No jazz at Juilliard

In today’s of the Trumpet Dynamics podcast, hot off the press, player/teacher/author extraordinaire Chris Gekker talks about how the playing of jazz was at one time forbidden in the sacred halls of the Juilliard School.

Chris is no spring chicken, we’re talking the 60’s here, and Juilliard has since rectified the issue. But believe it or not, an aspiring classical player could find his or herself in hot water if the likes of Miles Davis, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane were heard emanating from their practice room.

“Bartok or Bust” I suppose was the mantra of the day.

It apparently didn’t occur to the powers that be of the era that a creative outlet like jazz could actually help develop an appreciation for music that is hundreds of years old; how understanding music written in response to the issues of the day could foster an appreciation for music written in say 1820 as a response to issues of that day.

At any rate, this is not to criticize Juilliard, nor any mode of teaching. I just find it interesting that was the way people thought in those days.

History is sometimes sordid, but if we forget it, or tear down hallmarks commemorating it, we can never learn from it.

At any rate, you can listen to the entire conversation with Chris Gekker here: https://flowjn.com/gekker

It’s a good one!