THE ESSENCE OF THE JAZZCODE: BE PRESENT IN THE MOMENT.
Here are some of the points we show during our JazzCode performance. (Foto: Olav Olsen)
People love to interact. Nothing is more exciting than an intense interaction, and both players and listeners love to lose themselves in a good interaction. But what is needed to create these moments - whether we talk about tennis, jazz, or an intense conversation? The answer is presence in the moment.
You must be present to interact. Good jazz requires good interaction between a few musicians playing different roles/instruments based on a large pool of shared references. In order to make this happen everyone must be fully present in the moment, you must have just enough rules, the team should be small, and the roles must be complimentary, not overlapping. Everyone must know their instrument and understand the music.
A jazz performance is never the same. Being live means that we can´t stop even if we play "wrong" notes. . Unlike a symphonic orchestra which -- even though each performance is slightly different -- creates "value from sameness", jazz musicians create "value from difference." All responses are made in order to fit in with and shape the musical context created by the interactions.
Presence requires mental capacity. To be fully present in the moment -- whether you are playing, competing or driving a car -- you must apply your mental capacity to the unfolding interaction in real time. You can´t "afford" to waste attention on irrelevant things and you can´t ponder too much how you will solve your own task. Your most important job is to figure out what to play (and not to play) in response to what is taking place. Your decisions must be made in seconds: You either take risk or secure the foundation for other members as they take risk in order to innovate. The faster things unfold, the less you can allow your mind to wander off.
Presence hinges on mastery, trust and passion. In order to be fully present, we must master our instrument, feel safe (but not too safe) and be excited (but not too excited). The flipside of this is that we must also help other players increase their mastery, their sense of safety and their sense of excitement.
Mastery requires skill and focus. Mastery increases when we enhance our skills and narrow our focus by playing less. Mastery not only delivers your contribution at the right time, it also increases your ability to listen to others and thus your understanding of the context. Increasing mastery through focus leads to a good cycle; when we play less we listen more and not so obvious: vice versa - listening more will make you play less. When others feel that they are being heard, they become more motivated and more willing to listen to you and they too, ideally, will play less. This creates trust and excitement.
Without trust and a feeling of safety, there will be no risk-taking, and thus, no innovation. Trust in a team is both about getting enough acknowledgement from others to trust yourself, to make sure others don´t worry about your performance and to give others the feedback they need to boost their confidence. This happens faster when the team is small and the players have complimentary roles. Lack of self confidence zaps your mental capacity and thus your presence. Having a shared reference (same language, culture, professional standards and understanding of goals) also builds trust.
Excitement comes from being seen/heard, from receiving acknowledgment and from being empowered to play an important role. In small jazz groups, everyone is allowed to play solo. When players solo, they are expected to take risk. The the soloist is stretching their own abilities, the other players compensate by taking less risk.
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