Thoughts and Things
John Haynie: Thoughts on Performance and Education
Kenny Berger: Applying for a Job
Dr. Jack Cooper: Letter from Jack
Videos!
Videos are now the thing. I know they have been around a good while, and I’ve been a bit “behind the curve,” but I am now up to date. At the suggestion of Web master Bret Primack, I now have a video page with seven video clips that you can access. These videos – all of my quartet - were taken from a “live” performance and feature, of course, pianist Bill Mays, bassist Rufus Reid, and drummer Ed Soph. Guitarist John Abercrombie, a guest soloist on this concert, also appears in several clips.If you go to my Video page, www.marvinstamm.com.video.html, you can access the clips of my quartet at your leisure. I hope you enjoy them; the group sounds wonderful and as always is an inspiration to me. They are just the best!
As I write this, we are preparing to leave soon to perform as one of the featured groups on The Jazz Cruise, sailing out of San Diego. Following the cruise, the quartet will appear in concert at 2:00 p.m., Sunday, November 5, 2006, for the Rising Jazz Stars Foundation (http://www.risingjazzstars.com ) in Los Angeles. This concert will be videotaped and recorded, so look for new clips to appear on my Web site in the near future.
Nice People, Good Stuff
Two very lovely events occurred recently that have brought daily life back into perspective for me. These experiences are remarkable because so many negative things are going on in our country today, and many of us feel this has changed life in America as we have known it. But we must be careful not to allow this negativity to consume us and take over our thoughts. If this happens we will lose the connection between ourselves and others. Having said this, I want to tell you about these two wonderful affairs in which I participatedThe first is the annual concert that my group performs every September for A Better Chance of Ridgefield (ABC). ABC is a charity devoted to helping qualified young people from educationally disadvantaged areas of our country come to Ridgefield, Connecticut, to enter high school there to study in an environment more conducive to learning than their hometowns. This provides them the opportunity to improve their chances for a successful future.
This was the sixteenth annual concert that the quartet performed for ABC. In attendance were Bill Mays, Rufus Reid, drummer John Riley, and guitarist Bill Bickford. These guys are terrific and as always performed brilliantly. This is not a Jazz audience per se, but most of these people who come back every year increasingly appreciate what we do! They have gotten to know the various musicians who have played on the concerts year after year and have grown to love what they hear as they become more familiar with Jazz.
But the important element in this affair is the group of young women who benefit from these fund-raising concerts. They are extraordinary young people, much deserving of the opportunity to build good, productive lives for themselves. It is quite something to observe them when they first enter the program – shy, maybe homesick, and out of their normal element – and then see them year after year as they go through a metamorphosis, becoming more confident, growing comfortable with themselves, and learning how to deal with people and issues as young adults. And each year, at the end of our concert, a number of alumnae return to talk of their experiences - graduating from the program, many being awarded scholarships to major universities, and going out to begin their lives. Many talk of their returning to their roots, “spreading the word” so that other young people might experience the same opportunity to succeed in life. This is the supreme reward of it all, the perfect example of “those who have” helping “those who have not.”
The second event was the concert that Bill Mays, Alisa Horn, and I performed last month in Memphis. Among the music performed was that which Bill composed and/or arranged for us. The concert also included Alisa and her accompanist, pianist Jue He, performing the Rachmaninoff “Sonata for Cello and Piano.”
The concert, just as the one performed in Evanston last April, was a beautiful experience. The trio – now called the Inventions Trio – came together seamlessly. Alisa displayed such heart and musicality while exhibiting wonderful technique and an understanding of just what Bill wanted from her cello. And Bill, as always, is the consummate artist. It was just lovely.
But it was a special thrill also to meet and get to enjoy the marvelous piano artistry of Jue He! Alisa and Jue performed the Rachmaninoff Sonata on the first half of the concert – one of the two extended pieces they recorded for their first CD. When Bill first heard Jue play, he remarked, “Jue has such a beautiful touch.” From that point on, it was a mutual admiration society. The weekend was filled with great music.
