Submit an essay that is double-spaced, in 12 point times new Roman font, and with 1” margins and at least 500 words in. Paper must be well edited, grammatically clean and logically organized.
2. Make the reader understand who the performers were and what their instruments were. (Or describe their voice if they were singers.)
3. Give the reader a sense of how the concert was organized. Was it a series of songs? Were there multi-movement pieces? Was there a theme? Was there a conductor or band leader?
4. Describe the style of the music. Observations about the rhythm section are particularly relevant. The differences between the rhythm sections of New Orleans Traditional jazz, jazz from Chicago in the 1930’s, jazz of the Swing Era, and modern jazz are extensively described in the text.
What drums were used? Was the bass an acoustic “upright” bass or an amplified “guitar style” bass? Did the pianist play thick or light chords? Did the pianist play constant rhythm or sparse rhythm with space? Did the bass player play a walking bass line or just two notes to the bar? Was there a rhythm guitar or banjo used?
5. Are the tunes heavily arranged, with parts composed out? Or are the tunes minimally arranged with an emphasis on improvisation?
6. Do the improvisations emphasize long fluid lines or are they highly rhythmic and disjunct? Do the improvisations offer much repetition and recognizable “riffs”? Or are they abstract and unpredictable? Is there an emphasis on spectacular technique, or do the melodies emulate the human voice?
7. Who was the audience for this performance? Was the audience diverse or homogeneous in terms of ethnicity? How did they react to or interact with the music?
8. In what ways was the performance familiar to you? In what ways was it unfamiliar?
9. Mention any questions you still have about the performance you heard, and let the reader know if you intend to investigate this kind of music further.
10. Make sure the paper is well organized and well edited.
Here is the link for the video of the concert the paper is based on