Introduction
Tom Gullion
Jazz Saxophonist, Composer
Product Manager, Together Modeling Products Borland Software Corporation
E-mail address: tom@tingjing.com
Preamble
My work in the software field has recently focused on "Agile" software development methods
"Agile" is a new trend in software which focuses on collaboration and communication
Defines a set of practices which promote better ways of working together
Directly applicable to music - but especially jazz and other improvised genres
Session Overview
purpose: identify a set of core practices essential for successful jazz practitioners
1. Ultra-quick primer on "Agile"
2. Practices
eXtreme Programming (XP) Practices
Creative Writing Practices
Jazz Practices: Case Studies
3. The Agile Mindset
Summary
1. Agile Primer
Agile Software
increased focus on methodology in software field today
Software development is critical to every business
Boz Elloy, Sr VP Software Development at Borland: "If you're in business, you're in software."
Logically follows that doing software well is a critical success factor for any business
What is methodology anyway?
Methodology
a body of methods , rules, and postulates employed by a discipline
Method
a way, technique, or process of or for doing something (2) : a body of skills or techniques
Explicit definition of "practices"
Practice
to do or perform often, customarily, or habitually
HABIT
"Practicing" does not equal "Practices"
Practices are collections of activities
Practicing is merely one of them
Importance of roles
Radical Shift
Previously (and even today) many tried to fully define exactly what they were building before they started
Turned out to be impossible
Agile "embraces change" so systems being built can adapt to changes at any point in the development lifecycle
Sounds like improvisation, no?
Agile Manifesto
Every good radical idea needs a manifesto
agilemanifesto.org
Written by a group of Agile visionaries
Agile Manifesto: We are uncovering better ways of developing software by doing it and helping others do it.
Jazz Manifesto: Music is your own experience, your thoughts, your wisdom. If you don't live it, it won't come out of your horn. [Charlie Parker]
Agile Manifesto: Individuals and interactions over processes and tools
Jazz is a very democratic musical form. It comes out of a communal experience. We take our respective instruments and collectively create a thing of beauty. [Max Roach]
Agile Manifesto: Working software over comprehensive documentation
I'll play it first and tell you what it is later. [Miles Davis]
Agile Manifesto: Customer collaboration over contract negotiation
Most customers, by the time the musicians reach the second set, are to some extent inebriated. They don’t care what you play anyway. [Charles Mingus]
Agile Manifesto: Responding to change over following a plan
When the chord changes, you should change. [Joe Pass]
2. Practices
XP Practices
[graphic]
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Planning
Small Releases
Metaphor
Simple design
Continuous integration
Testing
Refactoring
Pair programming
Collective ownership
Work fresh
On-site customer
Coding standard
Creative Writing Practices
write every day
write three pages
write from whatever image pops into your head
write in reaction to some other piece of work
combine two or three other pieces
invent a new form to write from
write the same piece from different perspectives
stream of consciousness (without regard to form)
do a draft
revise like hell to make is as good as you can
write lots of drafts
select the best and revise them a bit
Richard Gabriel, Triggers and Practice
Jazz Practices
language
scales, chords, progressions
patterns
assimilate
innovate
tunes
Standards
Jazz Tunes
Memorized
in all 12 keys
Quintessential arrangements
Intros
Interludes
Alternate changes
Outros
listening
focused listening – from multiple perspectives
transcribing
listen, assimilate, notate
improvising
in pairs, in groups, solo
pair practicing
solo
groups
use Richard Gabriel's creative writing practices as ways to practice improvising
Improvise every day
Improvise freely - whatever pops into your head
Improvise for 5 minutes based on a small melodic fragment
Improvise for 5 minutes on a single chord
Write improvisations
write it
play it
revise it
composing
an essential element to discover your individual voice
consider creative writing practices here too
Jazz Practices: Case Studies
J.J. Johnson Practice Routine
influential jazz trombonist, self-confessed “practice-aholic”
long tones (not loud, until breath expires)
scales, mf, first moderate tempo then faster, start at low e to high f and back down
break
more long tones (at random intervals) with sfz attack followed by soft sustain
mix in triadic patterns
staccato octave jumps (3 or four 8vas, up and down)
lip glissandi (random, wide range)
ballad (or three), free/loose improv on blues, any tempo and key
cyclical, rambling patterns based on any and all chords
things get unpredictable at this point!
