SST Blog

I just joined the International Society for Jazz Arrangers and Composers and read Ryan Keberle's interesting article on what he's learned about arranging from playing trombone in bands.  That got me thinking about some of the things I've learned from my perspective in the trumpet section.  I also played piano in bands when I was younger, so I'll comment on that as well. 1.  In the hierarchy of jazz instruments, the trumpet is the king.  Louis Armstrong established that 100 years ago.  Trumpets create excitement and exert power.  Too much of that bright sound or too many high notes becomes...

The other day I watched an episode of Dr. Phil about a 30-something man who quit working, to follow his dream of becoming a “murder rapper.”  They showed a video of this raging guy with paint all over his face screaming hateful semi-intelligible words while holding his toddler son in his arms.  This is so wrong on many levels.  As if this isn't bad enough, he lives off his wife's income and is tens of thousands of dollars in arrears of child support for children from a previous relationship.  He has been to prison twice.  His wife, who has admitted...

I was born shortly after World War II. My dad returned from Europe in 1946 and quickly married my mom. There was a housing shortage at that time due to all the returning soldiers, so my parents lived with my grandparents and great-grandfather for a couple of years. It was a large 8-room New York apartment on 93rd and Broadway. Finally a 2-bedroom opened up on the fifth floor and my folks got some privacy and I was conceived.   Our whole extended family lived and worked in the city, so when I was born, I was surrounded by all...

Let me start by quoting Mark Twain: the reports of my demise have been greatly exaggerated. I’ve been receiving emails asking if I’m OK, since I haven’t posted any of my short essays in a couple of months. Not to worry. I’m more or less intact. The truth is that I’ve become obsessed with writing and editing books. I’ll be telling you more about them just as soon as they near completion and are available for sale.   I can give you a heads up on the first one: the official new hard copy edition of Creative Jazz Composing and...

11/17/17   It’s a week before Thanksgiving and I’ve been seeing the same car commercial on TV every day for a couple of weeks.  The background music is a nice jazz piano version of Joy To The World.  The payoff is that the car is a Christmas present.  Already?  I love Christmas as much as anybody, but can’t we be respectful and at least wait until the day after Thanksgiving?  Where are our manners?   You’re surprised when I say that I love Christmas, right?  I’m not a Christian.  I was brought up Jewish, but as a teenager developed an...