The London Jazz Festival is less elitist than you might imagine

By Christopher Morris | Yahoo Contributor Network – Sat, Nov 16, 2013
I wouldn't say I'm exactly a musical expert or aficionado, or member of any sort of musical cognoscenti. In fact, my one attempt to learn how to play a musical instrument ended after a week, when someone who could already play it told me that I was never going to be any good, and that I should stick to doing things that I am proficient at. I can't dance, I have no rhythm, and my singing voice has been compared to the sound of water going down a drain, but less tuneful.

I'm not sure if this has coloured my attitude towards music, but whereas many people pride themselves in their eclecticism and open-minded nature when it comes to their musical taste, I have been reluctant to invest my time in trying to discover new artists or genres.

Perhaps I'm just jealous that these musicians are co-ordinated and in possession of some form of musical ear, but for whatever reason I haven't truly embraced music culturally in the way that many people enthusiastically do so. I've never measured my life in songs as some people do, I haven't bought a CD in years, and music doesn't hold the place in my heart that it does for some.

It was thus with some trepidation then that I recently attended the London Jazz Festival with a friend of mine. I was not merely slightly apprehensive about the fact that I might think everything played there was complete rubbish, I also knew that it was an almost certainty that absolutely everyone in attendance would know far more about all music than me. And they could hardly fail to know more about jazz than me.

Thankfully, I actually found that, firstly, the jazz community is perhaps not as insular as one might expect, and, secondly, it is possible to enjoy jazz music even if you don't have the musical proficiency of the average member of the National Philharmonic string section.

It's somewhat disappointing that you can't smoke indoors nowadays because I felt throughout the time that I was at the London Jazz Festival, which is held at venues all over London, that such music should be played in a smoky atmosphere. Nevertheless, despite the fact that the air was as clean as at the average AA meeting, this sub-prime ambience didn't prevent me from enjoying the experience.

Read more: http://uk.news.yahoo.com/london-jazz-festival-less-elitist-might-imagine-213700456.html#BfWtpGi