RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers

JazzTrombonePedagogy:ThreeCaseStudiesonMasterJazzTromboneTeachers
ShannonGunn
GeorgeMasonUniversity
July19,2015

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
Abstract
Thereisverylittleresearchregardingcollegiatejazzpedagogy,yettherehasbeenan
increaseinthedemandforjazzstudiesacrossinstitutionsofhigherlearningoverthelast
twodecades(Kearns,2011;Warner,2014;Watson,2010).Thisleavesagapinempirical
researchonwhattypeofinstructioncanreallyhelpmusiciansachievetheirhighestgoals
injazzimprovisationperformance.Thisstudyattemptstobuildonpreviousresearch
regardingjazztrombonepedagogythroughthreecasestudiesofmasterjazztrombone
teachers.Thepurposeofthisstudyistodocumentthecontent,sequence,andcultureof
instructionbythreemasterjazztromboneteachers:***,***,and***(insertnameshere
atstartofstudy).Accordingtothedata,thefollowingimportanttrendshaveemerged:
insertconclusionherewhendone.
Keywords:jazztrombone,jazzpedagogy,jazztrombonepedagogy,jazz
curriculum

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
Introduction
AccordingtoWatson(2010),asurveyofjazzpedagogyresearchliterature
includesfivethreads:
(a)Variablesthatpredictachievement,(b)ananalysisofjazzimprovisation
textbooks,(c)theeffectivenessofjazzimprovisationtextbooks,(d)theevaluation
ofjazzimprovisation,and(e)therelationshipbetweencreativityandjazz
improvisation(p.383).
Ananalysisoftheliteraturehasexposedagapinempiricalresearchontheeffectiveness
ofjazzpedagogicalmethodbooks,andspecifically,anyrecentresearchontheeffectsof
technologyonjazzpedagogy(Watson,2010).Becausethemajorityoftheresearch
methodbooksareoveradecadeold,Watsonconcludedthatcontentanalysesofrecently
producedpedagogicalmaterialsareneededinordertodetermineinstructionalapproaches
thatarecurrentlybeingemphasizedinjazzpedagogy(Watson,2010,p.389).
Additionally,Watson(2008)foundthatstudentslearnedtoimprovisebetterthroughan
auralapproachthanthroughnotation.Thiswouldcallintoquestionthegeneralreliability
ofusingmethodbookstoteachjazzimprovisation.
Additionally,thereisverylittleresearchonjazztrombonepedagogy(Gendrich,
2003,p.7).Thetrombonepresentsauniquesetofchallengesandopportunitiesfor
improvisationthatisseparatefromothertraditionaljazzinstruments.Whiletherehas
beensomerecentresearchoncollegiatejazzpedagogyingeneral(Kearns,2011;Libman,
2014;Louth,2012;Parsonage,Fadnes,&Taylor,2007;Prouty,2004;Watson,2008;
Wilf,2010;Wilf,2014)andatleastonemajorstudyonclassicaltrombonepedagogy

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
(Marston,2011),therehasonlybeenonestudyspecifictojazztromboneinstruction
(Gendrich,2003).TheGendrich(2003)studydidnotincludeanyfilterforqualityjazz
tromboneinstruction,butconsistedofasurveysenttoawiderangeofprofessorswho
playedjazztromboneandtaughtjazzimprovisationclasses,perhapsfortrombone,but
alsoperhapsforotherinstrumentsaswell.Whenaskedaboutassignments,one
respondentansweredthattheyassigntranscriptionsbutmystudentsusuallyfindthis
tootedious;theyarewrongofcourse,butfewtakeuponit(Gendrich,2003,page132).
Inotherwords,thelackofmotivationoftrombonestudentsmayhavecontributedtothe
designofinstruction.Wouldthisbethesameinasuccessfultrombonestudio?More
researchisneededtoseewhichsortsofassignmentsareusedinasettingwherethe
studentsaremotivatedtosucceed.
AccordingtoWatsonssurveyofresearchliterature,threetrendshaveemerged
thatsuggestapredictionofjazzimprovisationachievement:(a)jazztheory,(b)aural
imitation,and(c)selfevaluation(Watson,2010).WhiletheGendrich(2003)studydoes
findthatjazztheoryandauralimitationaretaughtinjazztrombonelessons,therewasno
instrumentinthesurveythatdealtwiththeprocessofselfevaluation.Thesurveywas
designedtogetasenseofwhatprofessorswereteachingacrossawiderangeofcolleges
anduniversities.
Therefore,giventhelackofresearchonjazzimprovisationpedagogy,aswellas
thelackofresearchtoanalyzetherelationshipbetweeninstructionalpedagogyand
success,additionalresearchisneededtodeterminewhatmakesasuccessfulprivatejazz
trombonestudio.Thishasalreadybeendonefortheclassicalsideoftromboneplaying

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
throughadoctoraldissertationonJanKagarice,masterclassicaltromboneteacheratthe
UniversityofNorthTexas(Marston,2011).Dr.KarenMarstontookfieldnotes,
interviewedstudents,metwiththeteacher,andobservedlessonsonthreedifferent
occasionsthroughouttheschoolyear,collectingovertwentyhoursofaudioandvideo
recordingsforanalysis.Thisstudyaimstoimitatethequalitativemethodsandtechniques
usedbyMarston(2011)butappliedtomasterjazztromboneteachers.

