I recently read an article that focused on one man’s aspiration to bring new life and spirit into the jazz scene around New York City. His project involves filming over two hundred gigs in order to show a new crowd of potential jazz enthusiasts it too is a music scene that is always evolving and making way for different sounds and styles that are refreshing and original.
Reading through, it struck me that the scenes of music I’m forever tied with, jazz and classical, have such an unrelenting air of ostentatiousness that it ended up stopping me from pursuing music in college. I’ve played cello from kindergarten through my senior year of high school; I’ve gone through the school orchestra classes, the private lessons, the summer camps, the conference-style competitions, even going as far as auditioning to various schools for cello performance and music composition.
Something I always loved about classical music and jazz is that everything is taken seriously and with consideration: from the score, to the performance, to the interpretation. Because of this formality, there isn’t much leeway in terms of experimentation in sounds, technique, or even simply taste. To play a cover of Metallica was immature, or using a simple scratch of an instrument was considered “avant-garde,” and therefor completely discarded by anyone who doesn’t listen to mid-20th century classical music. My interest in composing for traditional instruments (cello, piano, etc.) and new-age instruments (electric guitar, DJ scratching, etc.) fell short during college auditions because of this formality.
Granted, in post-bop and free-improvisation styled jazz, these styles are taken into account and even relished. Unfortunately, those styles of jazz are considered obscure or unconventional, and are promptly discarded by a large portion of jazz listeners simply because the voices and thoughts may not agree with the old style they’re used to hearing.
The reason I bring this up is because there is a new project that I might be a part of: EyeJAZZ. The project aims to use new journalists, from enthusiasts to professionals, to cover jazz using a simple pocket video recorder. The organization posts the YouTube-style videos of jazz life throughout the United States. They encourage their “interns,” so to speak, to find young and vibrant performers still keeping the spirit of jazz alive, the same spirit that made jazz explode in such an unrestrained way that the world loved and encompassed so wholeheartedly.
Exploring jazz and classical in new ways is exciting for me because they are two genres of music that, up until the mid-20th century, were the rock shows of society. People cheered for encores during dance scenes in operas, men bought performers drinks after the concerts, and women swooned over soloists. Coverage on music was predominately done in writing and occasionally on radio. Now, with satellite radio, fios cable, 4G internet, I’ve never been sure why classical music and jazz still stick with writing and radio; it may be the only reason why these music scenes seem so out of touch.
This is why EyeJAZZ exhilarates me. The more projects that breathe life into jazz and classical music, the wider the genres form, the larger the audiences, the more accepting the old world becomes.
Ideally, I’ll be proud to be a part of the EyeJAZZ project; the application process ends February 15th. If I make the cut, I’ll be able to bring the zest and admiration of the Iowa City jazz scene into to the spotlight, not only for everyone living here, but to the rest of the United States, and perhaps even farther abroad. At least, that’s my goal.
Until next time,
Andrew Alberto Nicolas Deloucas
