Jazz School News, Thoughts, and Events

CONCERT: Here's to Life! Presented by The Bloom School of Jazz

Here's to Life! This celebration of music showcases some of the school's talented vocalists, in an enjoyable atmosphere with food, drink, and friends. The songs reflect the depth of the human spirit and the journey through this gift of life, that we all make it through, one way or another! Come out on this brisk Sunday afternoon, join in the festivities, and toast... Here's to Life!

WHEN: Sunday, January 8th 2012   3:00 PM DOORS - 4:00 PM START  

WHERE: Mayne Stage, Chicago IL  1328 Morse Ave. Chicago, IL 60626 

773.381.4551 (phone)

The Band:
Geoffrey Lowe - Bass
Sam Pincich - Drums
Jim Sellers - Piano

Vocalists:
Tracye Smith
Al Colley Jr
Jerry Johnson
Ingrid Oscarsen
Cameron Heinz
Toni Callahan
Tyler Callahan
Jim Grant
Max Hornung

Instructor/ Host: Spider Saloff

Instructor: Jim Sellers

Instructor/producer: David Bloom

 

TICKETS: BUY TICKETS HERE

The mission of the Bloom School of Jazz is to stimulate and nurture expression, imagination and individuality through music.

Jazz Performance Guidance with Bloom's Laws

One problem you may be noticing during live performances is a lack of respect for the show. Each tune should be considered a chapter in a suspense novel, not a series of short stories with no cohesiveness. With my 40+ years of intensely studying the greatest jazz performers of the last century, I've discovered core values and practices that make the live experience of jazz infinitely more interesting and exciting for the audience.

It is my strong recommendation that each show you play be set with these rules in mind, for yourself and more importantly, for the people offering their time and money to be entertained by YOU.

Bloom's Laws

1. No fewer than eight tunes per one-hour set.

2. No duplication of tempo, mood, or groove per set.

3. A ballad should never be more than three choruses long.

4. Do not repeat the order of the soloists.

5. Everyone should not solo on every tune.

6. Every tune should be arranged.

7. No tune should last more than ten minutes.

8. Do not duplicate arrangements.

9. Do not repeat tunes.

10. Vary the intensity from chorus to chorus.

11. Neither ego nor machismo should override musical sense.

12. Not every tune has to include improvisation.

13. No sheet music on the bandstand.

David Liebman at the Bloom School of Jazz!

The Bloom School of Jazz is happy to present  David Liebman... Musicianship and Beyond. Mr. Liebman will discuss music, life, musicianship, mastery, and much more.   

Don't miss out on this golden opportunity to be inspired, ask questions, and intimately listen to a veteran jazz master.   

David Liebman is considered a renaissance man in contemporary music with a career stretching over forty years. He has played with many of the masters including Miles Davis, Elvin Jones, Chick Corea, John McLaughlin, McCoy Tyner and others; authored books and instructional DVDs which are acknowledged as classics in the jazz field; recorded as a leader in styles ranging from classical to rock to free jazz; founded the International Association of Schools of Jazz; a multiple Grammy nominee; an inductee into the International Association of Jazz Educator's Hall of Fame; the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate from the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, Finland, as well as the Order of Arts and Letters from the French government. He has consistently placed among the top finalists in the Soprano Saxophone category in the Downbeat Critics Poll since 1973 and has to his credit over 100 recordings as a leader/co-leader including several hundred original compositions.  

Space is limited for this clinic. All are welcome to attend. If you have a group, please RSVP. 

Admission: $20.00 at the door  

Date: Saturday, October 29th 

Time: 10:00am-12:00pm 

Location:  

The Bloom School of Jazz  
417 N Ashland Ave  
Chicago, IL 60622  

The building is located on the SE corner of Ashland Ave. and Hubbard St. The entrance is in the first alley off Hubbard St. through the blue door.  

See you soon!  

David Bloom  

Jazz Vocals Student - Satya Gummuluri

"I came to the Bloom School trained in the very different tradition of Indian classical music. I wanted to understand various elements of jazz, from the basics of harmony and rhythm, to nuances of improvisation within the context, subtleties in composition and expression, to building a deeper appreciation of what I listen to. All of the with no training in Western music and armed only with a keen ear. David works with me within my framework of musical understanding. He never imposes a canned method or rigid way of thinking, giving me only the mantra of aiming to produce the highest level of aesthetic as I express who I am. Within a short period of time on this journey at the Bloom School, I have picked up skills and knowledge in the jazz language and have surprised myself. There is a genuine interest in the students growth... that's a rare gift in a teacher." -Satya Gummuluri

Jazz Vocals / Recording Project Concert This Saturday!!

Our new recording project course is filled with some VERY talented individuals and I'm excited to showcase the Jazz Vocals talent with a full rhythm section this Saturday at the school. The concert is free. RSVP if you can by Friday evening. This is a great opportunity for anyone interested in attending the school for any course to visit the school and see what the results look like. 

See you Saturday! 