LiteratureReview
TheGendrichStudy:HowHaveThingsChanged?
TheonlystudyonjazztrombonewasadoctoraldissertationbyGendrich(2003)
inwhichsheadministeredasurveytooverseventyjazztromboneteachersacrossthe
nation.Only77%oftheprofessorssurveyedactuallytaughtjazztrombonelessons.This
meansthat23%ofthesurveyresultswerefrominstructorswhodidnotteachjazz
trombonedirectly,butperhapstaughtajazzimprovisationclassorajazzbandclassto
mixedinstruments.Therefore,someoftheresultsmaynotapplytojazztromboneormay
notbeinformedbyteachingjazztrombonespecifically.Additionally,only9ofthe56
respondershadajazzstudiesdegree.Thismeansthat84%oftheparticipantshadnever
experiencedajazzcurriculumoracademicprogressionofstudyonhowtoimprovise.
Thiscouldcreateanauthenticandcreativeapproach,oritcouldalsomeanthatthose
surveyedmaynotevenknoworhaveanyexperiencewiththecollegiatelevelofjazz
pedagogy.

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
Additionally,anewthreadhasemergedoverthelastdecaderegardingcollegiate
jazzinstructionthatisnotdiscussedinWatsons(2010)surveyofjazzpedagogyresearch
literature,norismentionedintheGendrich(2003)study.Thereiscurrentlyadebatein
theresearchliteratureabouttheeffectivenessofthetheoreticalcollegiatepedagogical
approachversusthepracticalapproach(Louth,2012;Prouty,2004;Warner,2010;
Wilf,2010;Wilf,2012).ThepracticalapproachisdefinedbyProuty(2004)as
immersingoneselfinthestyleofjazzthroughjamsessionsandpracticesessionswith
othermastermusicians.Althoughthetwoapproachesinformeachother,theirdifferences
maycreateariftinjazzeducationphilosophy(Louth,2012;Wilf,2010).Onemight
arguethatthecollegiatesetting,whichisdescribedasthetheoryorscalesapproach
byProuty(2012),precludesitsmusiciansfrommorecreativeachievementbecauseall
studentstendtosoundthesame(Louth,2012;Wilf,2010).Allstudentslearnthesame
scales,learntoapplytheminthesameway,andthussoundsimilarwhenimprovising.
Whilebebopandmodaltunesmayneedascalesbasedapproach,thedevelopmentof
artistryasajazzmusicianmayrequiretheconstantsheddingofthesefundamentalsto
createasenseofcreativity(Wilf,2010).
AccordingtoWilf(2010),trendshaveemergedinjazzpedagogyeducationin
whichstudentsaretaughttoutilizemusclememorytocallupscalesandlickswhile
performingjazzimprovisation,whichisacompletelynoncreativeaction.Specifically,a
teacherinhisstudyreferredtothosewholearnlicksandrecalluponmusclememoryas
buttonpushers.Thisteacherencouragedstudentstopracticevocabularyeverydayso
thatthenotescouldbepulledupatamomentsnoticewithoutanythought(Wilf,2010).

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
Theconsequenceofthisapproachisthatmanystudentssoundthesamebecausetheypull
fromthesamescalesandvocabularyfortheirimprovisedsolos(Louth,2012;Wilf,
2010).Wilf(2010)writes,inregardstotheNewYorkbasedschoolhestudiedcalled
CommonwealthUniversity:
TheyoftenreferredtotheschoolasChordsRUs,adaptingthenameofthe
gianttoyretailerToysRUsandthuspointingtotheiruneasewiththeschools
roleinencouragingandperpetuatingrelianceonmassmediatedcodificationand
inculcationofmusicalknowledge,whichareheldtobeconducivetostandardized
playing(p.568).
Infulldisclosure,thestudentsatCommonwealthUniversityaspartofWilfs(2010)
studyarealsotaughtthattheyneedtobuildtheirmusclememoryandthen,onlyafter
theyhavebuilttheirtechniquetoacertainlevel,tocheckthattheydontsoundlikeany
otherstudent.HestatedthattheteachersatCommonwealthUniversitywould
stresstimeandagaintheimportanceofincorporatingthevocabularyofjazz
intostudentsplayingbodiesuntiltheycanplayitunconsciously,buttheyalso
instructstudentstoconstantlymonitortheirplayingforsignsofembodiedplaying
habitsthatresultinimprovisationresemblingthatofotherstudents(Wilf,2010,
p.564).
Indeed,accordingtoProutysresearch(2004),jazzstudentsseemtofeelpressuredto
choosebetweenthepathsofindividualismandcreativityontheonehand,andtechnique
andtheoreticalabstractionontheother.Whatlevelofcreativityandindividualismdo
themasterjazztromboneteachersallowtheirstudentstopursue?Whatistherelationship

