Monday, April 05, 2004
Poor man’s jazz
Since the beginning of 2004 we could visit the jazz easy-listening sessions in Bonny & Clyde and Scotland Yard every month. Although the music is often presented there by commercial groups we find jazz artists who stay original in their content. Why do they bother to work for it? It seems that artists bring their music to the clubs only for the money.
No one would like to rehearse or polish the music pieces for the concerts that lack in attentive audience and cosy milieu. The success of the show now depends on the mood of the artist. The boring standard pieces could only be turned into colourful jazz music with a passion to do so. Many jazz groups interested to entertain the clubs are not taking care of their true fans - usually the monotonous background music or evergreen is provided. Moreover, if the music is played on a poor sounding synthesizer with electronic rhythms for accompany, the club might as well turn off the lights at the tables.
Every performer has to cover several expences when having a concert. Poorly financed musicians will keep the expences on the equipment low. It is hard to merge commerce and art, but one must earn his living. Every musician believing that the making of music is not an actual substitute to the financial credits should pursue the goal of actively performing in order to earn a living. The major complaints of the musicians include lack of pay, small audiences, and few venues in which to perform. When speaking to club owners in other parts of the world, one may find similar irks. However, the artists have to do their part well - their own PR work. Hard-working musicians have a good following. This means maintenance of mailing lists, and production of posters and fliers etc. Nowadays one can find a lot of places to play and a lot more media in which to expose them through.
The atmosphere of jazz evening is left cold without the visitors of the event. The music starts to suffer and the reputation is gone. The ones who listen to jazz music do have their passion for the live music but still need guidance to the exact location of their favourites performing. If the musicians will serve their community of listeners they will also draw the biggest crowds to any clubs inviting the artists.
No one would like to rehearse or polish the music pieces for the concerts that lack in attentive audience and cosy milieu. The success of the show now depends on the mood of the artist. The boring standard pieces could only be turned into colourful jazz music with a passion to do so. Many jazz groups interested to entertain the clubs are not taking care of their true fans - usually the monotonous background music or evergreen is provided. Moreover, if the music is played on a poor sounding synthesizer with electronic rhythms for accompany, the club might as well turn off the lights at the tables.
Every performer has to cover several expences when having a concert. Poorly financed musicians will keep the expences on the equipment low. It is hard to merge commerce and art, but one must earn his living. Every musician believing that the making of music is not an actual substitute to the financial credits should pursue the goal of actively performing in order to earn a living. The major complaints of the musicians include lack of pay, small audiences, and few venues in which to perform. When speaking to club owners in other parts of the world, one may find similar irks. However, the artists have to do their part well - their own PR work. Hard-working musicians have a good following. This means maintenance of mailing lists, and production of posters and fliers etc. Nowadays one can find a lot of places to play and a lot more media in which to expose them through.
The atmosphere of jazz evening is left cold without the visitors of the event. The music starts to suffer and the reputation is gone. The ones who listen to jazz music do have their passion for the live music but still need guidance to the exact location of their favourites performing. If the musicians will serve their community of listeners they will also draw the biggest crowds to any clubs inviting the artists.
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