Tarkenton

High School
Jazz Band
2015-2016

Table Of Contents
Welcome

Pg. 3

Goals

Pg. 3

Expectations

Pg. 3

Logistics

Pg. 3

Grading

Pg. 4

School Instruments

Pg. 4

Calendar

Pg. 4

Concert Dress

Pg. 5

History of Jazz

Pg. 5

Checkout Forms

Pg. 8

Parental Sign off Sheets

Pg. 9

Welcome to the Tarkenton High School Jazz band, I hope you all are as
excited about this year as I am. We have a lot to go over before our first
concert at the end of October.

Goals
The goals of this course are to introduce you to the basic techniques of
Jazz, which include rhythm and improvisation.

Expectations
Bring everything you need for class, including: Instrument(s),
Mutes, Music, instrument stands, etc.
Be on time to every meeting.
If you play drums or a wind instrument, even if you dont play
it in this ensemble, you are expected to be in the Marching and
Concert band.

Logistics
Class is held in the morning starting at 7 am and ending at 8 am
every Tuesday and Thursday.
Students are not required to be in the concert band but if you
play a wind instrument or percussion it is highly encouraged
that you join.

Grading
60% Class performance
o General preparation for rehearsals
40% Attendance
Missing a concert is a drop of one letter grade, if you do miss there is will a
make-up assignment that will get you back 50% of your grade.

School Instruments
The school will provide larger instruments for the jazz band (Bari Sax,
Drum Set, Piano) and the student checking out the instrument will be
responsible for that instrument. If damages occur to an instrument outside
of the normal wear and tear the student will be responsible for repairs done
to the instrument, Parents will be notified of cost and what repairs are being
done. The school will also provide amps for the Guitar and Bass players

Calendar
All concerts are held in the high school auditorium
12/10-Concert Band/Jazz Band Concert 7:00 pm
2/25- Concert Band/Jazz Band Concert 7:00 pm
5/5-Night of Bands 6:30 pm

Concert Dress
Men
o Solid Black Dress Shirt, Slacks, Socks, and Shoes.
o Hair and Facial Hair must be well kept.
Women
o Solid Black shoes that are comfortable to walk in
No heels higher than 2 inches
o Black slacks or Panty Hoes
o Appropriate length skirt or dress
See School Dress Code
o Solid Black Top
Covered Shoulders, and has a collar
See School Dress Code
o Appropriate Make up

History Of Jazz
Jazz has had a very rich history even though it isnt that old. Starting in America
in the late 1800s and early 1900s, Jazz quickly became incredibly popular and continued
to grow exponentially untill about WWII. After that it went on a decline for sometime
untill it started to revive some, and it is still popular today all over the world.
Jazz started developing back during the time of slavery in New Orleans. It started
out when slaves were allowed to gather in a square to sing and dance, when they all came
together they brought many influences such as work songs from plantations or music
from the West Indies. Other influences came from classically trained creoles and other
musicians, brass bands, gospel, and minstrel music. Minstrel music was also one of the
first shows that everyone in America could see. After the Civil War started Louisiana
seceded from the Union, and after about a year the Union took control of New Orleans
freeing its black population. This brought fourth an amazing amount of creative freedom
that had been suppressed until they were finally free people. In the 1890s there came a

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new kind of music that developed in Kansas City and drew from everything that came
before it. It was called Ragtime and it quickly became popular because of how infectious
it was and how much it made people want to dance. At the same time another form of
Jazz was coming into being. The Blues developed in the post-Reconstruction era after
the civil war, when African Americans were still being treated as second-class citizens.
The Blues started coming out of the sharecropping fields and were plays off of the
traditional hollars from their African roots and the Ballad music. The Blues would be
built around finding meaning in something that felt like it had no meaning, the music was
built around three chords and would usually go for 12 bars.
Because of Jim Crow laws and the case of Plessy vs. Furguson, which made it
that all white and black citizens could be segregated, Creole musicians were forced out of
the orchestras that they had been a part of for so long and found a new place to express
themselves musically in the streets of New Orleans with the rest of the black community.
Because of this much training in the classical art came with them, they changed how
music was played in New Orleans drastically. While playing blues there would be spaces
in between the bars, and slowly over time musicians would try to fill those spaces, and it
is because of this that improvisation was born. It was used as a way to express oneself by
playing what you felt and trying to say, This is who I am.
Jazz has continued to evolve over the years. There are many great artists in Jazz
that helped it become what it is now, artists such as Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Charles
Mingus, and Benny Goodman, and that is only to name a few. Jazz was the most popular
music of its time, something that almost everyone could enjoy by either dancing to it in
ballrooms, seeing it on television and in movies, or just listening to it live or on the radio.
Unfortunately when America joined World War II a lot of the major Jazz artists that were
able were drafted to go and fight in the war. A lot of them unfortunately didnt come
back and those that didnt get drafted or returned had a country that had started to turn
away from Jazz because of their focus on the war.
It did start to evolve during WWII though. The first major change that Jazz went
through was the transition into BeBop or Bop. Bop was created by artists such as Dizzy
Gillespie and Charlie Parker. Bop started using different harmonic structures and

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rhythms not found in normal Jazz pieces. They also started to thin out some of the
rhythm sections parts, and focused a lot on the improvisation factor rather than having
the piece written down.
Jazz has a long and rich history with its roots firmly in the heart of American
history, and it influenced many people and helped form many genres of music that we
have currently, such as Rock and Pop music. Jazz has even found its way across the
globe and there are many pieces out there that have influences from other countries like
Japan. Jazz in one of the most interesting forms of music especially because all of its
history has been documented and we know just about every change that it has gone
through.
I implore you that as you go through the year in this Jazz ensemble that you look
into some of its history yourself and use what I have given you here as a guide for what
to look for. I look forward to having a great year. Now lets get started!