there are books about the music industry related to pop music, but i ve been having a hard time trying to find one about the jazz biz.
Answer
The reason that there are not a lot of books on jazz business is because it is kind of an oxymoron. Let's face it. It's a lot easier to make a living as a pop artist than it is to make a living as a jazz artist nowadays. Not to say that you can't make a living playing jazz, you could, but there are a lot more people who listen to pop music and regularly buy pop music, than there are people who like and regularly buy jazz.
Hence, jazz is much more of an art form than anything else. Although there are some business principles that can be applied, jazz is still an art. It takes a lifetime of dedication and pursuance to become a great jazz musician. Not to say that it doesn't take that to become a pop artist, but most pop artists have like 1-2 songs that make them really famous, and they may continue to perform that song throughout their career. Jazz artists historically continued to make new music throughout their careers and refused to be defined by a single song or even genre.
If you are a jazz artist and you'd like to know how to make more money, I would suggest reading some of the general music business books, and apply what's in there to your music. Even some general business books would have something you could benefit from.
Also, don't be afraid to go commercial. Everyone's got to make a living somehow. Music is a business, and in this industry, we need people who approach it that way. We don't need any more "starving artists."
The reason that there are not a lot of books on jazz business is because it is kind of an oxymoron. Let's face it. It's a lot easier to make a living as a pop artist than it is to make a living as a jazz artist nowadays. Not to say that you can't make a living playing jazz, you could, but there are a lot more people who listen to pop music and regularly buy pop music, than there are people who like and regularly buy jazz.
Hence, jazz is much more of an art form than anything else. Although there are some business principles that can be applied, jazz is still an art. It takes a lifetime of dedication and pursuance to become a great jazz musician. Not to say that it doesn't take that to become a pop artist, but most pop artists have like 1-2 songs that make them really famous, and they may continue to perform that song throughout their career. Jazz artists historically continued to make new music throughout their careers and refused to be defined by a single song or even genre.
If you are a jazz artist and you'd like to know how to make more money, I would suggest reading some of the general music business books, and apply what's in there to your music. Even some general business books would have something you could benefit from.
Also, don't be afraid to go commercial. Everyone's got to make a living somehow. Music is a business, and in this industry, we need people who approach it that way. We don't need any more "starving artists."
What are the definitive books on jazz theory and improvisation?
BC
I am an advanced level saxophonist looking for a jazz theory and improvisation book that will take my skills to the next level and give me material for daily exercises. Any suggestions? Can anyone propose a canon of jazz literature that I may work with?
Answer
"Can anyone propose a cannon of literature that I may work with"??
Yes.. here's all the "literature" you need;
Recordings from the following;
Lester Young, Ben Webster, Coleman Hawkins, Charlie Parker, Sonny Stitt, Cannonball Adderley, Sonny Rollins, Dexter Gordon, John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy, Joe Henderson and Michael Brecker. Get your arms around THIS.
Listen... Transcribe... Learn....
Throw away the textbooks.. and listen.
Pick out some licks.. work them out on your horn, play in all 12 keys by ear.. repeat. Don't learn the licks out of a book.. listen to their application in a real live context. Learn to get that sound in your head, and get it coming out of your hands.
The problem with Jazz today.. is too much textbook, not enough listening. The education system has created a generation of mechanical geniuses, that sound like machines not musicians.
Then.. buy yourself a copy of Band in A Box... and punch in some chords to give yourself a backing track, and start to put the stuff you've transcribed into use.
Listen to the hip sound of a C Blues scale lick over a C#Maj7 Chord..
All that said... I agree with all the above posters... If you had to have 1 book on Jazz theory.. and only 1 book. Mark Levine's is it. You only need 1 book.. all the rest is really in the recordings.
What do think they did to write the books on Jazz theory? Someone created the stuff on their horn, (the guys I've mentioned) then someone else analyzed it with their ears, and wrote it all down and created a "textbook" for jazz. Jazz isn't about math and formulas.. that's just a tiny piece of it...and that's where most people get lost.. in the theory..and they forget that it's about soul and passion in the notes.. it's not about the notes themselves.
I guarantee if you take this road.. instead of reading 50 books on the subject.. at the end of the summer you'll be twice better than you would have been by reading 50 books.
"Can anyone propose a cannon of literature that I may work with"??
Yes.. here's all the "literature" you need;
Recordings from the following;
Lester Young, Ben Webster, Coleman Hawkins, Charlie Parker, Sonny Stitt, Cannonball Adderley, Sonny Rollins, Dexter Gordon, John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy, Joe Henderson and Michael Brecker. Get your arms around THIS.
Listen... Transcribe... Learn....
Throw away the textbooks.. and listen.
Pick out some licks.. work them out on your horn, play in all 12 keys by ear.. repeat. Don't learn the licks out of a book.. listen to their application in a real live context. Learn to get that sound in your head, and get it coming out of your hands.
The problem with Jazz today.. is too much textbook, not enough listening. The education system has created a generation of mechanical geniuses, that sound like machines not musicians.
Then.. buy yourself a copy of Band in A Box... and punch in some chords to give yourself a backing track, and start to put the stuff you've transcribed into use.
Listen to the hip sound of a C Blues scale lick over a C#Maj7 Chord..
All that said... I agree with all the above posters... If you had to have 1 book on Jazz theory.. and only 1 book. Mark Levine's is it. You only need 1 book.. all the rest is really in the recordings.
What do think they did to write the books on Jazz theory? Someone created the stuff on their horn, (the guys I've mentioned) then someone else analyzed it with their ears, and wrote it all down and created a "textbook" for jazz. Jazz isn't about math and formulas.. that's just a tiny piece of it...and that's where most people get lost.. in the theory..and they forget that it's about soul and passion in the notes.. it's not about the notes themselves.
I guarantee if you take this road.. instead of reading 50 books on the subject.. at the end of the summer you'll be twice better than you would have been by reading 50 books.
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