520 Etc.: Jazz Clinics begin this weekend
To paraphrase Count Basie, it’ll be Jumpin’ at the Library two Sundays in September when the Knoxville Jazz Festival begins its second year of hands on/listening workshops in the Auditorium of the East Tennessee History Center.
On Sunday, September 17, at 3:00, jazz drummer and UT professor, Keith Brown, will present The Rhythm Section: Backbone of the Music.
On the following Sunday, September 24, at 3:00, the world renowned pianist, Donald Brown, will teach The History of Jazz and the Art of Improvising. The History Center is located at 601 S. Gay Street across from The Tennessee Theatre. Both workshops are free.
The Rhythm Section: Backbone of the Music takes a look at the role of the jazz drummer as well as how jazz rhythm has evolved from a straight four to the complicated rhythms commonly heard today. “The drummer is sort of like Ginger Rogers,” Keith Brown said. “It’s said she did everything Fred Astaire did only backwards and in high heels.” According to Brown, the drummer is generally in the background supporting the other players and holding the band together with a dead-on beat. The drummer has to know all the tunes, anticipate what the other players are going to do as well as play innovatively “If something’s not going well, it’s often the drummer who has to step in and fix things.”
Improvisation has been an integral part of jazz from the beginning which is why Donald Brown links The History of Jazz and the Art of Improvising. Jazz improvisation may be defined as composing music on the spot. Although it takes practice to become a skilled improviser, a lot can be learned in a short time when the teacher is as gifted as Donald Brown. Students come from all over the country to study with him at UT and he recently finished his second stint as a fellow at the Brubeck Institute in California. The public is invited to bring instruments or just come to listen.
The second Knoxville Jazz Festival is March 1-3, 2007. It is produced by Knox County Public Library, Donald Brown and Tribe One. The September workshops are funded by The Friends of Knox County Public Library.
For more information, call Nelda Hill at 215-8729.