You'll Hear It: Full Album Deep Dives with Jazz Musicians - How Jazz Brings People Together - #79

Episode Date: April 19, 2018

In today's episode, Adam and Peter talk about the way jazz can bring together people from all over the world. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This is Adam Manus. And I'm Peter Martin. And you're listening to the You'll Hear a podcast. Daily Jazz advice coming at you. Today we're going to talk about how jazz brings people together. Yeah, like 15 people maybe. I don't know how many listeners we have of this podcast? Thousands, my friend.

You haven't looked at our stats lately. Sorry, I'm being a little too self-deprecating, my dad. Actually, we are, yeah, we are having a lot of fun with this, and we are having a lot of people all over the world listen to us, and it's such a treat for us. and I want to thank you guys so much for tuning in. I mean, we keep doing this every day, day after day for you guys. I mean, what they don't know is jokes on them.

We'd probably do something like this anyway, just with better food and drinks. That's right. I mean, Adam and I just sitting in here, you know, talking about music and stuff, it's a lot of fun. We learn a lot ourselves, but it means a lot to us that you guys are listening and spreading the word. And a bunch of you have given us – I don't know if you knew this, Adam. we have a full five star rating. I don't want to jinx it, but we have a full five star rating on iTunes right now.

No way. iTunes podcast. And this is five stars out of five stars. So this is not like five out of a ten star system or something. Do you think it could have anything to do with us telling them over and over to give us five stars? Well. Give us five stars. Give us five stars.

That reminds me we have to record a new outro. Actually, we haven't been saying that enough. But no, if you guys are enjoying the show. You know what? Even if you're not enjoying the show, if you're not enjoying the show, why you keep listening? Yeah, it's weird. Riddle me that. No, but whatever your heart tells you, if you give us some rating and give us a little review, maybe throw us a little love on the iTunes, you know, podcast page. That would be great. We would appreciate it. It really helps get exposure and get it spread around. We, Adam and I both have active music and education career. So we basically are just recording these podcasts and letting them roll. So if you got a little bit of time to give us some love, we. We'd appreciate it. That's right. And, you know, this episode is about how jazz brings people together across the world.

And I'm so happy that this podcast could be a part of it. But, man, this has been happening, I think, for both of us for years, if not decades, of, you know, getting to know awesome people, really cool folks from everywhere because of this great music. And it just makes me feel really grateful, especially to the people who made this music what it is. If you think about, you know, what jazz is, it's really just a, a very simple structure for expression that was brilliantly designed over the course of a few decades, and now we have this sort of tradition of it. And, man, I'm so grateful that we get to do this and express ourselves and then meet cool people

who think the same way about it as us. Right, right. Well, I mean, I think, and for all of you listening out there, I think it's, you know, it's really jazz that brings us together, you know, and gives us a little bit of a chance to talk with you guys, talk amongst ourselves, but hopefully have it be interesting because we're talking about jazz. Because believe me, if Adam and I were to talk about food or something else that we're interested in, it would not be nearly as interesting, I think, to you as it is talking about jazz. I'd listen to that. Yeah, that's right. But truly, yeah, I mean, I agree, Adam. I'm

very, very grateful for this music and in what you're talking about it being a perfectly designed art form. It really is. And it's also exciting because it was organically formed. This was not something that, you know, nowadays, if there's going to be a movement or an artistic flair or some kind of thing, it's like everybody wants to get online and form a website or a Facebook group or kind of engineer it to be what it can be. And that's fine, and that can work sometimes. But, I mean, jazz came along at a time when, you know, the recording capabilities and industry was just sort of starting. So it was sort of luck that it came along at that time so that the music could get spread around the country and then around the world pretty fast. and I think you look at the rapid development of the music that had a lot to do with it, you know, with these having recordings, whereas other musical art forms kind of got stuck in their regions

because no one else heard them unless you traveled there. And so when we talk about bringing people together around the world, you've got, you know, more accessibility to travel, more accessibility to the music moving around. But that in itself wouldn't mean anything. If you have bad ideas or bad sounds, no one's going to be interested in it. But people kind of latched on to this. And then as to your point of their being. people that are like, wow, I want to be part of this. It wasn't necessarily I want to be part of these people. It's like, I want to be part of this idea that people have created and I want to

give my contribution, be it as a listener or a player or producer or just kind of part of that community. Super cool. That's right. And you know, another thing that about it is it just feels good. You know, I think that's why it's reached so far and wide is you've been in other countries where there's no like, you know, huge jazz tradition, but you could see it on people's faces. Yeah. When the groove kicks in, when, And a solo is really like, you know, pop in when everything's happening right. It makes people in Albania or Tokyo or wherever, Africa, like, bob their heads. There's the three most like offbeaten places you could think of us.

Albania, Tokyo and improvising. Well, that's interesting, too. That's like a country, a city, and a continent. It was very well represented. I was trying to be diverse there. But, you know what I'm saying. No matter where you go, when you get that feeling, when you are shi, sharing that feeling, that spirit of the music, that groove, that swing, you know, and you're with some really masterful improvisers.

The whole building that you're playing in feels the same as it does whether you're there or whether you're, you know, in Philadelphia. You know what I mean? The cultural aspect of it doesn't seem to matter as much as that feeling of it. Right. I mean, the jazz mentality is just awesome. I think, you know, all around, musicians, listeners, everything. And so it's so fun to be part of it from the performance side or from the listening side. It's really a community.

And it just attracts really cool, smart, interesting people and that want to sort of live that jazz lifestyle. And it's not necessarily, it's not, not only not necessarily. It is not what has typically been shown, you know, old school Hollywood as far as the jazz lifestyle, which would be strung out on a corner. Yeah. You know, it really isn't that. It is people that have a creative, spontaneous, and smart approach to life. That's what the jazz mentality is.

And a very democratic approach to life, you know, where everybody can kind of have their say in a conversation. And very confident, too. I would say people that are into jazz as listeners, maybe as a byproduct somewhat of it being a little bit offbeat and harder to find and understand. But they're very confident, smart people in general. I mean, you have to be to be a listener of this music. I agree.

I'm being elitist? Sorry. I agree. But I kind of. also think you might be kissing up to our listeners a little bit? A little bit. Love you guys. You're the best.

Well, you know, like we said, thank you so much for being a part of this. This is really, you know, something that we just love doing and love being a part of. I feel very lucky to do. Yep. You'll hear it. Thanks for listening to this episode of the You'll Hear It podcast. If you liked what you heard, please leave a rating or review. Yeah, I liked what I heard.

I'm going to leave five stars, but you guys can do whatever you want. Today's episode was brought to you by Open Studio. Jazz Lessons from Jazz Legends. Check out our brand new All Access Pass. All Access. What is that? Like one or two courses you get? Dude, I said all access.

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