before bed, improv with play along CDs for 30-45 minutes
Barry Green
The Mastery of Music: Ten Pathways to True Artistry
Communication
Courage
Discipline
Fun
Passion
Tolerance
Concentration
Confidence
Ego and Humility
Creativity
http://www.jazzbooks.com/miva/documents/handbook/25_how_to_practice.pdf
Jerry Coker
Daily Practice Schedule
1) A SLOW MELODY (tune) 5 minutes
2) SCALES AND PATTERNS 15
3) PATTERN APPLICATION 10
4) IMPROVISATION EXERCISE 5
5) TRANSCRIBED SOLO 15
6) SPECIAL DISCIPLINES 10
7) LEARN A TUNE 15
David Liebman
Focus is key
Hal Galper
Forward Motion
Practicing vs Performing Attitude
Practicing Attitude
Linear, Intellectual, Goal-oriented and Mechanical
Performing Attitude
Holistic, Process-oriented, Intuitive/Emotional
Aural Imagination
Concentration
Correcting Outmoded Practice Habits
Organize Your Practicing
promotes a model similar to Satir Change Model
Satir Change Model
Unconscious Incompetence
Conscious Incompetence
Conscious Competence
Unconscious Competence
Galper
Practicing (external behavior)
Trained Inner Processes (internal behavior)
Performance (external behavior)
Importance of the process
Orpheus Process
Put Power in the Hands of the People Doing the Work
Encourage Individual Responsibility for Product and Quality
Create Clarity of Roles
Share and Rotate Leadership
Foster Horizontal Teamwork
Learn to Listen, Learn to Talk
Seek Consensus
Dedicate Passionately to Your Mission
My Practices
Scales on mouthpiece alone
Bb major scale descending
5 minutes (or less) of scales - never the same
broken thirds
simple, slow improvised lines within a given scale
using full range (but no altissimo yet)
Play a few tunes
melodies
improvisations
In unfamiliar keys
Often includes a ballad
Like JJ: things get unpredictable here
usually focus on new tunes
flute?
Piano
Composition
Reflection on current practices
Study
Read, Read, Read
Think, think, think
Assimilate, assimilate, assimilate
MOST IMPORTANT PRACTICE
Networking!
Group Practices
Suggestions
Casting
from Artful Making; [p156] “…casting is the most important set of choices a director makes. Everything follows from casting.”
"Casting choices are interdependent. A director/manager chooses among combinations, not individuals."
Clear Roles
time keeper
harmony
melody
countermelody
composer
leader
sideman / sideperson
"jazz police"
historian
Sectionals
Pair Practicing
Listen together as a group
Compose together
Talk more during rehearsals!
Don't be afraid to stop during solos
3. The "Agile" Mindset
"Learning" Creativity
intellect worker
unknown path / chaos
Working Artist
Practice
Education
Practice and Reflection
Musician
Practice
Education
Practice and Reflection
Performance and Reflection
Thoughts on "Practice"
How do you get to Carnegie Hall?
Practice, man. Practice.
Practice makes perfect.
No - perfect practice makes perfect.
If you miss a day of practicing, you’ll notice.
If you miss two days of practicing, your friends will notice.
If you miss more than that, everyone notices.
Practices == Process
agile software is making great strides applying their practices
creative artists might be able to benefit significantly from doing the same
“Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.” Thomas Alva Edison
Same goes for art...
if creativity is “1% inspiration and 99% perspiration”…
isn’t it time we started putting more energy into the 99% of our work (our practices)
Intention in the practice room
test -> code -> refactor
intention -> perform -> practice
Conclusions / Key Points
Jazz has a long (somewhat dysfunctional) relationship with practicing
"You have to practice 11 hours a day to make it..."
Consider the quote "If you miss more than two days, everyone notices."
Is this presentation like the magician giving away the tricks of the trade?
Cross-disciplinary Practices
We can learn a lot from other disciplines
Agile Software Development
Creative Writing
Discover your own set of practices
Final note:
Happy practicing!
Thank you!
Tom Gullion <tom@tingjing.com>
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Essential Practices for Jazz
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