Post 226: TRADITIONAL JAZZ - A HORRIBLE DIN!

I must be honest: on very rare occasions I find the sound of a traditional jazz band to be a horrible din.

There are very good traditional jazz performances and very bad ones. I wonder whether you would agree with the following. (For the purpose of these examples, I am talking about the musical sounds produced by a six-piece or seven-piece band.)

LEVEL ONE - THE LOWEST - HORRIBLE DIN LEVEL: Most of the instruments are unnecessarily and excessively amplified. The drummer plays too loud and doesn't take much note of what the front line players are doing. The rhythm section sounds like one collective bass drum. The front line players - especially in full ensemble - take an 'every man for himself' approach and blast away, regardless of what notes the others are playing. It is sometimes impossible for a listener to pick out instruments individually (especially bad if there are four in the front line). The result is a horrible noise! A din!

LEVEL TEN - THE HIGHEST - TOP QUALITY LEVEL:  All instruments individually can be clearly heard. There is little or no amplification. The percussionist plays discreetly, never drowning out other instruments but always decorating and complementing what is going on. The rhythm section plays like one man, maintaining a steady, pulsing beat, never dragging and never speeding up (unless as part of an agreed special effect). The front line players listen carefully to each other, producing wonderful polyphony and syncopation by complementing and responding to what the others are doing and not trespassing on the same notes. The overall effect is like the best chamber music of the classical music world.

In practice, most traditional jazz performances fall somewhere around LEVEL EIGHT. Yes, most are closer to the top quality level than the horrible din level.

Post 225: GET THE RIGHT HAT!

If you are a serious fan of New Orleans jazz, or aspire to play it - you really must obtain the appropriate headgear.

So I returned from my 2015 trip to New Orleans with four caps.

Of course, there are many more available in that city. I particularly liked those commemorating places where jazz is played. But I bought just four; a chap can use only so many.

First (on the left) we have the simple 'New Orleans' cap, made by Bol (in China!). It is comfortable, robust and available in various colour combinations. Next comes the jazz-specific blue cap (also available in other colours, such as grey - very appealing). It mentions the French Quarter and manages to get a discreet 'Jazz', with a saxophone representing the 'J', on the peak. I am very fond of this one, which is 100% cotton and made in China by Sun Products. I am currently wearing it daily here in Nottingham.

Finally come two very special caps. The Dew Drop cap commemorates the amazing historic Dew Drop Hall, about which I wrote in a blog post. You can read the post if you  CLICK HERE.

The Dew Drop Hall

I chose the light-coloured cap but there were other options. This 100% cotton cap was manufactured in Bangladesh by the company Port Authority.

Finally, having spent so much time at the great jazz bar The Spotted Cat in Frenchmen Street, I could not resist their special distinctive black souvenir cap.

The Spotted Cat

This is also 100% cotton and was made in China by Port and Company. You can watch a video of a great performance I witnessed of The Shotgun Jazz Band playing 'Royal Garden Blues' at The Spotted Cat by clicking on here.

All four caps are comfortable and have adjuster straps at the back. Their peaks - especially that on the blue 'French Quarter' cap - are effective in giving the eyes some protection from the sun.

And here's a collection of caps brought back from the French Quarter Festival in 2017 by my friend Peter, who lives in London.

It goes without saying that, if you wear a New Orleans cap, your appreciation of the music will be enhanced; and musicians wearing the caps will find their playing rapidly improves.