All the best, 

David Bloom  


Perfect Set Jazz Vocals Concert!  
The Perfect Set Recording Project has been developed for serious instrumentalist to elevate their music to a professional performance and recording level. In this one-year course students learn how to: choose or compose appropriate repertoire (10 tunes), arrange or collaborate on the arrangements, improvise, rehearse the band, record the band, and are involved in the mixing session. At completion of the course each musician will have a one-hour set of music that is fully arranged, notated (books for each instrument), rehearsed, and professionally recorded, ready to be performed anywhere. This experience will take students to a professional level of insight, preparation, musical judgment and performance. This procedure will become the model for the way that all subsequent sets and recordings will be produced.  read more 

Concert Details 

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 17th @ Bloom School of Jazz 

FIRST SET: 12:00pm - 1:30pm 

SECOND SET: 2:00pm - 3:30pm 

Bloom School of Jazz 
417 N Ashland Ave 
Chicago IL 60622 

Note: The building is on the SE corner of Ashland Ave and Hubbard St. The entrance is in the first alley off Hubbard St through the blue door.  

Bloom School of Jazz Now in 36th Year!

Chicago Jazz Magazine Bloom School of Jazz Article by Mike Jeffers 

If you have seen a live jazz performance in Chicago, then most likely you haveheard one of David Bloom's students in action. David Bloom, the owner and founder of the Bloom School of jazz, has influenced the way musicians have created music in Chicago since 1975. I had heard about the school, played with musicians that had attended the school and spoken with David Bloom many times by phone and in person, but had never studied at the school. When the idea came about to put an article together about the Bloom School's 36th year I wanted to do something different, something that would give readers of Chicago Jazz Magazine an inside look into David Bloom's philosophy of music and performance, to gain an understanding of why so many of Chicago's top jazz musicians have come through the school.  Go To Article...

5 Things To Consider When Choosing a Jazz School

Consider these five things when choosing a jazz school:

1. What you expect to get out of it? Do you want to be a jazz artist, a band director, and teacher or just want to learn without any economic benefit?

2. What is your relationship with jazz?  How many hours a week do you: listen to the masters, practice effectively by yourself, play with others and just think about jazz? What have you done to demonstrate your love  for jazz? What do you think a jazz school will do for your career?  

3. Do you need a jazz school or just a mentor teacher? Often just having a knowledgeable inspirational teacher will accomplish what you need.

4. Do you want to study jazz composition and arranging? Then go to a school that offers those courses so that you can hear musicians play what you’ve written.

5.  In jazz history, much of jazz instruction has been in bands led by; Art Blakey, Miles Davis, Horace Silver and others. That kind of personal mentoring is not done in schools. Most serious jazz schools, of which there are very few, can teach you many of the techniques, help you to transcribe solos, and help develop your ear. But what they can’t do is to develop your own personal concept and expression. Don’t expect a jazz school to create a new jazz star.

What a jazz school can do is give you a context where you are constantly thinking and working on your music. Practicing and playing all the time is mandatory in becoming a successful jazz musician.  Great jazz is the sound of passion, commitment and whole lot of work.

Bloom School of Jazz Offers Skype Video Lessons

Jazz School Experience Series

Escaping Yourself to Be You (Part 4)

For civilians and musicians alike, I suggest a one week test: turn off the TV and computer games, use the phone only when it's necessary, and spend the rest of the time doing things that make you think, feel, emote, create or anything that shows an active involvement and appreciation of you life. In one year the average person watches about 1200 hours of TV. Think of what could be learned in 1200 hours in one year. One could become competent in an instrument, learn a language, learn a sport, and take courses or whatever. It's staggering. No one has ever felt or developed pride by watching TV.

When all the outside diversions and distractions are removed then you get down to the real journey. Exploring curiosity and imagination to find and define whom one really is. In a week there are 168 hours. Most people work about 40-50 hours and sleep fifty to sixty hours. That leaves over 50 hours of discretionary time. How many hours a week do you escape yourself to be you?

Jazz School Experience Series

Escaping Yourself to Be You (Part 3)

A few specific ideas for musicians as well as civilians to help you escape both the outside and inside negative forces are as follows: For musicians, I have found that a good way to work on escaping preconceived notions, and occupying the present is to play the first two bars of the melody of a ballad twenty times, each phrasing the melody differently, but in a way that is sincere and expressive. They rhythm can be changed, the melody can be broken up differently with different length rests and dramatic dynamics can be used. But do not change the actual pitches; once you change the pitches and the rhythm it is no longer the tune that is was to begin with.

We want to vary it, not dismiss it. I once asked Ira Sullivan how it is that he doesn't repeat himself. He told me that when he first arrived in New York he went to a jam session Monday at 4pm and left on Wednesday at 8pm. He said, "When you play that long you have to look deep inside to come up with new ideas so as to not bore yourself." This exercise demands that the player looks deep inside to find and hear varied ways of playing the moelody notes (pitches) but giving a new perspective to the melody each time they play it. It demands being accountable for one's creativity for each new moment, and not phrasing the tune the same every time just waiting to blow (improvise). Playing a two bar phrase versus the whole tune allows you to remember what you did two bars ago rather than trying to remember what you did thirty-two bars ago.