That Jazz - Monkey Max Music and File Download

Chapter 15: Feeding the Jazz Jones: Advice for Aspiring Players
• Don’t put your instruments away in a closet. Leave them where
they’re convenient for spur-of-the-moment jamming. Hang guitars
on wall hooks and reinforce the idea that music is an integral part
of daily life, not a separate pursuit that’s only for special people.
� Give children inexpensive instruments as birthday and holiday gifts.
• A plastic recorder is only $10 or $15. Many elementary schools
include group recorder lessons as part of basic curriculum.
• A wood block provides an economical introduction to drumming,
and snare drums and African djembe drums cost less than $100.
Although this book is about jazz, it’s most important that children develop an
interest in music, instead of a specific type of music. Regardless of which
instrument you and your child choose (see the next section), it’s a fact that
children absorb music (like they discover languages) much faster and more
naturally than adults. No right way exists, per se, to lead a child into music.
The most important thing is to make music available, encourage it, and see
how it evolves in a young, creative mind.
If you like, try the following ideas to aim children specifically toward jazz:
� Jazz instruments such as bass, drums, saxophone, and trumpet are
tough for four- and five-year-olds, but you can play a lot of jazz CDs for
them. Show them pictures of great jazz players like Charlie Parker, Miles
Davis, and Duke Ellington, and tell a few stories about them.
� Some great books about jazz have been written especially for children.
Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra by Andrea Davis
Pinkney (Hyperion) is great for young readers, or to read to young children.
So is If I Only Had a Horn: Young Louis Armstrong by Roxanne Orgill
(Houghton Mifflin). Your local librarian or bookstore clerk can recommend
other titles.
Some children are so passionate about music that all you have to do is guide
them and help with details (and write the checks). Other kids need encouragement
and aren’t as self-directed. Music lessons can be worthwhile even
for children who don’t seem eager. After a little effort on their part and
encouragement from you, many young musicians get the bug. If things don’t
work out, that’s okay; some children simply aren’t interested in playing an
instrument. But after those early years are gone, you can’t go back and
wonder whether music should’ve been a bigger part of your kids’ lives.
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