Jazz Bands to Perform on Thursday

Ethan Edvenson
Cartoonist

During the last hour of the day, a group of elite and talented musicians, led by Mr. Jayson Gerth, join together to form the SEP Jazz One Band. Then, bright and early at 6:45 AM, Jazz Two meets along with Jazz Three switching off with Mondays and Thursdays for Two and Tuesdays and Fridays with Three. Jazz One runs all year long and attends many high ranking jazz competitions and performances to share their love for the smooth style of this music. Jazz Two and Three are extracurricular bands that start in October and run to early March, but they still compete in their fair share of competitions and concerts.

Unlike the massive sizes of many other bands in the music program, each jazz band is limited to only a few players for each instrument, each with their own part, which allows for a more creative, fun, and individual stance to how the music is played and sounds. The most apparent showing of this is the staple of having improvisational solos to allow each student to decide for themselves which rhythms and notes to use and play to their heart’s content.

After five months of hard work, the last chance to hear Jazz Two and Three perform is at their final concert this Thursday, March 5th at 7 PM in the auditorium. Jazz One will be also be performing at the concert, but will continue to perform at other events throughout the rest of the school year. To catch up on any information regarding concert dates, check out the calendar of events on the Southeast Polk Bands website!