i play tenor and sometimes bari, and iv been thinking about jazz band, but it requires a lot of after-school practice. do u think it`s worth the effort? iv never seen them perform before, and i don`t know if i should or not. i just know that i like sax and marching/concert band.

it really depends on what grade you are in, your skill level, and most importantly do you like jazz? If you have no interest in Jazz music then jazz band isn`t for you. I know a lot of tenors in my jazz band that have learned to love Jazz music and have become great improvisers as well as players. If you are still young then give it a shot.

no you should not. in my opinion its a waste of time. we never perform at our school and i hate jazz. it is a stupid idea. there r only like four ppl in ours.

Yes, you should definatly join jazz band. In most cases, you`ll be playing with the best in the school. BUT, If you are not interested in playing jazz music than you shouldn`t join.

thanks for the advice, but how much time does a jazz band usually practice after school? i can`t do it if it requires a lot of time

My jazz band rocks; we have the best players there, and newbies catch on well. Our jazz band simply practices on thursdays till 4:00 or so. we get out of school at 2:50. So, we only get three or four practices between concerts, but its fine. It really helps your sightreading, and if you get lost, it doesn`t matter! Just improv!
!wildband!

Yes little dude you should really join jazz band... It is totally awesome! I played jazz band in high school and I was only girl in the whole band! I have played saxophone since I was 7 years old and I was getting tired of it always with the marching band never having time for myself, but then I joined the jazz band and I fell in love with my saxophone all over again because this beautiful music was coming out of it... Hey if you don`t like it you can quit the jazz band, atleast give it a try it will be worth your time!!

Coming from a person who worships music and instruments and who`s entire life is devoted to music....join. But if it`s not what you like and if you don`t think it is worth your time and effort to join don`t. I spend 3-4 hours a day practicing clarinet for the variouse school and out of school bands that I am in and then an additional hour for what ever other instruments I am playing in a band (sometimes up to 3 more so 6 hours of practice a day) Jazz is great stuff to learn how to play and once you learn how to properly improv and you arn`t shy to it is a great way to express your creativity!

-Jen

thanks 4 the advice, i think im gonna join. it does sound really neat, and im pretty good at sax. and, amber, im not a "little dude", im a middle school dudet. (or dudess, whichever u prefer)

HECK YES! jazz band is the ~COOL BAND~ its all about the attitude, and im speaking from my jazz band perspective...its alot more laid back than reg. symphonic! ...well @ my school atleast. -later

at my high school u have to try out so the jazz band is only for the elite at my school,and im only in grade 9 and i made and most of them are in grade 11 and 12

At my high school we have 2 jazz bands. Jazz 1 is for the "elite" players, and requires an audition. Jazz 2 is for the less experienced players, and no audition is required. For my school, Jazz 2 has a lot more people who have switched to a jazz instrument. For example, the sax section is mainly composed of flute and clarinet players. They also play less challenging music than Jazz 1.

At my school, we also try to play traditional jazz music. Not the "copy" jazz that is becoming more and more common now, like jazz arrangements of various rock songs.

In fact, my band teacher has become so fed up with all this "copy" jazz, that he recently trashed all of his scores that fit that title. I thought it was a pretty radical move on his part, but I had to agree that Smoke on the Water and Eye of the Tiger should have stayed rock songs.

I tried Jazz band and instantlly dropped out; I didn`t like it. It was too structured for me, and a little bit too strict. Most of my Jazz playing for both my Electric Guitar, and my Tenor Saxophone was mostly some friends and I hanging out at my house usually and just playing some songs together. My friend Wynton plays Electric Guitar as well, we both dropped out of Jazz band and Band all-together when we got in middle school because we both saw it as useless. He`s been playing Electric Guitar for as long as I`ve been playing the Saxophone heh.

Hanging out with friends and having a good time . Jazz band is nice for social reasons, but for musical reasons... I honestly see nothing in Jazz band.

I`ve been playing Tenor Saxophone since I was about 6, and still play it now 11 years down the road. Like 1/100th of it was actually playing in a school-related band, the rest was friends and I hanging out, playing and practicing by myself.

our jazz band spends half the time laying around but when you work it awesome

It is really sad to see answers like Angelo`s. What will happen is he will play with some friends until they move away go to college, or something like that. Then the sax will sit and collect dust for years, trust me I`ve been there, I know. When you don`t play in any structured ensemble environment, you will never challenge yourself to become a better player, and you will become stangnant. If anyone wants to play in a Jazz Ensemble, I say go for it, once you reach college level and on there is nothing like it, you will play some of the most challenging but amazing music you can imagine. If you don`t believe me pick up "Dave Hollands Big Band" and listen to it, you don`t get that good by just sitting around the house and playing. Challenge yourself and others around you you won`t regret it.

Cheers
Chris