Jazz without Leaving the House

One thing that makes things difficult as a jazz musician in a small town is the limited (if any) chances to see/hear live jazz and it can be hard to “feel” your way through band leadership and stage management/presence without it. So, what I wanted to do was give some resources for musicians and, at the same time, maybe give newbe listeners some places to explore jazz without having to drop the money on going to a show that they may or may not like. I want to start with video; then we'll move to audio.

VIDEO

Probably, no, definitely, at the top of my list for online jazz is the live feed from Smalls Jazz Club in NY, NY. After the flash intro, the schedule will load and you can click a link on the left to go to the “Live Video.” If you’re not diggin’ the cats that are playing or can’t be in front of a screen when it comes on, you can go to the audio archive and listen to past performances of many of the artists. Seeing musicians you look up to play/lead WHILE the are actually on stage doing it can be an invaluable resource.

Another great place to stream great videos is Jazz Corner’s JazzVission. There, anyone can upload footage of any group playing jazz. There are videos of bands at private parties, showcases, and any other performance situation you can fathom.

Of course, we all know about YouTube but many don’t really know just how much you can find on there. One particular channel, Jazz Video Guy , ran by Bret Primack has a steady flow of great jazz videos. You can also find him at All About Jazz, another great site for jazz videos and audio.

AUDIO

Back in December,Jason Parker (@1WorkinMusician), a jazz trumpeter/blogger (and helluva nice guy) from Seattle wrote a blog called “10 Jazz Resources You Should Follow on Twitter” which covered some of these (along with several different ones). While the following is not focused on Live jazz, they do give you access to live tracks. But hey, studio tracks are important, too, ya know.

My main source for internet jazzphonia is last.fm. You can listen for free, it has iPhone, Droid, and Xbox 360 apps, and it can keep up with everything you play on all your devices. It makes suggestions and lets you stream music from your own library so you can have it when you aren’t by a hard drive.

AccuJazz (@accujazzradio) has an awesome selection of jazz channels. You can pick or experiment with different types all day.

Another is Curt’s Cafe. Curtis (@curtjazz) provides a great selection and now has a blog and a Youtube channel. His blog reviews albums and makes great suggestions for your listening pleasure.

The internet can bring pretty much anything you need straight to you. Don't be afraid of that search engine; USE IT. There are so many great things to read, watch and listen to. This list is just what I use on a regular basis. If there is something you use, comment it below OR email it to me and I may add it to this blog.