But something else that made this time so special for all of us was the great hospitality provided by Alisa’s dad, Howard, and the wonderful food provided by Alisa’s mom, Jan. (We all contributed the wine! ? ) It was people talking about “the old days.” I had the opportunity to be with my brother Gordon and his family. I stay and visited with my dear friends Gil and Beverly Halpern and also spent time with my first trumpet teacher, Perry Wilson and his wife. I saw other good friends from the past. And at Howard and Jan’s home, many friends and family were in and out all weekend. There was much laughter and also a few tears. It was a real event for everybody, one that left us all with the warmest feelings of love, family, camaraderie, and of course – music!
It is things such as these that make us appreciate those people and experiences that put life into perspective, making us feel the real joys of life.
John Haynie: Thoughts on Performance and Education
John Haynie, my friend and teacher from the University of North Texas (UNT) wrote to me recently, speaking on the subject of performance and education. He wanted to express his feelings regarding the training of good teachers AND good performers. Part of what John writes emanated from my relating, in a prior Cadenzas, a conversation we had when I first met him at UNT. At that time, we discussed what I wanted to do with my music. Since a good number of you came through music programs at colleges and universities, I thought it might be of interest to you too. He writes:
There are few people who have known Marvin longer than I, and none have watched his career develop with more interest. In a previous Cadenzas (Edition II - Fall 2000 - My North Texas Days), Marvin related the specifics of our first meeting when his father brought him to the campus of North Texas. Marvin told how he insisted that he would not get a degree in music education to prepare for a career as a public school band director.As most of my students will remember, I usually recommended the teaching profession as a starting point. I would like to clarify my reasons for doing so and dispel any misconceptions regarding my recommending one to pursue a teaching degree. Most people attend college to qualify for a job with which they can make a living. Parents are especially interested in this aspect of their child's going away to school. In my earlier years of teaching, any student, good or bad, with a teaching certificate, could get a teaching position; a person with a performance degree had no such guarantee of a job.
While professional players seldom impact the lives of young people in negative ways, bad or incompetent teachers do. There is nothing worse than having teachers with music education degrees in our schools who do not really want to teach. These teachers were urged to get a music education degree for all the wrong reasons. In a career of forty years at North Texas and another fifteen teaching at home, I have talked more people OUT of teaching than into teaching. While the would-be professional must seek whatever avenues it takes to obtain playing jobs, only he will suffer if, for whatever reasons, he is unable to do so. But the music teacher who hates teaching, whose paycheck is his only reward, can destroy many young peoples’ love for music. This kind of teacher is just the type who should be prevented from teaching.
Regarding the training of a student to become either a performer or a teacher: Is the performance degree superior to a music education degree in its demands that the student become a quality musician? While performance degree plans provide more credit hours on one’s instrument, it also requires much more of them in the way of practice hours. It also requires more of them in the way of individual performances, such as recitals. Despite this, I am of the school of thought that expects a school teacher to be as good as he possibly can on his instrument to assure his students a solid musical experience. On his major instrument, an education major also must strive to achieve a high performance level so as to have the confidence and assurance of bringing his own students to a higher level. Also a teacher, such as a band director, should, at the least, be able to demonstrate a good sound on each instrument so that his students can imitate this in their development. He must also be able to conduct well, something that is much more than just beating time. The public school music teacher must fill many roles not required of a professional player of any type music.
When Marvin and I determined that he should be allowed to follow a performance degree, he was correct in assuming that he had to prove himself worthy of that degree. Marvin definitely had something to prove to me - and to himself! But at the time, I am not sure he understood that I expected the same level of performance from each student I taught, whether music majors or not. In other words, it is the students’ choice to major in the area they want, but it was my choice to require everyone in my studio be the best they could be regardless of the degree.
