Settling The Jazz Vs. Classical Debate

 I just finished reading a book called “Not Quite the Classics” by Colin Mochrie, a comedian with a wonderfully warped sense of humour. (You may know Colin from the TV show “Whose Line Is It Anyway” and elsewhere.) In the book’s preface, Mochrie goes on about his choice to do improvisational comedy -- partly as a disclaimer for being unfamiliar with the writing of actual stories and also to emphasize that he simply prefers improvisation to other types of comedy.

Saturday Night Live is TV’s longest running sketch comedy show. Many of the artists that have passed through SNL have been improvisational comics, but at SNL the writers write the story and the players deliver it. There’s not a lot of room for improvisation.

So, improv or prepared ... is one style of comedy better than the other? Of course not. Both have their standards and traditions. And both have legions of fans. And so it is with music. There  are those who specialize in improvisation and those who specialize in delivering a standard piece. Jazz in particular emphasizes improvisation to the point that some jazz artists only improvise, eschewing prepared music altogether.

In the opposite corner is classical music, where all of the notes are written down and woe be to anyone who deviates from the written page during a performance. The assumption here is that the composition is the star of the show and the performers are there to support it. Some even consider improvisation to be heresy*. In contrast, the jazz player is the star and the music, written down or not, simply provides a framework and opportunity for creativity.

Most popular music falls somewhere in between: some preparation plus some room for creativity. Whatever the case, the path to success requires a lot of work, practice and study. The best part is you get to choose which aspects you work at.

Not Quite the Classics, by Colin Mochrie
Viking Canada (2013)
ISBN-10: 1626814554
ISBN-13: 978-1626814554

* It’s easy to forget that all music begins life as improvisation.