For my final extended project, I would like to do something that explores the ideas of Jazz improvisation.
I currently have four different ideas for projects that I could potentially undertake.
The first one is very similar to last year in that I would undertake a repertoire of classic Jazz standards within a band and organise towards a final performance/ a few performances at a venue within Bradford.
Although I really enjoy playing Jazz standards such as Autumn Leaves etc, I have recently began to expand my listening to more abstract areas of Jazz such as contemporary and fusion, I would be very interested in potentially writing and performing a number of tracks in a style such as Go Go penguin. I would love to record these and create a high quality video so as to release one song as a single.
The third option is to use technology to improvise live Jazz, by creating a number of loops and using effects to build up a composition live. I would be taking heavy influences from artists such as FKJ and could potentially collaborate with a number of artists.
The fourth option would be to arrange a variety of different popular songs in a jazz style such as the youtube sensation postmodern jukebox. This would see me potentially working with a range of musicians to create a final performance and potentially a video of one of the songs.
Potential professional crossovers:
Musicians
Venue staff
Recording technicians
Videographers + Photographers
Initial Project Presentation
Reflections On My Initial Idea
After presenting to the class, I had a long think about what I would like to do for my final project and ended up leaning towards a mixture of my first and second project ideas. I personally didn’t feel very confident about the technological focus of my third idea and I feel that my main skill set lies in my skills on the piano, therefore it would be nice to use the piano in this project as much as possible.
Therefore for my final project idea, I have decided to put together a Jazz band to play a mixture of Jazz standards,arrangements and at least one of my compositions.
The feedback given to me in this presentation cemented some of the ideas that I had for musicians to collaborate with. I am hoping to put together a quartet , including the same rhythm section as last years final project , Darren Dutson Bromley and Fraser Allan as well as a jazz violinist. I could potentially look at adding a singer, scaling back to a trio or using a mixture of musicians on different songs at the final performance. However I would prefer to have a solid lineup playing throughout the entire performance.
Nick also picked up upon my need to establish a well organised rehearsal structure. The musicians I am hoping to collaborate are all very busy people, therefore I will have to work out what works best for everyone. I will also need to pick a venue to rehearse and perform that works for everyone logistically.