Jazz vocal workshops
I offer a selection of online and face-to-face jazz vocal workshops designed for intermediate/advanced singers of any musical background and training. These aim to demystify jazz and teach its language in an accessible and fun way.
“Jazz music is the power of now. There is no script. It’s conversation. The emotion is given to you by musicians as they make split-second decisions to fulfil what they feel the moment requires.” Wynton Marsalis
“Music is your own experience, your own thoughts, your wisdom. If you don’t live it, it won’t come out of your horn. They teach you there’s a boundary line to music. But, man, there’s no boundary line to art” – Charlie Parker
“I stole everything I ever heard, but mostly I stole from the horns” – Ella Fitzgerald
The many stories we hear about jazz and improvisation as being inaccessible are what led me to create these workshops.
I wanted to provide tools and methods to change that mindset, to befriend and demystify jazz. To me, jazz is an approach to music, a way of listening and interacting with musicians, and a ticket to explore and develop one's personal sound
Jazz is a language, a way of communicating. As with any language, to be able to hold a conversation one needs to learn the alphabet, words, phrases, common expressions, and so on. The same goes with jazz; to develop the much-desired personal sound as an interpreter and improviser, one needs to recognise and learn the ingredients that make up the jazz language.
At the core of every workshop I do is sharing the beauty of jazz in a way that is accessible, fun, and easy to digest. We use a wide spectrum of jazz songs as case studies in order to decode the elements that make up the jazz language. Some examples include melodic/rhythmic elements, standard chord progressions, phrasing, vocal tone and inflections, song forms, as well as creative and improvisational choices.
We also examine the evolution of jazz language across its history through comparative case studies of songs. We embrace the art of jazz vocal improvisation called ‘scat singing’ through the study of famous scat or instrumental solos. My ultimate aim is to give you an insight into how a jazz singer approaches a song and encourage you to view the world of jazz as a joyful and creative path for self-expression.
"One of the most enthralling elements of jazz music is the fact that the musician/singer takes action and makes decisions in the moment, in real-time, based on how he/she chooses to respond to the ideas and playing of the other players on stage. During this ‘active listening’ the musician listens out for the nuances, articulation, feel, dynamics and energy and tries to communicate on that same level with the other musician. The wonder of jazz lies in its improvisational nature, in its rich tapestry of sound colours, its complex and yet effortless rhythms and its particular feel and groove." - Andria Antoniou
Designed for intermediate/advanced singers of any musical background
No previous knowledge of jazz is required
These sessions are for you if you would like to:
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Acquire tools and techniques to help you approach a jazz song and learn what makes a good improvisation
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Be creative with the use of vocal tone, rhythm, and phrasing
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Improve your musical ear, rhythm, and active listening skills
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Know the key differences between different jazz styles
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Build your standard jazz repertoire, language, and improvisation skills
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Understand common jazz chord progressions
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Be able to make interpretative decisions in the moment
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Experiment with jazz vocal techniques, colours, and inflections
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Learn how to lead and communicate with a jazz band
The jazz vocal workshops run in two ways:
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as a single stand-alone workshop of 2 hours or
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as workshop series of 3 x 1.5 hour sessions
Price
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£30 for single workshop per person
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£65 for the whole workshop series per person
Fees for face-to-face workshops may vary depending on location.
Dates
Jazz workshops take place once per academic term/season
Dates for Autumn 2024 will be announced soon. In the meantime you can register you interest here
Attendance
These sessions are delivered live, and you can attend all or as many sessions as you like. If you can't make a live session, I will send the recording of the session to you ASAP once we're done.