Description
It is The SoCal Jazz Society's goal to educate San Diego school children about the American Art Form of Jazz Music through an intensive Artist-In-Residency program. Unlike concerts where students are given a quick overview of a type of music, SoCal Jazz’s program is designed to leave students with an in-depth understanding of the history (blues, spirituals, call & response singing of the American slaves), rhythm (syncopation, meter and time signature), melody and improvisation identification, and the cultural contributions of Brazilian, Afro-cuban and French cultures.
The students keep a Jazz Journal wherein they write their own blues and spiritual lines, keep track of the many jazz greats and jazz tunes they are exposed to in the class, and write down the jazz concepts they learn.
All of the lessons are directly linked to the Common Core National Standards for Music in Education (to be adopted by San Diego City Schools next year). The Visual and Performing Arts Department of SDUSD is behind the program and would like to see it offered in upper elementary, middle and high schools. Radio Station KSDS 88.3 FM is behind the program and the program is also in the yearly brochure offerings of Classics for Kids as their Artist in Residency Program.
