Students get lessons from jazz Greats

By Bill Robinson
RICHMOND — “Music is another way of telling a story,” a jazz great told a group of about 350 high school and college musicians Saturday at the EKU Center for the Arts.

It was not the band leader who spoke, but the point seemed well taken by students who were expecting Wynton Marsalis to offer some instruction on the final day of Eastern Kentucky University’s 23rd High School Honors Band Clinic.

Walter Blanding, a saxophonist, and trumpeter Kenny Rampton, members of Jazz at Lincoln Center, spent about an hour giving pointers to a few individuals brave enough to get on stage in front of their peers as two world-class musicians evaluated their work.

Stephen Waun, who plays saxophone in Lexington’s Bryan Station High School band, said he was a bit disappointed Marsalis was not present, but getting to interact with a saxophonist such as Blanding was exciting.

Barren County High trombonist Lucas McCoy and Williamstown High trumpeter Ciarra Krist also got on stage with the Lincoln Center musicians.

Each student played a few lines of music, which they repeated after getting brief input from Blanding and Rampton.

All three noticeably improved when they then repeated what they had played.

“Playing music is not just playing the notes, just as reading a book is more than just reading the words,” said Blanding, who like Rampton took care to be gentle with the teenagers.

Blanding recited a story line in steady monotone fashion and then switched to a more emotive narration. Then, he sounded a musical line twice, using a similar contrast.

“Put emotion into it, and be more lyrical,” Blanding said. “Play the composition as if you wrote it. That is how you should read a story, and that is how you should play music.”

In the narration of music, just as in a verbal narration, “Every note dynamically leads to the next note,” Rampton told McCoy. “Put a little crescendo into your 16th notes.”

He also encouraged the students to express their personalities by exaggerating the dynamics.

Both professions emphasized the importance of breathing.

“Take your time, and take a breath as you prepare” to play a phrase of music, Blanding said. “When you prepare to jump, you think about where you’re going to land.”

“Practice slower and sing the music’s first phrase into your head before you begin,” Rampton said, “because each note has meaning.”

Players also should not let up on their breathing when playing softly or when the music goes into the lower register.

Blanding crossed his arms and wrinkled his brow as he studied the music Krist was playing.

Tyler Wilkins, a 2011 EKU graduate now studying at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, drew praise from both Blanding and Rampton.

“Being a rocket scientist is easier than playing the oboe,” Blanding said, as he spoke of the difficulty of playing the instrument well.

Ten EKU trumpet players also came on stage and played a piece they were working only.

Playing as part of an ensemble does not lend itself to as much individual expression because the players must follow their section leaders, Rampton, a fellow trumpeter said. But, both he and Blanding advised the section leaders to put more of their individuality into exaggerating the dynamics and encouraged the other to follow their lead.

Although jazz music is famed for its improvisation, “Improvisation is not a a free for all,” Blanding said.
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