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Bradley Sowash News, Summer 2010

Dear Friends and Fans,

I've hit some kind of lucky streak or critical mass in my career. For the first time ever, I'm being offered more opportunities than I am able to accept. It's great to be in demand but also tough to keep up with it all sometimes!

Of particular interest is a recent work, titled "Can't Resist the Music," that was commissioned for the New American Music Project by a grant from the Johnstone Fund for New Music. The premier performance featured Chamber Music Connection's Young Artists and the Columbus Children's Choir. Here’s the direct link to the performance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_FMsPZGHz0 While there, I encourage you to read about my inspirations for this piece in the program notes that are included with the video.

I was recently handed a DVD or a performance from last summer that I didn't even know existed. It's an impromptu jam session with jazz violin sensation, Christian Howe. We performed this unrehearsed rendition of George Gershwin's "Lady Be Good" at Chamber Music Connection's summer festival faculty concert in Worthington, Ohio. Check it out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNYT-b7Op14

If you enjoy these very occasional newsletters (the last time I sent one was around Christmas) and would like more frequent updates, you might consider following my professional activities on either of these social networks:

The rest of this newsletter format is divided into sections so you can jump to the information that is most relevant:

FANS

Upcoming Concert Dates:

Petoskey, Michigan
Aug 1, 2, 2010
Bay View Association

Lakeside, OH
Aug 4, 2010
Lakeside, The Chautauqua on Lake Erie

Austin, TX
August 6 - 7, 2010
National Group Piano and Pedagogy Forum

STUDENTS

Pianists: I have a few slots opening up in my private teaching studio in the Fall due to graduating seniors. They fill up fast and I usually have a waiting list by the end of August so get in touch soon if you want to learn to play more creatively.

Pianists: How would you like to play personal renditions of tunes everyone knows in just a few weeks? I offer a range of creative music making classes for all levels from first timers through advanced and even piano teachers. Learn more here or call Carol Argiro at 614.294.5200

All Instruments: Life’s too short to play the same music twice. Learn to improvise at my Jazz Workshop sponsored by Chamber Music Connection.

TEACHERS

Teacher Training
I hope to see you at one of my workshops this summer where I'll be helping teachers unlock the mysteries of playing by ear.
Here's the schedule:

Burnsville, MN (Twin Cities)
July 26, 2010
Schmitt Music
"That's Jazz" showcase & clinic

Brooklyn Center, MN (Twin Cities)
July 27, 2010
Schmitt Music
"That's Jazz" showcase & clinic

Endina, MN (Twin Cities)
July 28, 2010
Schmitt Music
"That's Jazz" showcase & clinic

Emporia, KS
July 29, 2010
Flints Hills Music
"That's Jazz" showcase & clinic

Long Beach, CA
July 30, 2010
Alley Kat Music
"That's Jazz" showcase & clinic

Austin, TX
August 6 - 7, 2010
National Group Piano and Piano Pedagogy Forum
Clinics and Recital

Columbus, OH
August 10, 2010
Ohio Music Teachers Association - Central East District
Scale Olympics Workshop with Cynthia Adams

Are you active in your local music teacher’s association? Consider bringing me in for your next event as a guest speaker or workshop leader. Learn more about my workshops for teachers here: 

New Books
I have three new educational books coming out in late August as a part of my “Tha'’s Jazz” series. The publisher requests that I stay mum about the details but here’s a hint: You’ll want to start your students on them early so they’ll be ready for the holidays. Watch my website or Facebook Fan page for an announcement soon. They are going to be sooooo awesome!!!

Review
My “That's Jazz” Performance books have been getting thoughtful and kind reviews. Here's the most recent:

Bradley Sowash's That's Jazz performance series is intended as a complement and supplement to the That's Jazz core method books, and each book begins with a chart correlating pieces between the books. Even within the performance series alone, Sowash impressively combines a presentation of solid repertoire with basic lessons about scales, style, embellishment, and harmony.

The repertoire is comprised of brief-two-to-three page-compositions with an emphasis on rock and straight-eighth styles like reggae, West African kalimba music, and boogies. Since the tunes, especially in the earlier-level books, use very few chords, students have the opportunity to learn scales and improvisation. Because of the simple harmonies, the pieces aren't extremely fascinating, but they are catchy, rhythmic, and fun and serve their pedagogical purposes quite well. "Surf Board," from Book 1, for example, is a rock piece using the chords C, F, and G. Sowash employs these three chords to teach "boogie bass," challenging students to experiment with their own variations of simple left-hand accompaniment patterns below the repetitive melody. "Jamaican Jam' from Book 2 is a reggae with simple minor harmony that correlates to lessons about improvising with arpeggios and their inversions.

One of the strengths of the book is the presence of options; each piece is accompanied by a duet part, suggestion for MIDI sounds, lyrics, and an improvisation challenge. There are also downloadable accompaniments from the Kjos multimedia library. I love that each piece includes chord symbols; student can become accustomed to thinking of harmony as independent from the specific notes and chords, even if the student are not yet improvising.

When Sowash does ask student to improvise, the assignments are generally simple: embellishing the melody, moving up and down a scale, or adding rhythms to the left hand. Even the most stubbornly improvisation-resistant students should be capable of these tasks, and example are always provided just in case. While Books 1 and 2 focus on building a musical foundation, Book 3 introduces principles of phrasing-call and response, trading fours, and rhythmic variation-and more complicated chord-scale relationships.

The That's Jazz performance series capably mixes repertoire and pedagogy, providing a fine introduction to the possibilities of music creation. - Jeremy Siskind for Clavier Companion

Learn more about the That's Jazz series here:

CHOIR AND/OR BAND DIRECTORS

Holiday Concert Concept
Plan ahead for your holiday concerts next year. Combine your choir and instrumental ensemble for a Christmas concert they will never forget! I now have 10 jazz arrangements of Christmas favorites for SATB choir and 17 musicians. Last year’s premier had an enthusiastic standing room only audience. You could do the same thing at your church or academic institution. Get in touch to learn more.

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