The Most Important Secret to Becoming a Monster Jazz Musician

By Chris Punis

Let’s face it, you didn’t get into music because your best friend told you about this hip new thing called “practicing scale patterns” or “ear training interval drills.” You got into music because you heard something that made you stop dead in your tracks and say, “Damn that sounds good.” It made you want to dance, shout, and jump around your room like a fool (or am I just weird?).

There was something different about this music. You connected with it. It lit a fire in your belly, which, despite the world’s best efforts to extinguish it, is still burning, or else you wouldn’t be reading this email.
Then a few years later—while trying to simultaneously learn to voice lead, play Trane’s solo on “Giant Steps,” transcribe the head to “Ornithology,” groove in 7, swing at 350 BPM, understand the Lydian Chromatic Concept, play a bossa nova, memorize scale patterns #1-76 from your chain-smoking, coffee-chugging teacher’s book and learn to play a second instrument—you realized that something wasn’t working.

And to make matters worse, you haven’t seen your girlfriend/boyfriend in a month, done your laundry or paid your electric bill (hope you play an acoustic instrument). If this sounds familiar, then your values may be out of whack. In fact, you might have no idea what a value is, let alone what yours might be.
Your values are your priorities in life. They determine what’s important to you. They determine what you believe, who you are and, most importantly, what you do. All great musicians (and great people in general) know who they are and what they want. Their actions reflect it. They practice the important things, take the right chances, meet the right people and experience success and great achievements.

For instance, think about Thelonious Monk. Was he known for his ability to play at breakneck tempos? How about virtuosic piano technique? Then he must have been known for his beautiful voicings, right? Wrong. He wasn’t known for any of those things. He was known for his completely original sound and approach.

Nobody played rhythm like Monk, composed like Monk, or played as “colorfully” as Monk. He knew what he wanted his music to sound like and he played it that way. Imagine if Monk thought he had to have chops like Art Tatum, improvise in 5/4, or play funk. Luckily for us he didn’t. He played “his thing” only and he did it better than anyone else.
Whether they thought about it or not all of the masters played with great integrity and an intense code of values. Just think about Ornette Coleman, Miles Davis, Charles Mingus, Duke Ellington, Eric Dolphy, Lester Young, Charlie Parker, Elvin Jones, etc. They all stuck to their values and played the music that was important to them, even in the face of intense criticism from the audience, the press and their peers. And in doing so they became monster jazz musicians. They created and transformed the art-form of jazz.

Here’s a sports analogy for you. Have you ever heard of an athlete who was a pitcher, catcher, outfielder, 1st baseman, shortstop, quarterback, center, goalie, fullback, gymnast, sprinter and a square dancer? Yeah, me too. We call them elementary school gym teachers, not world class athletes. Now, don’t get me wrong.
Gym teachers have a noble profession. But they don’t fit into the world-class athlete category. Or the “monster” category, for that matter.
Disclaimer: it is very important to expose yourself to a wide range of music, play different styles and learn different concepts. But you come to a point where you must focus more and more on music that’s truly important to you.
“But I’ve only been playing jazz for a year,” you might ask. “How can I choose my values?” Very good question. Your values will change as you learn and progress. Determining your values is an ongoing process. It never stops. Your values—and then your goals, and then your actions—become clearer and clearer as you go. And when this happens you progress faster and faster and become more and more productive. Choosing your values now brings focus to your practicing, listening and all of your musical activities. You’ll change and rearrange them over and over again, each time picking up speed and progressing faster.

To quote the great twentieth century spiritual master Mr. Rogers, “You’re special.” He was right. You are. Each of us has a unique set of experiences, dreams, goals and values. If you are true to yourself, and live by your own code of values, you are destined to become a truly individual and original voice in jazz. Faster than you ever thought possible.

Action Step 1:
Write down the names of your favorite players. What do you like about these players? What qualities in their playing are you drawn to? What could you do to develop those qualities in your own playing? Your answers will give you some big clues as to what’s important to you. Use these answers to decide what to practice, who to study with and who to play with.


Action Step 2:
Plan out your practice session before you start to practice (more about that in a few days). Then, as you go down the list, ask yourself, “Is that the most important thing I could be practicing? Is that skill important to me? Will it help me make the music that’s important to me? Or is it something I think I’m supposed to practice?” Again, use your answers to make choices about what to practice, who to play with.

Soon your practicing will be more focused, much more productive, and you’ll be sprinting to the practice room with a smile on your face (not to mention that you’ll also get more gigs).

Chris Punis is an active jazz musician in the Northeast. He is a co-founder of the critically acclaimed group Gypsy Schaeffer and a member of renowned saxophonist Charlie Kohlhase's group The Explorer's Club. Chris is also an accomplished jazz educator. For more information about his teaching methods visit www.learnjazzfaster.com
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