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
betweencreativityandsuccessinjazztrombone?Thesearequestionswhichwerenot
answeredbytheGendrich(2003)studybutwouldhelpfurtherthediscussiononjazz
tromboneimprovisationpedagogy.Tromboneisnotalwaysastechnicalofaperformance
toolascomparedtosaxophone,piano,orguitar.Istheaestheticforsuccessfultrombone
performancebasedoffofsheetsofscalesandpatterns?Thereareveryfewtrombone
playersfromthe1950stothe1980sthatusedsheertechniquetobuildtheirperformance
profession.Thehistoricallineageoftheoreticalplayingisntthesamefortromboneas
whatyoumightfindinthehistoryoftrumpet,piano,saxophone,orguitar.Moreresearch
needstobedonetoanalyzetheapproachoftheuseofscalesandtheoryintrombone
performancepractice,aswellastheaestheticsofqualitytromboneplaying.
Gendrichsstudy(2003)foundthatthemajorityofcollegejazztrombone
professorslearnedbylisteningandplayingalongwithrecords,jamsessions,playingwith
otherstheirsameage,andpublishedmaterials(p.93).Themajority,77%,hadlearnedto
improvisein7thto12thgradeanddidnotconsidertheirsecondarymusicteacherstobeof
highinfluenceonhowtoimprovise(p.ii).100%ofthetromboneprofessorssurveyed
hadacollegedegree,buttheoverwhelmingmajoritymajoredinclassicaltrombone
performance.Allprofessorssurveyedtaughtjazzimprovisationtotromboneorother
instrumentalstudents.Inotherwords,themajorityofthejazztromboneprofessors
surveyedhadlearnedwiththepracticalapproachasdescribedinProutys(2003)study.
Additionally,Gendrichfoundthatscales,licks,andpatternswerethemostimportant
andmostoftenusedassignmentforjazztrombonelessons.Thiswouldindicatethatthe
jazztromboneteachershadusedapracticalapproachtolearningimprovisation,but

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
taughtwithascalesortheorybasedapproach.Moreresearchisneededtoseeifthisisthe
trendamongstthesuccessfuljazztromboneprofessorsaswellastofurtherexplorethe
differencebetweenhowjazztromboneprofessorslearnedtoplayandhowtheyteach
others.
TheGendrich(2003)surveyfoundthat40%(22/56)ofjazztromboneteachers
usedbookscalledtheJameyAebersoldPlayAlongseries(Aebersold,1979).These
booksincludesheetmusicwithbackingtracks.Thesebooksarehelpfulforlearningtunes
andeachbookcontainsapedagogicalapproachmadeupofalistofscalesintheback
thatmatcheachtypeofchordcalledtheScaleSyllabus(Aebersold,1979).Onceagain,
thisworkswellwiththecollegiatetheoryapproach(Prouty,2002),buttherearemany
differentwaystoteachjazzimprovisationotherthantheuseofscales.Forinstance,one
maylearnimprovisationfromexercisesbasedonrhythm,beboplanguage,guidetones,or
amyriadofotherexercisesotherthanscalesandlicks.Infact,almostalljazztrombone
instructorssurveyedintheGendrichstudylearnedjazzfromplayingalongwithrecords
(Gendrich,2003).Manytromboneteachersmentionedguidetonesinthesurvey,but
guidetoneswerenotdifferentiatedoutintoadifferentquestion(Gendrich,2003).
Gendrich(2003)alsonotedthattherewasawidevarietyofpedagogicalbooksand
techniquespresentedinthestudy,whichisareminderthatteachingisanartanddifferent
foreveryindividual.
AccordingtoWatson(2008),studentachievementforjazzimprovisation
increasedwhentaughtaurallyandwithoutnotation.Thisfindingmightindicatethat
readingascalebookmaynotbeaseffectiveasthesurveyindicates.TheGendrichstudy

