With changing directors, clubs, and hosts, Harding\u2019s Spring Sing has seen numerous changes to its cast over the years, but through it all, the participation of the university\u2019s Jazz Band has been nearly constant. This year\u2019s Spring Sing show, \u201cCurtain Up,\u201d marks the 42nd year that the Jazz Band has participated as the production\u2019s primary instrumental accompaniment.<\/p>\n
The band has been a part of the Harding music program since the 1960s, specializing in blues, swing, funk, latin and contemporary music styles. The band plays several independent\u00a0 shows each year, but according to Dr. Andrew Cook, assistant professor of music at Harding and the Jazz Band\u2019s director since 2015, Spring Sing is the band\u2019s biggest event of the year.<\/p>\n
\u201cSpring Sing is always the big highlight of the spring semester for us, because we end up learning nine or ten new pieces for Spring Sing,\u201d Cook said.<\/p>\n
Like Spring Sing\u2019s hosts and performers, the Jazz Band practices every day of the week leading up to the performances, and according to Cook, the rigorous practice schedule is not the only challenge faced by his performers.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you sit down with a jazz band, if you\u2019re paying third trombone, you\u2019re the only person playing third trombone, and you\u2019re the only person on that part,\u201d Cook said. \u201cSo there\u2019s a lot more accountability, as it\u2019s one person to a part. You have to learn your part, and you have to be responsible for it, and you have to play it well for the band to play it well.\u201d<\/p>\n
The band consists of about 18 students of various majors, and boasts five saxophones, four trombones, five trumpets, a piano, bass, guitar and drums.<\/p>\n
Junior music education major Devin Daniel has been involved with a jazz band since the sixth grade, and has participated in Harding\u2019s band program since his freshman year. He currently performs as the Jazz Band\u2019s principal trumpet. According to Daniel, the unique experience of the Jazz Band has been a positive one.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a great experience because it\u2019s learning how to be a part of a show but not being the<\/p>\n
main event,\u201d Daniel said.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s not just starting a song and ending a song, it\u2019s following along making sure that we know where we are and doing a lot of listening. It\u2019s a good professional experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Cook, only four of the 18 members of the Jazz Band are not music majors, and he complimented them on their commitment, not only to his program, but to the Harding band program at large, as being involved in multiple bands often requires students to participate in at least one practice each day of the week.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have really talented and really committed students. And it\u2019s just a different style and a different type of music for them to play and I think that they get excited about it as well,\u201d Cook said. \u201cThere is tremendous dedication there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Each year, the band performs two of their own arrangements for the Spring Sing audience in each half of the show. Cook attempts to connect the band\u2019s songs to the greater show as a whole, so this year he chose two broadway songs to fit the theme. After searching for the perfect fits, he found an arrangement of \u201cI Just Can\u2019t Wait to Be King\u201d that he thought would complement the show. Cook also arranged \u201cDon\u2019t Break The Rules\u201d for host Renee Maynard\u2019s solo, an arrangement that he is especially proud of.<\/p>\n
Daniel stressed the closeness of the group when it comes to practicing and performing, noting that there is a friendly rivalry between the stage performers and musicians, which has contributed to this year\u2019s experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the amount of time spent on the bandstand, just playing with people that I enjoy playing with, and the reality is that there is a separation between the singers and dancers and the band, and so its fun having a little feud going on,\u201d Daniel said. \u201cIt\u2019s all good fun and games but it\u2019s kind of a bonding thing with the band, because we\u2019re the instrumentalists and they\u2019re the performers. So we\u2019ve become a tight-knit group.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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