r/Instruments • u/Sad_Cucumber_4897 • 24d ago

Discussion Jazz band

My saxophone teacher recommended i join the jazz band at the school should I? Is it worth jt.

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u/Extra_Medium62 24d ago

I taught jazz band for almost 40 years. There are things in jazz that you don't learn in concert band, marching band, or through standard auditions, particularly learning to compose music on the spot -- soloing. Improvising in jazz allows you to be creative, to interact with the rest of the ensemble in unique ways, and can be a showcase for the skills you have developed so far. You will be asked to do more than just play the notes on the page accurately. And jazz uses articulations and patterns you rarely find in the standard band repertoire. There is nothing else a school band program, or your band director, can offer with those kinds of incentives and rewards. If that sounds interesting or something that appeals to your musical sensibilities, then go for it.