attn: jazz musicians

[toey]

I'm doing a project for a music class on the emotions involved in jazz music. Any help anyone is willing to give is appreciated. Here are a few questions for you:

1. Where did your interest in jazz begin?


2. Before you perform, do you draw inspiration from anything such as emotions?


3. Generally, how do you feel when you're playing jazz?


4. What emotions do you try to portray to the audience through your performance?


5. Does the way you perform change depending on the audience or any other factors?


6. How does your performance change, if at all, when playing all instrumental pieces versus pieces with vocal accompaniment?

[Al Dente]

1. yoyo

Haha, I haven't been on here in awhile so I'm going through all the jazz posts.
1. I actually was introduced to jazz from my dad, but didn't like it until I heard people from different genres playing it and liked it, then I gradually got drawn in.

2. Sometimes. Depending on the gig I will try to relax and get calm, try to get into that mental state like right before you fall asleep.

3. Sometimes good, happy, sometimes angry, but if the playing is good I never remember it, I feel as if I leave my body.

4. Not emotions so much as colors. If I close my eyes and really focus I can see colors based on the music we play, so I try to play well enough to make the audience see them though. Don't know if its happened yet.

5.Yes. Rude audiences tend to make for bad performances, but are also easiest to manipulate. Other factors is so broad, but any and everything changes the way I play.

6. As a bassist, my part usually gets simpler when backing vocals, and often times vocalists call tunes in strange keys which makes for alot more focus on what notes I am playing.
Hop[e this helps