Lesson #6

LESSON #6

Classic New Orleans Style,

Part 2

This lesson supports the following GOALS:

[Goal #1] Students will gain an appreciation of traditional jazz and the continuing value of this music.

[Goal #3] Students will become acquainted with the variety of styles within the traditional jazz genre, and with some of its major figures.

[Goal #4] Students will play traditional jazz.

This lesson supports the following OBJECTIVES:

1.1 Students will become acquainted with what well-played traditional jazz sounds like.

2.6 Students will become acquainted with what the Classic New Orleans Style of traditional jazz sounds like.

2.7 Students will become acquainted with the distinguishing characteristics of the Classic New Orleans Style.

2.8 Students will become acquainted with some of the pioneers of the Classic New Orleans Style.

2.9 Students will become acquainted with the compositional talents of Jelly Roll Morton.

4.4 Students will rehearse a tune in the Classic New Orleans Style.

RATIONALE: The students have gained an appreciation of the Classic New Orleans Style, and will now enjoy creating this sound.

NATIONAL STANDARDS SUPPORTED: See Appendix C.

KIT COMPONENTS:

■ Audio: Track 5, “Black Bottom Stomp” by Jelly Roll Morton and his Red Hot Peppers

■ Music: “Black Bottom Stomp” (Essential Jazz Editions transcription)

Jelly Roll Morton

ACTIVITY (app. 30 minutes):

1. Play online audio track 5, “Black Bottom Stomp” by Jelly Roll Morton and his Red Hot Peppers, 1926 (app. 5 minutes). This is another Chicago-based group of ex-New Orleanians, led by pianist Jelly Roll Morton, one of jazz’s first great composers. The trombonist on this track is Kid Ory, who will be seen in the video segment in Lesson #14.

2. Discuss with the students their impressions of the audio track (app. 5 minutes). How many of the stylistic elements of Classic New Orleans Style were they able to hear? (See table at the end of Lesson #4.) Were they able to appreciate the intricacies of the arrangement?

3. Print out the “Black Bottom Stomp” transcription for your students, and rehearse it (app. 20 minutes). Explain that this is a transcription of the recording the students have just listened to. All the notes from the record have been written down, and the students’ challenge is to employ the stylistic language they have learned and to re-create the recording as accurately as possible. Improvisation skills do not come into play for this rehearsal. If your students are unable to negotiate the more difficult sections of this transcription, try rehearsing it at a slower tempo.

Instrumentation consideration:

• If a banjo cannot be obtained, or your guitarist has not yet practiced on it, substitute acoustic guitar. (A number of the Red Hot Peppers recordings used guitar rather than banjo.)

EVALUATION: Were the students able to create a Classic New Orleans sound with their instruments?

ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES: Encourage the students to explore some of the additional Classic New Orleans Style recordings cited in the Style Guide. Challenge them to pick a solo or ensemble passage by their instrument from one of these recordings (or from Track 3, 4 or 6 from the online audio tracks), transcribe it, and learn to play it. This is a great way to begin to internalize the “language” of the style.