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
didntaskhowtromboneprofessorsusedmethodbooks,onlywhichonestheyused.
Additionally,Watson(2008)usedvariousmethodsotherthanscalestodesignthe
instructionforhisstudy,includingmelodicrepetition,guidetones,scoops,melodic
sequencing,noterepetition,andemotiveexpression.Noneofthesetechniquesare
coveredinanydetailintheGendrichsurvey(Gendrich,2003).WhileWatsonsteaching
methodswereintendedtogivebeginnerinstructiontoclassicalmusiceducationstudents,
Gendrichsstudywasfocusedoncollegiateinstructionforfutureprofessionalmusicians.
AlthoughtheteachingtechniquespresentedintheWatson(2008)studyversusthe
Gendrich(2003)studymaynotberelatablebecausetheyhavedifferentaudiences,the
findingthatauralinstructionisbetterthannotatedinstructionmaybeanimportantfactor
injazzpedagogynonetheless.Additionally,Rosenthal(1984)foundthatstudents
achievedthehighestlevelofmusicalperformancewhentheyheardarecordingofapiece
ofmusicascomparedtoverbalinstructionorverbalinstructionwithaudio.
WhilethemajorityofjazztromboneprofessorsinGendrichsstudy(2003)cited
Aebersold(1979)booksasaprimarypedagogicaldevice,technologymayhave
influencedthistrendinthelastdecade.WhileoneusedtohavetopurchaseanAebersold
bookwithCDtohearabackingtrack,nowonecanaccessalmostanysongsbacking
trackwithanappcalledtheiRealPro,inanykeyoranytempoandwithvariousplaying
styles.Additionally,backingtracksareavailableforfreeonYouTubethroughvarious
providers.AllofthebackingtracksfromtheAebersoldbooksarealsoavailableforfree
streamingonSpotify.Apps,YouTube,andSpotifyhaveappearedsincethisstudywas
published.Additionally,thepricepointforhandheldrecordershascomedownwhilethe

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
qualityofthemicrophoneshasincreasedinthelasttenyears.Almosteverymusicianhas
ahighqualityhandheldrecordingdevicetorecordrehearsals,performances,andpractice.
Theinfluxoftechnologyhasallowedforbuddingmusicianstoposttheirmusiconline,
whichcanleadtoadditionalgigsandmoresuccessiftheirmusicispopular.
Additionally,anewpedagogicalvehiclehasemergedthroughtheuseofonlinevideoson
YouTubeorwebsitestoteachjazz.Thereisoneparticularpedagogicalmethod,calledby
manytheBarryHarrisMethod,whichhasnotbeendocumentedinanyoftheresearch
literature,buthasbeenusedbyalargenumberofsuccessfulNewYorkjazzmusicians.
BarryHarrisdoesnotteachinacollegiatesetting,butataseniorcenteracrossfrom
JulliardinNewYorkCity.HeholdsgrouplessonseveryTuesdayevening,fiftytwo
weeksoftheyear.Hestartswithapianoclass(usuallywith30studentsstandingaround
onepianovideotapinghishands)followedbyavocalmasterclassandthenan
instrumentallessonforthelasthalfhourorso.Despitethesetting,lackofadvertising,
lackofresearch,andlackofrecognition,hispedagogyisnolesshelpfulorinfluential.He
hasbeenabletoreachtheentireworldviahiswebsiteandYouTubevideosandasa
resulttouristscomefromallovertheworldtoattendhisgrouplessons.Furtherresearch
isneededtodeterminehowtechnologyhaschangedjazzpedagogyanddistribution.
Newresearchneedstobeconstructedregardinghowtechnologyhasinfluenced
theconsumptionofmusicandhowthathasinformedjazzpedagogy.Listeningtomusic
andplayingalongwithrecordingsisregularlylistedassomeofthemostimportant
techniquesinlearningorteachingjazzimprovisation(Gendrich,2003;Watson,2010).
AccordingtoGendrich(2003),theprocessoflisteningandplayingalongwithrecordings

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
wasrankedasthemostimportanttechniqueinteachingjazztrombone.Thisprocessof
listeningmayormaynotbeinfluencedbytheenvironmentinwhichatrombone
professorteachers.Iftheyhavetheirownoffice,theymayhaveaplacetostoremedia
suchasCDsandVinyl.Otherwise,theymayhavetocarryeverythingwiththem.The
consumptionofmusichasbeenrevolutionizedbytechnologyandisanextremely
importantpartoflearningjazz.Doestheeasyandunlimitedaccesstojazzmusicinform
thepedagogicalprocess?
AccordingtoWatson,thethreelargestpredictionsofjazzimprovisationsuccess
are:(a)jazztheoryknowledge;(b)auralimitation;and(c)selfevaluationof
improvisationskill(Watson,2010).AccordingtoGendrichssurvey(2003),calland
responseandtranscribingactivitiesrankedatthebottomoftechniquesusedbyjazz
tromboneteachers.Callandresponseissimilartoauralimitation.Isthislowemphasis
onauralimitationandtranscribingtrulyprevalentinmastertromboneteacherstudios?It
isdeemedasoneofthetopthreemostimportantwaystopredictjazzimprovisation
successaccordingtoWatson(2010).
TheArtofTeaching
Theartofteachinginvolvesnotonlythepedagogy,butalsotheprocessof
evaluationandthefeedbackcycle.Therewerenoquestionsaboutfeedbackand
evaluationintheGendrich(2003)study,butaccordingtoWatson(2010),theabilityto
selfcriticizeisoneofthemostimportantpredictorsofjazzimprovisationsuccess.
Additionally,Marston(2011)foundthattherewereseveralstrandsthatmastertrombone
teacherJanKagariceusedinherprivatestudiothatarecompletelydifferentfromthe

