The Dreaming Tree
Frank Sinatra was a singer and actor who got his start in the Tommy Dorsey Band. Sinatra started singing publicly in bars at age 8, and though he developed a good ear for music, never learned to read it. His career experienced several ups and downs, but Sinatra is, nevertheless, an icon in American jazz. ”I Get A Kick Out Of You” is a standard by Cole Porter from the musical Anything Goes.
My junior year of college, I was taking Instrumental Techniques. The class was being given an introduction to flute. After learning how to hold the instrument, we were taught that the easiest way to describe proper flute embouchure is to simply say ‘poo’. Of course, this brought out a few giggles, but the class stayed on task. Next we were encouraged to have a steady stream of air in order to get a note to sound. Flute is arguably the hardest to produce a sound with, at least at first, and without a good air stream, nothing will happen. When we finished our introduction to the flute, our band director summarized how to produce sound on the flute. ”What you need is a steady stream going ‘poo’.” At this point, more than a few laughs erupted from the class. Though more than able to laugh at himself, after a while our band director told us to stop being middle schoolers. But, really, I don’t think you’re ever too old for a good poop joke.
Thanks for the follow, twisted-dream!
Tony Bennett is a singer of show tunes, jazz, and popular music who got his start as a singing waiter in Italian restaurants in New York City. Bennett has been an active performer since 1949, and despite set backs in the 60s and 70s, has made a complete comeback and is continuing to perform and record Grammy winning albums.
Kurt Elling is a singer, composer, and vocalese performer. He will often take solos performed by instrumentalists and put lyrics to them. ”Dolores Dream” is an original composition by Elling in which he uses extensive word painting through his voice.
My full time student teaching required an hour long commute one way. I didn’t mind the drive so much; it gave me a chance to think and transition from student to teacher, work to play. But because jazz band was a zero period, it meant I would wake up at 4:30 every morning. Because I had a roommate, I’d usually get dressed in the dark, so as not to wake her up. After getting ready, I’d drive for an hour and get to school about 20 minutes before class. On this particular morning, I got ready like I did every other day, but when I got to school and stepped out of my car, I realized I was wearing one black shoe and one brown shoe. Why I realized then, I don’t know, because I had been wearing them from approximately and hour and a half at that point. When I got in the building, I opted to take of my shoes and teach in socks. So much for professionalism.
Several months later, a student who had graduated and was now preparing for college juries asked on his facebook page whether to wear a tie and cummerbund or just a tie. I told him just a tie would be fine, but to remember his black socks. Another former student posted after me to remind him that this fashion advice was coming from someone who wore two different shoes. At least I made a lasting impression.
Coleman Hawkins was a tenor saxophonist during the swing and bebop eras. He performed with several popular jazz bands throughout his life, including Miles Davis’s and Duke Ellington’s. ”Night and Day” is a standard composed by Cole Porter.
Philippians 1:6 “…he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ.”
Ecclesiastes 3:14 “…whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it.”
I cannot be changed by my own efforts, but by God’s work in my heart. He will keep working to change me until perfection; I just have to let him. And no one can take from me the work God has done. What he does is final because it is good and complete. Praise God!
Jean “Django” Reinhardt was a songwriter and guitar player who developed the “hot jazz guitar” style. Due to severe burns he received at age 18, two of his fingers on his left hand were paralyzed. He relearned to play guitar in spite of this and went on to establish gypsy jazz. ”Honeysuckle Rose” is a standard written by piano player, Fats Waller.
While student teaching, I would arrive about 20 minutes before 0 period jazz band started to mentally prepare for class. The band room usually wasn’t opened until about 10 minutes before class started, so a group of students would collect in the hall, waiting. One morning I overheard a conversation between a couple of my trombone players. One of them was explaining how he learned the night before that he was completely unable to multitask. He was in the kitchen holding a bowl of ice cream and a cup of coffee, and couldn’t figure out how to walk while holding both items. He had to carry them out one at a time.
Rehearsal started, and eventually I started working with the trombones on a section where they had to play a couple stabs on the upbeats. It wasn’t lining up, and after several failed methods I finally stopped and said, “Come on, guys, it’s not like you’re trying to carry ice cream and coffee at the same time.” While it didn’t directly improve their playing, it at least elicited a laugh.
Jamie Cullum is a jazz/pop singer, songwriter, and pianist. Though his roots are in jazz, Jamie plays music of all styles, including The White Stripes, Rihanna, and Elton John. ”Get Your Way” is an original composition that features a sample of “Get Out Of My Life, Woman” by Thad Jones.
John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie was a trumpeter, bandleader, singer, and composer in the bebop and Afro-Cuban styles. Known as “the sound of surprise”, Gillespie had such a grasp of harmony and rhythm that he would play, at very fast tempi, phrases that were complex and unexpected. There are several stories about the background of his trumpet, which was bent upwards at a 45 degree angle. Gillespie claims in his autobiography that someone sat on it and bent it out of shape, and the resulting repairs and angle changed the tone in a way he liked. Whatever the story, his trumpet is an icon of jazz. ”Night in Tunisia” was a standard composed by Gillespie in 1942, and is one of the signature songs of his band.
Sarah Vaughan was a singer with a contralto range, though she did not consider herself strictly a jazz singer. She sang in many styles, but always brought a little of the blues into everything she sang. She had an incredible range and was a master of phrase and emotion. ”Misty”, written in 1954 by Erroll Garner, is a standard that displays Sarah’s command of the phrase and ability to word paint.
“The usual notion of what Jesus did on the cross runs something like this: people were so bad and so mean and God was so angry with them that he could not forgive them unless somebody big enough took the rap for the whole lot of them. Nothing could be further from the truth. Love, not anger, brought Jesus to the cross. Golgotha came as a result of God’s great desire to forgive, not his reluctance. Jesus knew that by his vicarious suffering he could actually absorb all the evil of humanity and so heal it, forgive it, redeem it.” - Richard J. Foster from A Celebration of Discipline
“Jesus’ work focuses on “reconciliation”, which means putting things back in right relationship again…We are not the reconciler, Jesus is. However, we are His ambassadors, representing His kingdom and all that it entails to a broken world, which leads to the following definition of poverty alleviation: moving people closer to glorifying God by living in right relationship with God, with self, with others, and with the rest of creation.” - Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert from When Helping Hurts
Tommy Dorsey was a trombonist, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer during the Big Band era. He and his older brother, Jimmy, were involved in several bands growing up. They formed a band together, but eventually split over a disagreement, which led to Tommy forming his own band. ”Opus One” was composed in 1943 by Sy Oliver, and the Dorsey Band’s recording is the most popular.
Peter Cincotti is a singer, songwriter, and pianist who performs a mix of original works and old standards. ”Rainbow Connection” was first performed by Kermit the Frog in The Muppet Movie.
