It saddens me to write this but, going from the Colonel Grey Jazz band to the UPEI Jazz Band was a let down.
I assumed that because it was University it would be way way better than Highschool.
It wasn't.
There was an abundant lack of interest by the members of the band and through no fault of the director, Dave Shephard, things just never cooked.
There were moments of course, and one of the most valuable things I've learned about rhythm in music came from being part of that ensemble.
When Dave was trying to figure out a complex rhythm he'd use his two hands....he'd beat out the smallest duration of note in the rhythm, usually the 16th note, constantly on his chest....so constant 16th notes..always alternating left and right hands....and what he'd do was accent the actual rhythm of the music by hitting himself harder and vocalizing the rhythmic pattern with nonesense sounds...Daaaaaa Da Da Da Daaaa DA!
it sounds strange but man does it work....it really makes you feel what is going on in the rhythm and makes you internalize it - when you go to play it you feel those constant 16ths but you play the actual rhythm and 9 times out of 10...you'll nail it!
Thanks Dave!