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master jazz trombone teachers
findingsintheGendrich(2003)study.JanKagariceisoneofthemosthighlyrespected
classicaltromboneteachersandiscurrentlytheAdjunctProfessorofTromboneatthe
UniversityofNorthTexas.Shehadmanystudentsgoontosucceedatclassicaltrombone
auditionsandcompetitions.Marston(2011)foundthatthefollowingfivestrandswithin
masterteacherJanKagaricesinstruction:
afocusonmetacognitiveskills,thephysiologicalconceptofformfollows
function,theuseofbothmacroandmicropacingindicativeofBruner's(1960)
SpiralCurriculumandMontessori(1912)/Seguin'sThreePeriodLesson,aholistic
modelforaccessingtheZoneofProximalDevelopment(Vygotsky,1978)
throughafivephasemodelofinstruction,andataxonomyforappliedinstruction
whichtargetsunifiedfunction(Dettmer,2006),orasynthesisofthecognitive,
affective,physical,andsociallearningdomains(Marston,2011,p.4).
Additionally,Marston(2011)foundthatKagariceusedanonbehavioristapproachto
instruction.Marston(2011)wrote:
AnalysisfocusedonKagarice'sassertionthatphysiologyisnotpedagogy,
meaningmusiclearningisnotaseriesofstepstobeundertaken,butaprocess;
thus,theprimaryemphasiswasonpedagogicalbehaviorsandgoals,ratherthana
prescriptiveapproachtobrassperformance(p.4).
Thisphilosophyistheoppositeofthescalesorprescribedapproachoutlinedinmany
jazzpedagogystudies(Louth,2010;Gendrich,2003;Prouty,2004;Wilf,2010).Infact,
thereisahugecontrastbetweenKagaricesapproachascomparedtothetypical
collegiatejazzpedagogyasoutlinedinWilfs(2010)observationsofCommonwealth

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master jazz trombone teachers
University.Isthisjazzrelatedbehavioristicapproachalsoprevalentinmasterjazz
tromboneteachersprivatestudios?
Newresearchisneededonmasterjazztromboneteacherstoseetheirbalance
betweenthebehavioristicapproach,asoutlinedinGendrichsstudy(2003)andthe
artisticormoreconstructivistpedagogyasoutlinedinMarstonsstudy(2011).
Additionally,thephilosophiesofjazztromboneprofessorsneedtobestudiedto
determineiftheyfallinlinewiththetypicalbuttonpusherapproach.Thetromboneisa
uniqueinstrumentinthatithasnobuttons,andcertainlicksorscalesmaybemore
difficulttoperformoutofmemoryascomparedtoasaxophone.Researchisneededto
seehowmasterjazztromboneinstructionissimilartoordifferentfromthetypical
standardizedcollegiatecurriculum.
ThepurposeofthisstudyistoadministerthesameGendrich(2003)surveytoa
selectgroupofmasterjazztromboneprofessors(3),andthenbuildupontheiranswers
withadditionalqualitativeresearchbasedonthereviewoftheliterature.Themethodand
designofthequalitativeresearchwillbemodeledaftertheMarston(2011)study.
ResearchPurposeandQuestions
Thepurposeofthisstudyistodeterminetheteachingtechniquesandjazz
improvisationpedagogyofmasterjazztromboneteachersthroughcloseobservationof
theirteachingtechniques,studiolessons,andinterviews.UsingtheGendrich(2003)
surveyasacatalystandMarstons(2011)casestudyasaguideformethod,thisstudy
willshedsomelightintotheteachingphilosophiesandtechniquesofmasterjazz
tromboneteachers.

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master jazz trombone teachers
Thefollowingquestionswillbeused:
1. WhataretheirresponsestotheGendrich(2003)survey,andhowdotheiranswers
differ(ifatall)fromGendrichs(2003)broadsurveyresults?
2. Howhastechnologyinfluencedinstructioninthelastdecade?
3. Howdomasterjazztromboneprofessorsteachjazzimprovisation?
a. Whatcurriculumandcontentdotheyfocuson?
b. Whattechniquesdotheyhavestudentsusetolearnsuchcontent?
c. Whatlearningtheoryapproachdotheyutilize?
i. Example:Dotheyuseabehavioristicapproach?Ifnot,what
strandsorcommonalitiesemergewithintheirteachingthatcould
becomparedtodifferentlearningtheories?
d. Howdotheymotivatestudents?
e. Howdoesthefeedbackcycleinforminstruction,includingstudentself
4.
5.
6.
7.

analysis?
Whatpredictsjazztromboneimprovisationachievement?
Whatmethodbooksdotheyteacheruse,andhowdotheyusethem?
Whataretheaestheticsofjazzimprovisationinthisparticularstudio?
Howdoestheprofessorencouragecreativityandartistry?

