What is Jazz?
Though you may have heard John Coltrane blazing through the chord changes of Giant Steps or Miles Davis swinging through the melody of Summertime, Jazz is much more than just a genre of music. During the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920s to the 1930s, many Black Americans used Jazz as a way to express their hardships and emotions. As Jazz gained more recognition, people all over the world were able to resonate resulting in Jazz growing into an enormous part of American culture. Sadly, it has been on a steady decline in terms of prevalence since then–and it is far more unlikely to hear your friends talking about the latest “cool cats” from the Jazz club. However, there still exists a very lively community of Jazz instrumentalists all around the country. We are especially lucky to have a music program at Agoura High School that cultivates the growth of appreciation for Jazz, run by Mr. Robert Hackett and Mr. Chad Bloom.
Why does it matter to Agoura High?
Jazz has been and is arguably the most well-known and respected aspect of Agoura High. With its popularity at Agoura, there have been up to four different Jazz bands–each one based on skill level. For context, schools will normally have just one or two. Currently, there are 3 Jazz bands: Jazz III, Jazz II, and Jazz I–the latter being the best of Agoura’s highly competitive Jazz program. At such a high level, players are expected to hold their own in numerous pieces, scales, key signatures, time signatures, rhythms, and most importantly, the ability to swing. Over the years, Agoura’s Jazz band has won countless awards competing in events. One of which is the renowned Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Essentially Ellington Competition, an annual high school Jazz festival that takes place in New York City every May.
Essentially Ellington is one of the most prestigious Jazz festivals with only 15 ensembles in the nation being chosen to go to New York as finalists. In total, Agoura has made it as a finalist in 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2018, 2020, 2021, and most recently, in 2023. Every year, Agoura High strives to make it far in the festival to allow students to not only show what they are capable of–but also gain insight into what it means to be a Jazz musician at the top level.
Mr. Bloom, Director of Jazz I, shares his reasoning for preparing the band for the competition each year. He says, “The members of Jazz at Lincoln Center are carrying on the true Jazz tradition. Jazz at Lincoln Center preserves America’s true art form like many cities preserve European Classical Music via Orchestras/Symphonies.”
He states that Jazz I’s success in competitions is not as important as diving into the significance of Jazz. Things like listening, studying, transcribing solos, and students finding the types of music they love are what matter. Mr. Bloom ultimately hopes that the members of the ensemble can learn something from the trip more than boast about their musical skills.
“Throughout time, Jazz music has been a way for people to unite when laws and restrictions were preventing people from doing so.”
What does it all mean?
In Jazz I, great success comes from the hard work each player puts into every rehearsal. Students spend countless hours practicing so that every day is treated as a day to improve. Mr. Bloom hopes that by planting seeds through education, public appreciation for Jazz will see an increase. At the end of the day, he states young artists should be able to make a living not based on a paycheck but based on performing what they truly love most.