The difference between being an instrumental major or having a “concentration” in one’s instrument was the advantage that more studio hours and performance experience was provided or required by the major’s degree plan. The instrumental major had more time to practice and accumulated more credit hours in performance. But how did the difference between performance and education majors actually work out during my teaching career? Who really were the better players? The better players were the ones who had the most talent and practiced the most, regardless of the degree they had chosen.
What about Marvin? I think Marvin would agree that he was not the best or most gifted player when he arrived at the University of North Texas. He worked his heart out as a student to develop his musical skills, but so did most of my music education students as they also worked to develop physically and fundamentally to the maximum level of their talent. The degree had nothing to do with it. Marvin, like all my students, concentrated on fundamentals and trumpet repertoire, including transposition, the same as everyone else. He was accorded no special privileges, nor did he sit around all day playing either jazz licks or orchestral studies. He followed the requirements of the degree plan, guided by me, the same as all of my students, regardless of the major they chose.
Many people have told me - and I agree - that Marvin at a mature age is playing better than ever. And why shouldn't he when he has had the same work ethic and good physical conditioning all these years? These things were instilled in him early by his Memphis teachers and continued by me and Carmine Caruso. But his greatest asset is still his love of playing and his desire to continue learning and improving.
Marvin never wanted nor planned to be a teacher. He always wanted to be a professional performer. In so doing, he, like other performers, has attracted a following of all sorts of people who are, in essence, his “students,” wanting to learn how he does what he does. Therefore, Marvin has become an educator regardless of his planning otherwise. And in the process, he has earned the respect of the school from which he graduated, being honored in 2004 with the Distinguished Alumnus citation.
John J. Haynie, 1950-1990
Professor Emeritus
College of Music
The University of North Texas** Editor’s note: Because there are a number of trumpet performers and teachers on my Cadenzas email list, I want to let you know that John Haynie’s book, Inside John Haynie’s Studio, published by the University of North Texas Press, will be released next February. Anyone interested can pre-order a copy from the UNT Press by calling 1-800-826-8911, weekdays, 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM CST.
The Doctorate and Teaching
As I read John’s thoughts about education and excellence, I remembered a recent conversation that I had with a friend who teaches at a major university. This person, a wonderful musician and teacher, was lamenting the fact that his university system state-wide was, like many others in the country, now requiring ANYONE applying for an open position at the school to have a doctor’s degree. Otherwise they had no chance of being chosen for a tenure-track position on that faculty. People who had not acquired a doctorate could teach as an adjunct or fill a position until an applicant with a doctorate could be found, but they would not be allowed on tenure-track, nor would they receive “benefits” of any kind.
My friend has his doctorate, and he is also a very experienced, excellent player. He doesn’t feel that a degree should be the determining factor for hiring someone to teach. He believes that in a School of Music, unless the position is a research-related position on the music faculty, one’s musical skills and performance experience plus the ability to relate this knowledge to the students should be the benchmarks for hiring faculty. Damn! That makes sense to me!
I think of my teacher, John Haynie, who had only a master’s degree, and Ray Crisara, Vincent Chicowicz, Louis Davidson, Philip Farkas, and Ron Modell, among others, all experienced musicians who taught at major universities. In some cases, some of these great teachers had no degree at all! Yet, these are people we hold in high esteem as models of teaching. Does anyone believe that if these gentlemen had taken five or six years out of their careers to acquire a doctorate they would have been better teachers?
When I was a student, most teachers held only bachelor’s or master’s degrees. And most of them, while enjoying a full career in teaching, still earned a portion of their livelihood from performing. A good number of those teachers, for at least some period of time, had played for a living – in orchestras, dance bands, chamber music groups, and Jazz groups. Many were versatile enough to perform in most of these genres, and because of this, they had “real-life” experience to share with their students. They knew the demands of the “real world,” and the level of excellence that was expected of a musician who wanted to be hired over and over again. Having expectations of excellence placed upon someone, whether as a performer, teacher or student, is, in my opinion, one of the key factors in the motivation to excel in one’s chosen field of endeavor and in life. It is definitely one of the most important factors in learning to be a fine performer OR a fine teacher.