Method
ResearchDesign
Thisstudywillusequalitativeresearchmethodstoinvestigatethreecasestudies
ofmasterjazztromboneteachers.Theinformationcollectedwillbeanalyzedforstrands
ofimportanceandthentheresultswillbecomparedtocurrentresearchliterature
regardingjazzimprovisationpedagogy.
Setting
Thesettingwilltakeplaceonthreecollegecampusesandwillinvolvethestudio
spaceaswellasrelativeperformancespacesthroughouttheobservationalperiod.

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master jazz trombone teachers
ParticipantsandSelection
Theparticipantsinthisstudywillincludethreemasterjazztromboneteachersas
wellastheirrespectivejazztrombonestudio.Themasterteacherswillbeselectedbased
onananalysisofthelastfivetotenyearsofwinnersandfinalistsforthejazztrombone
competitionsaspublishedbytheInternationalTromboneAssociation.Unfortunately,the
competitionresultsfromtheAmericanTromboneWorkshoparenotcurrentlypublished;
iftheybecomeavailable,thoseresultswouldalsobeconsideredfortheselectionof
teachers.Additionally,onlythefinalistsforthe2015ITAcompetitionsarecurrently
published.Everyeffortwillbemadetoobtainlistsoffinalistsfromthelasttenyears.If
thatinformationisnotavailable,thentheresearcherwillbegintotrackfinalists
beginningSpringof2015throughSpringof2019,choosetheparticipantsatthattime,
andthenadministerthestudyinFallof2020.
Additionally,apanelofmasterjazztrombonemusicianswillbeformedtohelp
decidewhowouldbebestforthisstudy.Thispanelwouldconsistoffivetotentopjazz
tromboneperformerswhoareconsideredsomeoftheforemostplayersintheirfield.
Althoughmembersofthispanelmayhavejudgedjazztrombonecompetitionsinthepast
fiveyears,theirbiaswontmatterbecauseallfinalistsandrunnerupstudentswillbe
consideredequally.Theywillstillbeabletooffervaluableinsightastowhichcollege
professorsareabletoproducesuccessfulstudents.Otherwise,becausemostprominent
andsuccessfuljazztromboneperformershavejudgedthesecompetitions,itwouldbe
impossibletofindagroupofprofessionalswhohadneverbeeninvolved.

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master jazz trombone teachers
Thecriteriaforconsiderationwillincludenotonlythewinner,butalsoallofthe
finalists,alternates,andallrunnerupstudentsfromthelastfivetotenyearsofjazz
competitions.Therearethreereasonswhyalternatesandsemifinalistswillbe
considered:
1. Therearesofewjazztrombonecompetitionsthatitwouldbedifficulttodiscerna
patternofsuccessfulteachers.
2. Thelevelofplayinghastobesohightogetintothefinalsthatthedifference
betweenfinalistsissmallcomparedtothedifferencebetweenthecollectivegroup
offinalistsversusthegeneralpopulation.
3. Thisway,ifoneofthemembersofthepanelalsojudgedacompetition,their
choiceoffinalistwouldntbeadeterminingfactorinthechoiceofatrombone
teacher.Winnersandfinalistswillbeweighedequally.
Considerationwillnotbegiventomonetarysuccessofstudents.Oftenmonetary
successmaynotberelatedtoperformanceabilityasmuchasentrepreneurshipskills,
whichareoutsideofthescopeofthisstudy(Tonelli,2015).Norwillconsiderationbe
giventoteacherswhocreatestudentswhoaresuccessfullytouring.Touringbuilds
professionalismandmusicianship,butthestandardsforrockorR&Baresoharmonically
simpleascomparedtojazzperformancethatthecriteriaoftouringisnotrelatable,unless
withamajorjazzartist.Jazztrombonecompetitionsalsotendtohaveanagelimitwhich
wouldallowthestudytocontinuetofocusonupandcomingmusicians.Thestudywill
befocusedonidentifyingprofessorswhoareproducingstudentsonthevergeofstarting
acareer.Thiswayprofessorswhojustbeganteachinginthelastfiveortenyearscould
beconsideredalongsideotherswhohavebeenteachingfordecades.Intheend,successat

