The Aragon Jazz Bands were busy this January, performing at the Double Exposure Jazz concert and hosting the California Music Education Association (CMEA) Jazz Festival.
The Double Exposure Jazz concert, held at Hillsdale High School on Jan. 15, featured the Aragon Jazz Band and Jazz Ensemble, Hillsdale Jazz Ensemble, and a brass quintet of Aragon and Hillsdale students called Scarlet Brass.
Senior Alton Olson, drummer in Aragon’s Jazz Ensemble, says, “It’s nice to have the combined community between both schools come together. The whole concert [ended] up being a little bigger. We [got] to listen to Hillsdale while they [got] to listen to us … It’s like these two jazz communities that are overlapped between both schools [came] together. We played with a lot of these people before in other bands over the summer or previously in middle school, so there are a lot of connections here.”
Olson adds, “It’s a little different than usual because this [was] our second week getting back from winter break, and we [hadn’t] really had a lot of time to work on all these songs, especially since we’re playing so many. So, there’s a little more pressure than usual to get all our stuff together before the concert actually [happened].”
Bass player junior Andrew Kwong adds, “I was nervous at first, but I felt like I could overcome it. Having fun out there is all that matters. I like what I’m doing and the people I’m with, and there is nothing that can really go wrong.”
One week later, local high school and middle school jazz bands flocked to Aragon on Jan. 22-23 for the CMEA festival. This two day event offered an opportunity for bands to receive feedback from three judges, who are all accomplished educators and musicians. Each band’s performance is rated according to various criteria and given a score out of 100 by each judge. Jazz Ensemble was awarded a Unanimous Superior, meaning that all three judges gave them a score over 90, and Jazz Band got a Superior.
Senior Rachel Veneziano says, “I like the more friendly vibe because I think that all the bands are at slightly different levels, and it’s difficult to compete against other schools that have different schedules — some groups only meet once a week, some meet everyday. It’s hard to put them on the same level. So, I like the more friendly vibe, just everyone competing against their personal best.”
Some students prefer a competitive atmosphere as it evokes motivation to grow and achieve ever-greater feats.
Junior Timoteo Cruz, a member of the Hillsdale Jazz Ensemble, says, “For me, personally, I love competition because someone just telling you, ‘You’re really good,’ or, ‘You’re really killin’,’ can be almost a deterrent to push yourself. But if I see that there are people better than me, it usually gets me into the mindset that I need to get better based on that.”
While there is not much interaction between bands during the festival, which limits the competitive nature of the event, players are able to listen to other bands before and after their own performance.
Junior Ricky Dolan says, “There are always a few bands that people look forward to hearing at each CMEA festival. You can get some solo ideas here and there, but it’s more just enjoying the music.”
Senior Ryan Svenson concurs, “[CMEA} brings schools together. We are able to listen to each other and see how we’re doing. We all get to enjoy jazz, you know?”
