in every key.  This will develop your ears and help you play in weird keys without too much difficulty.
4)  Lastly, let loose and play something - either a piece of written literature, or improvise with an Aebersold if that's what you are working on, for the remainder of the time.  The goal for this part of your practice session is just to clear your mind and let your subconscious take over your fingers and playing.  Yeah, it's like you are a Zen master instrumentalist or something.  Don't think!  Do!
That's one plan, but you can make your own.  Just try and get some reading, some listening/ear training, and some focused work in there.  Then you'll be groovy, and not just look groovy.  Berklee's motto : Esse Quam Videri - meaning "To be, rather than to seem to be." 

Time went by fast didn't it?  ...So as you ponder how much time you are putting in, and how you are going to split it up, you should check out this video.  It is of blind pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii (born September 13, 1988).  It's fair to say he practices the full amount.  

Haiti, a Musical Melting Pot

With the globalism of jazz (I'll explain more about this in a later post), you as a musician need to explore and expand your mind as you listen to the folk music, tonalities, instruments and sounds of other cultures. While most colleges, sadly even MUSIC colleges, stick solely to teaching the practice of what I would call "European theory", there is a WHOLE WORLD of different music out there that has nothing to do with our scales, chords, notation system, instruments or rhythmic subdivisions. In fact, if you dig deep, you'll see that many cultures are more advanced rhythmically, harmonically and melodically than we are. Open up your ears young bald monkey person.

Now regretably, I your blog, am not an expert on Haitian music, but that doesn't mean I can't share with you a little shnipplet of good stuff. Here's a little conceptual stuff from Wikipedia, so that you understand where the music is coming from...
The music of Haiti is influenced mostly by European colonial ties and African migration through slavery. In the case of European colonization, musical influence has derived primarily from the French, however Haitian music has been influenced to a significant extent by its Spanish-speaking neighbors, Cuba and the bordering Dominican Republic, whose Spanish-infused music has contributed much to the country's musical genres as well. Styles of music unique to the nation of Haiti include music derived from vodou ceremonical traditions and the wildly popular Compas.
So that gives you an idea of all the cultural influences that go into making the music so rich. I hope that as you keep Haiti in your heart, you will explore musically all that it has to offer. CLICK HERE to visit a site about a musician named Nemours Jean Baptiste. He was a saxophonist and popular band leader who is credited with inventing Compas, Haiti's most popular music style. It's kind of a light merengue. Merengue as we've discussed before has a clave, or rhythmic pulse, derived from the dance of the same name. It's not pie, but tastes as just as sweet.

La Strada!

A little while back, I mentioned a band called "La Strada."  They are not playing what you'd call jazz, or even the dreaded jazzy, but they are wonderful musicians and songwriters.  Two of the band members were former YHS jazz band students - Ted Lattis on the beard, and Devon Press on the hat. You should check them out.  It's hard for me not to get all weepy listening to this here.


It turns out they have an album coming out in the spring.  I'm first in line, if there were still lines.  Fortunately, there is still spring, but with a little global warming we can fix that too.  Here's a little making of video, looks promising.

Big Band Arranging

Ever wonder how someone writes a big band chart?  It's labor intensive, but rewarding, and best of all, it is something you can do if you have the inclination.  This guy, Jim Martin, is a great arranger, and is willing to share some information on the magic behind the writing.  CLICK HERE...he'll break down how to voice a simple little snippet.  BTW...if you have a ska band, or any kind of thing with a horn section, it works the same way. 

Take A Train

OK...So by now, all the hipsters following the blog know that most of what we call the "modern" tenor players came out of Joe Henderson, but have you had a chance to dig the master himself?  Here is a little reworking of the classic "Take the A Train" by Duke Ellington.  I put this up here so you can hear what can done with an old classic a.k.a. a standard.  
 
A standard is a tune that has been played many, many times by many, many different musicians over many, many years.  That's a lot of "manys" in there to deal with.  Eventually, if enough musicians learn the song, and memorize the melody and the changes, it becomes a standard.  One could say that it is a testament to how well these songs were written that they still get played today.   If you listen to classic rock, there is a good chance you're going to hear "Hotel California."  It's the same thing in the jazz world.  Good music holds up.