Every so often I hear some students around the college say about jazz that it’s easy – “You can play anything because there are no rules!”
Now probably they’re being facetious, but at least some musicians believe that, a little bit. Some classical musicians truly believe that somehow it’s easier to play improvisational music like jazz, because you can just make it up as you go.
Put aside that the “no rules” idea is bonkers! There are lots of rules, history, stylistic variance, performance practice, and complexity that jazz musicians must master to be effective on the bandstand.
All of those things are nothing compared to the really hard part of live jazz performance: being truly, deeply in the moment. It can look and sound loose, but it’s both tightly controlled and free. The musicians let go even as they lean on their training and practice. They react in the moment to what’s going on around them, while retaining the thread connecting them to the song they’re improvising on. Reaction in the moment takes the forefront as the musicians let go and play.
When it works, it’s both masterful and ephemeral – lightning in a bottle.
This kind of music making doesn’t only happen with improvisation, though. Any collaborative music can achieve this level of moment-to-moment letting go, and the results are magical.