Guild Hall Open Day

Thursday 10 November

Spent a whole day at the Guild Hall open day. Loads of tallented jazz musicians and a relaxed atmosphere - will try to do a year full time here I think. Heard the latest up and coming piano player Rick - very slick. If you need a scratch band these kids are worth talking to and will play for peanuts, living on a student loan in London is not easy. The new building they have planned will make this the best London conservatoire for jazz IMHO, in the meantime they have a basement of the accommodation block which is a real jazz club dive atmosphere.

I was impressed the way their jam was all done from memory, made me realize how little 'standards' jamming I have done in the last couple of years. I need to learn a decent repertoire from memory - going to start with the ones they played in the jam - really should know these but it is funny how you rely on the charts un less you make an effort.

Autumn Leaves
All the things you are
Have you met miss jones

will look up the Aebersold 'must learn list'.

Listening to

Stanley Clarke, Al Di Meola "The Rite of Strings"

this is my kind of music, but must get these standards learnt....