By Jadyn Choo Jia En (Chairperson)

Before we get into the swing of things, what is jazz?

A Wikipedia search finds you looking through its defining characteristics: swung rhythms, complex chords, and improvisation. Dig a little deeper and you’ll see interviews with famous jazz musicians such as pianist Duke Ellington who would anti-climatically say “It’s all music.”; or as saxophonist Stan Getz puts it nicely: “like a good conversation among friends interacting to each other’s ideas.”

Honestly, words alone cannot truly explain jazz to us and you. You  have to be there to hear and move to the music to fully immerse yourself in the experience. For starters, listen to the lobby music on MRT platforms. Swing your body to the soulful saxophone riff in “Careless Whisper”. These are moments where you can find jazz.

But enough philosophy, let’s get into the details: 

What is Raffles Jazz and what exactly do we do? 

As the only Junior College with a Jazz CCA, Raffles Jazz is a safe space for you to discover and express your individual sounds and styles. In turn, you can take away other extraordinary takes and ideas from bandmates you would not have known beforehand. (In other words, our jam studio is soundproofed!) 

Though we may play the same ‘standards” (jazz pieces that have gained great recognition)  such as “Fly Me to the Moon”, “Wave”, or “Chameleon”, we introduce our own take on it such that we may take inspiration from, but never sound exactly the same as those who played before us. And that is a good thing. To quote trumpeter Miles Davis: “First you imitate, then you innovate”.

We bring together people who want to dive deep into the diverse world that is Jazz, and the many subgenres occupying its broad spectrum. Be it Bebop, Bossa Nova, or the good ol’ Big Band Swing. (And no, not all subgenres start with the letter B).

Jazz isn’t the only thing we do. From dancing backstage, to hearing our guitarist and pianist duo beatbox and rap , to editing our guitarist’s face onto funny images, we’ve managed to create a family out of a random bunch of individuals who just happen to all love jazz. And this chemistry that we’ve mixed together is what we strive to show the audience whenever we perform.  

And for some official details

Sessions are held biweekly in the Jamming Studio on level 4 of Block D (you’ll see a big red sign light up) from 8-11 a.m. on Wednesdays and 2.30-5.30 p.m. on Fridays. Yes, these are perfectly timed for meals with your bandmates after a good day of jamming! You can expect more frequent practices leading up to big events, such as our annual concert in Term 2, and other ad hoc events such as National Day, Batch Night etc. 

That sounds so exciting! What do I need to do to get into Raffles Jazz?

Fret not (pun intended) if your only encounter with jazz, if any, has been adding 7th notes to chord progressions or belting out Frank Sinatra’s Christmas songs. Our advice for you is to first keep an open mind and listen. A lot.

Explore all kinds of styles, whether in terms of musicians, or arrangements, or just different songs, and then discover for yourself how jazz really appeals to you. 

For that, we have curated our Spotify playlists for you to get a better idea of Jazz music old and new (trust us. it’s not all Frank Sinatra.) Do also check out our Instagram page! As pianist Count Basie said “The real innovators did their innovating by just being themselves.”, so when you go in there, just play as you do and give it your best shot! Don’t stress about making mistakes, as some of the best ideas we’ve had so far were made completely by error :)

If you are keen on joining us, don’t hold back … Jazz Do It !