Please know that I have nothing against anyone striving for more knowledge by pursuing an advanced degree. But when does a piece of paper take precedence over experience and an ability to pass this experience on to others? I’ll tell you when – NOW!! That’s exactly what is happening in our colleges and universities. It’s pervasive and widespread. It is the way it is! And the result is that the seeking of an advanced degree, in many cases, is no more than a gateway to acquiring a job at an institution of higher learning. This, in no way, has served education or the needs of our youth very well.
If a person’s true interest is in a field related to research or one that limits the classroom as the learning environment, then seeking the doctorate is an excellent means of pursuing relevant knowledge in these fields. This would certainly be the case with math, science, and history, or in the music field, with musicology, music history, and theory. But it is my feeling that for someone seeking a doctorate along with having the goal to teach in a performance-based position, experience counts as much, if not more, than classroom study. Far too many people seeking this advanced degree to teach applied music or conducting in a university have little or no performing experience beyond that of high school and college ensembles. They have little knowledge or understanding of “the real world.” Rather, the information they pass on to their students relies primarily on degree-related textbooks or classroom experiences. In addition, many doctoral candidates cease making any strong effort to sharpen and maintain performance skills, “… because I’m just going to teach!” What they never seem to grasp – maybe because it is not required or put forward to them – is that one learns how to be a fine teacher by “doing,” that is studying, practicing, AND performing.
I have a number of friends around the country who are fine teachers and also fine players. A good percentage of them hold a doctorate. Some of them had only a master’s degree when hired by their universities during an earlier period, but they were fully aware that, within a certain time frame, they would be required to earn a doctorate. Many feel that the time spent acquiring the degree was a waste, while others particularly those seeking a performance degree, studying with excellent teachers, remark that this period provided relevance and value. Some, looking back upon this time, have concluded that pursuing the doctorate only stole valuable time from their students while not really returning much to them for their efforts except job security. Most wanted this process to be a period of great learning, but found it was more like a fraternity “rite of passage.” But all agree that those persons with a doctorate but no real-life experience are, for the most part, capable of passing on only what they have learned in someone’s studio and in college ensembles. They all agree that earning an advanced degree doesn’t truly give a person ALL the tools needed to convey real knowledge to those whom they will be teaching.
Common sense alone would conclude that any person having paper qualifications, but failing to possess practical knowledge gained through experience, would be a less effective teacher than the doctor’s degree would indicate. This absence of performance experience in many university teachers has unfortunately become all too common for a number of years. So, over the past twenty years, we have been turning out too many teachers who lack inspiration to achieve the highest level of mastery of their own music, but are willing to work toward an advanced degree only to secure a college-teaching position. Many of the students graduating today are products of these teachers. As a result, with each generation, the levels of both teacher and student sink lower and lower.
I have spent many years performing with student groups – mostly ensembles at the college and university level. Over time I have seen a significant decline in the quality of the groups I am asked to perform with – even those from major universities that for many years have had reputations of having outstanding music programs. My observations are not unique. Many of my colleagues who have spent a great deal of time on the clinic circuit have expressed this same opinion. Whereas I used to send my top-level arrangements to perform with these groups, I seldom have the opportunity to use them any longer. I have had to move to easier materials because most groups are not capable of performing the more difficult arrangements. The fact is that most of these groups are directed by teachers having obtained a doctorate, but who possess little real experience in music performance. What a sad commentary on people holding this highest of degree of education.
In my view and that of many of my colleagues, whether performers or teachers, “the paper” is not what makes the teacher. Universities’ categorical refusal to judge a candidate on his or her abilities instead of the paper he or she holds is ridiculous – sheer folly. Attainment of certain educational credentials has nothing to do with one's being a fine teacher. Failure to understand this basic truth is part of the reason – at least in our so-called “institutions of higher learning” – for the declining level of educational excellence we are providing America’s young people. When the society of administrators and the administrations of our colleges and universities decide to get their collective heads out of their “backsides” and make the words education and learning mean what they did forty years ago, then we will see a rise in the quality of every facet of education.