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master jazz trombone teachers
ajazztrombonecompetitiondoesnotnecessarilypredictsuccessorfameforthat
particularstudent,butitdoesshowacertainamountoffundamentalplayingskillthey
wereabletoobtainundermentorship.Therefore,jazztrombonecompetitions,combined
withadvicefromapanelofsuccessfuljazztrombonists,willbethemaincriteriaforthe
selectionofmasterjazztromboneteacherstudy.
Theprimarysubjectswouldbethetromboneprofessorswhilesecondarysubjects
wouldbethestudents.
DataSourcesandMeasures
ThedatacollectionforthisstudywillbemodeledfromMarstons(2011)
dissertationstudyonJanKagarice.Marston(2011)observedKagariceonthree
occasions:thefirstwasintheFallandinvolvedtakingcareofpaperwork,meetingthe
studio,andobservinglessons.Thesecondvisitwasduringthewinterandinvolved
observationsofprivatelessonsandfieldnotes.Thethirdvisitwasduringthespringand
involvedadditionalfieldnotesplusaninterviewwithKagarice.Marston(2011)then
analyzedalltranscriptionsofvideoandaudiotodetermineemergingstrandsthatdefined
thepedagogyofmasterteacherJanKagarice.Additionally,Marston(2011)collected
dataonartifactssuchasmethodbooks,itemsusedinthelessonsetting,supplemental
materials,syllabi,readinglists,studentrecitalrecordings,informationonthestudioweb
page,orotherobjectsofinterest(p.101).Marston(2011)triangulatedtheartifactswith
theobservationaldata,andthenpresentedallinformationtothetromboneprofessorfor
herreview.Marston(2011)alsowrotefieldjottingstosummarizeanyimportantorkey
trendsobservedinthelessonandkepttrackofallobservationdatesandtimesinthe

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
fieldlog(p.98).Additionalobservationsweremadeforotherclassesastime
permitted.Marstonalsointerviewedstudentsastimeallowed,andutilizedtheirresponses
tovalidatethedata.TheresearcherwillattempttoduplicateallofMarstons(2011)
techniques,includingthelettertotheHumanSubjectsCommitteeandallpermission
forms.
Thedesign,whichisbasedoffoftheMarston(2011)study,willconsistofthe
followingsteps:
1.

Selectthreejazztromboneteachersbasedonsuccessfulstudent
presenceinjazztrombonecompetitionsandtheadviceofapanelof

2.
3.

experts.
GainpermissionfromeachrespectiveuniversitysHumanSubjects
Committeeandthejazztromboneinstructor.
Visitthejazztromboneinstructorinthefall.Duringthistime:
a. AdministertheGendrichsurveyonpaperandinperson.Theemail
methodmayimpedetheprofessorfromwritingindepthcomments.
b. Introducetheresearchertothestudioandgainsignaturesofany

4.
5.

studentswhowerewillingtobeconsideredaspartofthecasestudy.
c. Observelessonsastimepermits.
Visitthecampusinthewinter(aroundFebruary)andobservelessons,
studiotime,andanygroupjazztrombonerelatedevents.
Visitthecampusinthespringandobservelessons,takefieldnotes,and
interviewtheprofessor.

Thereasontoselectthreetromboneprofessorsinsteadofjustoneistoallowthe
amountofprivatelessontimetobesimilartotheMarston(2011)study.Forinstance,the
Marston(2011)studyincludedobservationofnineteendifferentlessonswithovertwenty
hoursofvideoandaudiocombined.Mostjazztromboneprofessorsdonthaveasmany

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
studentsasJanKagarice.Infact,sometromboneprofessorsmayonlyhavethreeorfour
jazztrombonestudents.Thegoalwithutilizingthreejazztromboneprofessorsisnotonly
togiveavarietyofresponsestothequestions,butalsotomatchtheamountofvideoor
audiorecordedthatwouldbelatertranscribedandanalyzed.Thiswaythestudy
continuestohavethesameamountoftimespentinobservationastheMarston(2011)
study.Ifthetopchoiceforthisstudyhasasignificanttrombonestudiosimilartothesize
ofKagarice,thenthestudycouldfocusonjustoneteacherinsteadofthree.
ThereasontheGendrichsurveywillbeadministeredpriortoanyobservationisto
learnaboutandanalyzethejazztromboneprofessorsteachingtechniques,background,
andpedagogicalmaterialssothattheresearcherwillalreadyknowbasicinformation
beforeconductinganyinterviews.Thiswillallowthepersonalinterviewsinthespringto
bemoreindepthandlessfocusedonwhatasmuchashowtheprofessorteachesjazz
improvisation.Onepointtoconsideristhatthetromboneprofessormayhaveparticipated
intheGendrich(2003)anonymoussurveyin2003.Inthatcase,theprofessorwouldbe
askedtocompletethesurveyagain,unlessspecificsurveyresultscouldbepulledup
fromDr.Gendrich.Thiswaythemasterteachersresultscouldbecomparedtothe
Gendrich(2003)surveyresults,whichwilldrivefurtheranalysis,observation,andfurther
interviewslateronintheschoolyear.
Insummary,thedatacollectedwillinclude:
RoughDate
FallofAcademicYear
VisitProfessor1
VisitProfessor2
VisitProfessor3

