JAVS Spring 2011

I am sure there are many other fantastic examples. I recently participated in a presentation given by Bob Phillips on this method. I have done some small dab bling in improvisation, which mostly amounted to me clutching for dear life to all the theory skills I learned in college while trying to make up something that I thought would sound good. I was amazed at how sim ple, easy, and fun the approach was in this book. Author Randy Sabien discovered jazz from listening to the great jazz violinist Stéphane Grappelli. In the early days, Sabien was self-taught by listening to recordings and imitating through trial and error. He learned to synthesize his jazz and classical worlds in college and went on to a successful career as a performer and edu cator founding the jazz string department at the Berklee College of Music. Bob Phillips, originally a double bassist, is also nationally renowned as an educa tor. He is the founder of several high school folk fid dling ensembles that have performed at numerous bluegrass festivals and the White House.

study. The collection of original jazz tunes is ordered in a clear, systematic way that makes progressing through the book simple and easy. Each tune includes preparatory exercises that lay the building blocks for the individual tune. Playing back each phrase from the CD also helps develop awareness of the style and time for each tune. There are also two solos of varying diffi culty for each tune. Included for each tune are back ground parts that make ensemble playing easy. Students can take turns playing the background parts, the solos, or improvising new solos. A piano part is also sold separately from the teacher’s manual. The CD is performed by co-author Randy Sabien and a professional rhythm section. The drawback is that my book did not come with the play-along CD, which you can buy separately. I did find online that there are ways to purchase the book and CD together. There is also a second book called “Second Set” that takes students through more advanced tunes and jazz techniques. There is also a fid dlers and mariachi edition if jazz is not your interest.

Although this book is intended for string orchestra, the play-along CD makes it suitable for individual

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