Applying for a Job
Guest Article by Kenny Berger
Kenny Berger is a marvelous Jazz baritone saxophone player as well as a great doubler on bass clarinet and bassoon. He is one of the in-demand musicians in NYC and plays with many of the most important names in Jazz. After reading this short note sent to several of us, exhibiting one of the real ironies in the field of education today, I asked Kenny if I could reprint it for Cadenzas. He writes:
I thought some of you might appreciate this. I figure as long as my chances of landing a college gig seem to be getting slimmer by the minute, I might as well become the Ruby Braff of academia. I think it was either Zoot Sims or Al Cohn who said that Ruby used to burn his bridges in front of him. My idol!
I recently spotted an ad announcing a search for someone to fill a tenure-track Jazz Studies position (including directing the Jazz Band) at Grinell College, an institution at which it can safely be assumed that political correctness would trump facts every time but I thought it was about time somebody said something. Of course my response will fall on deaf ears (do academics have any other kind?), but having done it produced a feeling akin to the afterglow following a thorough colon cleansing.
KB
P.S. The ad emphasizes that the school sees the filling of this position as contributing to the diversity of the faculty. The subliminal message here is crystal clear. Racism is racism, no matter whom it is aimed at. Besides, what minority is more under-represented in academia than people who know what the hell they're talking about based on first hand, real world experience.
To whom it may concern:
In your posting for a tenure-track position in your Music Department, listed on the College Music Society web site under Jazz, reference is made to being cross-listed in the candidate's area of expertise (e.g. Latin American Studies). What if the candidate's area of expertise is (gulp!) JAZZ?
As a jazz musician with 30+ years of performing experience, 15 years of teaching experience in Jazz studies, and credits as a jazz historian and writer of assorted essays and liner notes, my lack of expertise in a field outside jazz would appear to rule me out as a candidate. I guess the jazz component of the position must not be too important. Not
surprising, but an impressive stretch in order to guarantee a mismatch. Have an opening in a field which requires expertise, and fill it with a dilettante whose expertise is in a totally different field.Exactly how Brownie got the gig at FEMA!Maybe I'll send my materials anyway in case you ever need a women's
volleyball coach.Sincerely
Kenny Berger
Tribute to Manfred Schoof
Manfred Schoof, a dear friend and very talented musician turned seventy years of age this year. Though few American musicians may know of Manfred, he nevertheless is well known throughout Europe. I first met Manfred in 1987 in Basel, Switzerland, when I joined the George Gruntz Concert Jazz Band for the first time for its spring tour. The trumpet section for that tour was comprised of Manfred, Claudio Roditi, Palle Mikkelborg and me. Manfred and Palle had toured with George before, but this was a first tour with the Concert Jazz Band for Claudio and me.
I had spent most of the prior twenty years working in New York City, and my touring had been mostly in the United States. I was a bit nervous joining this group because it was a new experience for me, and I didn’t know most of the players in the band. But from our first meeting, Manfred was very gracious, welcoming me into the band and making me feel comfortable in these new surroundings. Before long, all the trumpet players were working beautifully as a team, and George was very pleased.
The Concert Jazz Band played a great deal of music that incorporated Palle’s electronics, and we also did a good deal of avant-garde playing. Manfred and saxophonist Luten Petrovsky were in the forefront of this kind of playing, as was bass trombonist David Taylor. Manfred was the most lyrical of the three. Although I had heard a good bit of avant-garde music and had also done some “free music,” it was nothing like the music David, Manfred, and Luten were playing. It was rather startling to me at first, but as my ears became more familiar with their playing, it took on new meaning for me. While it was not my style of playing, I found that their music captured my imagination – much like an abstract painting.
