Beat Goes On

I feel like music education in general probably does not necessarily train you to…It does not set you up to become a professional per se because I mean there are a lot of guys who study Classical music at Juilliard or New England Conservatory or wherever they may go…uh Eastman. And they don’t necessarily get into a symphony orchestra once they graduate. And meanwhile there’s some guys who don’t necessarily go to any of these universities who just go in for an audition and smoke and get in, you know? So I feel like jazz education just like any field of education definitely has its pros and it definitely has its cons. I think if you take it for what it’s worth, meaning that you know you’re going to go to school to study theory or harmony or whatever the nuts and bolts are. You know, the tools that you need to be able to make the musical statement that you make. That however will not train you to work that in the real world. Because to be able to work that in the real world you still gotta do them little dive, chump change gigs which seems like nobody wants to do. You know, it’s like we’re in a generation now…where a lot of…I’ve seen a lot of cats, you know, ok well man you got a gig at a restaurant with whoever. You know, it’s like $50 dollars. “Well man, I ain’t doin’ that.” Well man, you better do that! That’s the only way you’re going to be able to hone your craft and kinda climb up the ladder so to speak, you know? It’s just like, you don’t get a gig with like the top band right off the bat. You know what I mean? Most guys don’t. I mean, a very small percentage do. It’s that whole…there’s a whole thing that you have to go through as a professional musician which I don’t think any school can train you for. And that’s the, you know, you get your hands dirty. You know, those kind of disappointing gigs. But they make you a better musician and they make you a better professional and they basically train you how to deal with the real world. You know, school only gives you the tools to be able to make the music. I don’t think it necessarily trains you to get out there and be in the minor leagues, you know, in single A ball.

Everything in the universe has a rhythm, everything dances.