Feb 122010
I talked to the director, and he said I could be in jazz, just not the whole year. He said that in the competitions, they had limitations on the instrumentation. Which I don’t get or believe, since that pretty much defies the definition of jazz. The website for the MN State High School League says that “standard instrumentation is encouraged.” What does that mean?
Violins just really don’t have the sound that jazz bands need/look for. I don’t know what you mean when you say “that pretty much defies the definition of jazz”. Violins aren’t a jazz instrument. If you want to play jazz, try picking up guitar or bass. Otherwise, you’re not really going to be able to TRULY play jazz.
I’d be super surprised if you could get in. Violins are much too “high-class” for jazz. If you could learn guitar, that would probably be “standard” instrumentation. Instrumentation is usually piano, trumpet, trombone, sax, drums. Other common instruments are clarinet, flute, vibes, and misc other percussion. Most string instruments are going to be at the bottom of the list, because jazz has defined itself pretty rigidly.
Don’t listen to these negative people. Search on ‘Youtube the quintet of the hot club of France’ and you will hear one of the finest jazz violinists ever, Stephane Grappelly, and arguably the best jazz guitarist who ever lived, Django Reinhardt.
Hope this helps and remember, stick to your guns!