My friendship with Manfred was immediate and grew stronger as we shared more and more time together on the band. We toured together with George for a number of years, and the time spent with Manfred was always something to which I looked forward. I enjoyed his music, and we became close personal friends. As time went on, I got to know his wife, Marianne, and also met their son, Julian. When the band toured the United States, Manfred visited at my home, meeting my wife, Nancy, and my daughters, Marisa and Teal. When I came to Germany with Nancy, we visited with Manfred, Marianne, and Julian in their home, and we enjoyed so much being with them all.
While together on these tours, Manfred let me hear the music he was composing for films in Germany. His writing was singularly unique and also very beautiful. His film scores would make beautiful recording projects as the music was able to stand on its own. When he first played recordings of these film scores for me, I was quite astounded because Manfred had never before mentioned his writing. While I was always taken by his playing, I was quite surprised by this facet of his music because I was totally unaware of these endeavors.
A few years after Manfred left the Concert Jazz band, he invited me to Köln, Germany, to perform with him in concert, I believe at the Opera House on the square of the Dom. The group included Manfred and me, Albert Manglesdörf, Steve Lacy, Mal Waldron, Palle Danielson, Keith Copeland, and Jiggs Wigham. It was a marvelous concert for which Manfred wrote some extraordinarily beautiful music. It remains one of the highlights of all my European performances through the years, and this was a group in whose company I was quite honored to be.
Since the time of this concert, I have performed less frequently in Germany and the parts of Europe where Manfred does most of his work. Because we both lead such busy lives, too much time has gone by since we last spent time together, making music or just visiting. I am sad that I was unable to attend Manfred’s seventieth birthday celebration because my feelings of friendship and admiration for Manfred remain strong as ever. Regardless, I want to offer him my most sincere congratulations on a wonderful life and career and also send my heartfelt love to him and Marianne. I always hope that something will bring us together again - to enjoy our friendship and to continue our celebration of Life and Music.
With great love and respect,
Marvin
Dr. Jack Cooper: Letter from Jack
Guest Article by Jack Cooper
Dr. Jack Cooper is the highly-respected Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Memphis. He served six years in the U. S. Army, playing in the West Point “Jazz Knights.” Jack is not only one of the best teachers I know, but is also a very fine saxophone and woodwind performer. He holds a BA and MA in music from California State University, Los Angeles, and a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the University of Texas at Austin. Jack joined the University of Memphis as a faculty member in 1998. Jack takes teaching very seriously and feels a bond with his students. He writes:
Marvin,Let me relate my most personal thoughts to you from this week. I know that “right, good people” look at your Web site, and I would be more than happy for you to put it there. This is my plea for peace around the world and for what America is doing in the Middle East.
Two of my ex-students are in the Marines and Air Force. Both of them graduated with BAs in music sometime in the last two to three years. One is flying “tank buster” A-10s, and the other is in flight/fighter school and will be flying F-15s, F-16s, or F-22s, depending on various factors and where he is needed. These are two kids that I had to help get through some unique difficulties and with whom I am somewhat close. I know the parents of one of them fairly well and think about them a lot. One of these young men is more over to the left, and the other is more to the right, but both are very patriotic, and it chokes me up to know they are in harms way. I try not to think too much about these guys sometimes. I have no children, and Donna and I are really too old to have our own (she has a college age son), so my students ARE my “children.” (Don't tell them that though!)
I thought about this one young man in the A-10s a lot over the summer when hearing about all the stuff going on in the Middle East, especially the big mess in early August in Lebanon.
The young man flying the A-10s came by school right in the middle of one of my classes on Monday; I guess he was on leave. This was two days after your concert here. He stood in the doorway while I was writing on the board during my one of my Improv classes. He caught my eye when I turned around and had a big smile on his face. Even with his Marine crew cut, his smile has not changed. He caught me at a bad time - right in the middle of a lecture that I could not stop. I was demonstrating some things to play over “Little Sunflower” and tried to motion for him to come in. But before any of the class could turn around and see him, John had waved good-bye, smiled again, and walked away. I had to turn away and continue writing at the board for a bit to hold on. I had to hold back some tears and clear the lump in my throat. I did compose myself and went on with the class. I don't think any of the nine students in there really noticed what went on. It was like a strange apparition that only I saw, but it was like the storyline of a book or movie (very freaky). I didn't say anything, but I really hope John is safe. I badly wanted to speak with him, but he had left the campus by the time my class was over.