ContentCollected

AdministerGendrichsurvey
Obtainsignatures
Meetstudentsandprofessor

Methodsofdata
collection
Survey
instrument
Permission
Forms

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
WinterofAcademicYear
VisitProfessor1
VisitProfessor2
VisitProfessor3

ObserveLessons
(3)lessonsforeach
professorforatotalof(9)
lessons

SpringofAcademicYear
VisitProfessor1
VisitProfessor2
VisitProfessor3

Observe(3)lessonsforeach
professorforatotalof(9)
lessons
Conductoneinterviewfor
eachprofessor
Conductinterviewsof
studentsastimeallows
Observejazztrombone
studentsinconcert
performancewhileintown

Fieldnotes,
including
informal
observationin
socialsettings
Video
Field
Jottingsfrom
lesson
observations
Audioorvideo
recordings
Field
Jottings
Fieldnotes

Interviews
Theresearcherwilltakefieldnotesonanyinformalmeetingswiththeprofessor
aswellasconductafinalformalinterviewattheendofthestudy.Interviewquestions
wouldfillinanygapsbetweenthetopicsdiscussedintheGendrich(2003)surveyaswell
asanyobservations.Examplesofinterviewquestionsmightinclude:
1. Howdoyouthinkthecollegiatesettingeitherstiflesorencouragescreativejazz
2.
3.
4.
5.

artisticexpression?
Howhastechnologyinfluencedjazztromboneinstructioninthelastdecade?
Howdoyouuseselfevaluationtoencouragegrowth?
Whatisyourphilosophyofteaching?
Whatdoyouthinkpredictsjazzimprovisationachievement?

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
Interviewquestionsforstudentswouldbefocusedonmakingsuretheobservationsgave
afullpictureofthecurriculum,content,andpedagogythatisexpressedbythemaster
jazztromboneteacher.Forinstance,questionsmightinclude:
1. Whatdidyoulearninyourpreviousyearsoftakinglessons?
2. Whatinfluencesdoyouhaveotherthanyourcurrentprofessor?
3. Whatisyourphilosophyofperformance?Whydoyouplayjazztrombone?
ProposedDataAnalysis
Theresearcherwilltranscribeallfieldnotes,fieldjottings,audioandvideoand
thenapplycodesastrendsemergewithinthedata.Oncecodeshavebeendeveloped,the
researcherwillanalyzethedatainthefollowingways:
1. Theresearcherwillanalyzethetrendingcodeswithineachindividual
teachersstudio,fromstudenttostudent,forinternalvaliditywithinthe
studio.
2. Theresearcherwillanalyzethecodesfromoneprofessorsstudiototheothers
todeterminetheimportanceofcertaincodesandtotestthereliabilityofthe
data.
3. Theresearcherwillanalyzethecodesagainsttheresearchquestionsand
determineifanyresultscanbeconcluded.
4. TheresearcherwillcomparethecodestotheGendrich(2003)surveyresults
aswellastheprofessorsindividualanswers.
5. Theresearcherwillalsoanalyzetheprominentcodesastheyrelatetothe
reviewoftheliteraturetoseeifanyadditionalconclusionscanbedrawnthat
werenotpartoftheoriginalresearchquestionsandpurpose.
Theresearcherwillusesoftwaretotranscribeandcodifytheinterviews,lessons,and
observations.

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
ResearchersIdentity
TheresearcherisajazztromboneplayerinthemetropolitanWashington,D.C.
area.Theresearcherwillmakeeveryefforttoremainneutralregardingquestionsof
debateoropinionwhilecollectingdata.Thepurposeofthisstudyistodocumentthree
masterjazztromboneteachersandtocomparetheirteachingtothecurrentresearch
literature.
ValidityandReliability
Theresearcherwillmakeeveryeffortmakesuretheresearchisinternallyvalidby
triangulatingthedatabetweeninterviewsandobservations.Additionally,theresearcher
willtriangulatetheprofessorssurveyresultstotheGendrich(2003)surveyresultsto
helpdeterminethereliabilityoftheresultsfromthe2003survey.Onceinterviewsare
complete,theresearcherwillvalidatethedatafromtheinterviewbysendingasummary
ofnotestotheintervieweetomakesurethatthedataisaccurate.Additionally,the
researcherwillpresentthefindingstotheparticipantsaswellasothermentorsinthe
academicfieldforreview.Theresearcherwillobtainexternalvaliditybycorrelatingthe
researchfindingstothemostcurrentandrelevantresearchliteratureonjazzpedagogy.
Additionally,directquoteswillbeutilizedtosupporttheprimarystrandsofinformation
thatemerge.

RUNNING HEADER: Jazz trombone pedagogy: Three case studies on

master jazz trombone teachers
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