John came to me when making his decision to go into flight school to become a NAVY/MARINE officer/pilot. (He knew I was in the Army for 6 years.) That was when we were getting him finished up on the saxophone. At the time, he was also having to bartend at night and work some pretty lousy hours. You might remember him as he was in the band when you played with us several years ago in New Orleans. Sometimes I feel guilty that I helped them with their decisions regarding the military, getting into this very dangerous business.
Both of these young men are very good guys with whom I spent a lot of time in private musical instruction. I was the “professor of record” for their recitals.They also attended a couple of my lecture classes, and were in my school musical ensembles. During the time they were students here, I watched them both grow into adulthood.
In education we are all touched by the lives of those with whom we cross paths. In the teaching profession it is difficult to watch young people develop into adults and then be put in harms way for a war that I see as very questionable. These are young people who are close to my heart; they are - in a unique way - like steps-sons or step-daughters when they leave our campus. I see us putting a great deal of energy into the promise they all hold - sadly, a promise that they may never have the opportunity to fulfill.
Always,
Jack
Bruce Collier: Record Albums - A Lost Art?
Guest Article by Bruce Collier
I first met Bruce Collier in Dallas in 1960 when the North Texas One O’clock Lab Band recorded its first album for his 90th Floor Record label. Since that time, Bruce has had a long and successful career in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area as a record producer, a recording engineer, the owner of an advertising agency, and now the owner of a business telecommunications marketing company. Bruce recently brought back 90th Floor Records which has been dormant since 1964. Bruce has a great love of jazz and ponders what we have lost over the years with the advancement of technology. He writes:
Have you ever pondered a problem, sought a solution, and then realized that the problem is much bigger than you first thought?
I started a jazz label back in the late 50's, 90th Floor Records. Things were much simpler then. LPs were your best shot, and stereo was just taking over. We were concerned with producing a unique product that showcased activity in the southwest - primarily in the Dallas and Fort Worth areas. We personally visited both distributors and record stores to make sure they knew what we had to offer.
From day one, I have believed in "record albums." An album is so many more things than just music. It provides the history, the biography, the "slice of life" that few artistic endeavors in other media can and do have to offer. An album contains more than music and information. It also has flare - a design – and hopefully, a strong marketing appeal.
One of our first albums, the first actual North Texas State Lab Band album, recorded in 1961, is a wonderful example of this concept. It is fraught with incredible historical value. The front cover is an endorsement by the man, Stan Kenton. It also has pictures of many of the members of that band, Leon Breeden's first “One O’clock" ensemble. And many of these guys aren't around any more. The back cover is a detailed compilation of Leon's thoughts about the selections and a rundown of the soloists. Hugh Lampman, a local DJ at that time, added his thoughts to the cover as well. Players like Marvin Stamm, trombonist Dee Barton, drummer Paul Guerrero, and others who have done so much for jazz music in the country are "captured" in the first of many albums to come out of the University of North Texas jazz program. For the complete package, this album still sets the standard.
But how does that concept apply now? Latest information on album sales indicates that CD sales are down. A quick analysis says that with satellite radio such as XM, and new devices like the IPOD and MP3 download "stations" as well as other sources, you can get all the music you need as quickly as possible. So, where do albums fit in? Or do they? Has the album concept been eliminated? Does it matter that we are yet losing another differential marker in a limited venue as it is? Does identity and history matter in the efforts of artists in any field?
We have to hope that we won't lose the edge afforded by a quality album. And, perhaps, we can strengthen that uniqueness by limiting a trend that robs us of so much more information regarding a creative project in time. I have to admit that for me this issue qualifies as a work in progress.