Schwann Spectrum Winter 95/96 by Dr. Herb Wong (cover story featuring reviews of CD-ROM's created by GRP, Quincy Jones, Ebook, and others.)
What would it be like to have the great Phil Woods drop by to give you a few years of private tutoring and mentoring, and the opportunity to play with him? Roll that one around in your head for a while and dig it! Phil Woods has reigned as one of jazz history's extraordinary be-bop alto saxophonists for several decades. A legend of his instrument, he has been recognized and celebrated internationally with innumerable awards and poll victories. Likewise, the Phil Woods Quintet has been touted and awarded accordingly for it's recordings.
It is Woods himself and the Phil Woods Quintet who are the principals in the unique CD-ROM - MasterClass Jazz Tutor, Vol. 1 - Featuring Phil Woods, produced by MasterClass productions, Inc. and distributed by the Hal Leonard Publishing Corporation. Without question, it soars high above any existing effort in the jazz domain and combines sophisticated programming of all elements of the interactive idiom. Indeed, it is the definitive jazz and jazz education CD-ROM from installation to it's infinite applications - a complete "edutainment" experience with more bells than you can ring or whistles you can blow. Very often the stark methodology of computerism can be a turn off. But as Woods says: "This program is humanistic and a true work of art... It's beautiful to behold. And if by chance you start to get bored working in one section, you can browse or listen to a tune you'd like...or push the Print button.
The purpose of Jazz Tutor is to facilitate learning how to play jazz in a previously unavailable teaching/learning environment. because it is self-paced - the student plays along with Woods at his or her own gait - it's truly an individualized instructionalized strategy. Following an introduction, there are essentially six key sections: Jazz Tutorial, CD Selections, MIDI Duets, Jazz Jukebox, Song List, and the Phil Woods Biography and Discography. The orientation is effective and motivating, instilling confidence and high anticipation in the user. Jazz Tutor is a virtual epistemological paradise for learning how to improvise. instructors may edit with their own insertions, or devise customized lessons to print out for their students. Woods says, "It's not meant to replace a teacher; a good instructor is vital." the detailed curriculum includes a deep music-theory component, a study of all possible scales, the sound of the chords, instant cross-references to harmonic patterns with remediation capabilities, and numerous opportunities to practice with the rhythm section.
Over 130 progressive lessons articulate a course of study that could conceivably take up to four years to complete. A choice of five originals are specially composed by Woods with the student in mind; they're on the CD and played by the Woods Quintet: trumpeter Brian Lynch, pianist Jim McNeely, bassist Steve Gilmore, drummer Bill Goodwin, and Woods on the alto and clarinet. The tunes include two based on "Cherokee," one on "I Got Rhythm," and two blues tunes - the basic song forms students will address in the beginning. The music appears as it plays, as it scrolls. This is not the inept old bouncing-ball approach. "You can adjust the speed without changing the pitch," Woods adds, "You can isolate and take out the horns, and play along with the rhythm section by reading the solos or making up your own solos." It's a treat to be able to play duets with Woods on the five original tunes. The transcriptions of the CD music and solos are in the keys of C, E-flat, and B-flat to fit the range of instruments.
The Jukebox has 14 more impressive originals by Woods, playable via a sound card or MIDI. Moreover, there are over 2000 chords and scales in all keys, with complete MIDI transcriptions and exercises with variations, all available with study/play-along options. An informative and very entertaining six minutes of slide-show biography is drawn from Wood's scrapbook of memorabilia and photos. the comments are humorous and light- hearted, a nice change of pace. A complete song list is supplied with all the data, and Woods' extensive discography is a rich resource. a 97 page step-by-step manual answers calls for help.
This benchmark tutorial CD-ROM was born when Woods was encouraged by his dentist Dr. Philip Terman, the executive producer of the disc. Terman is 'the jazz dentist" with a long roster of jazz greats as patients, including Stan Getz, Sonny Rollins, and Dizzy Gillespie. Dr. Terman's son Phil is the genius programmer. "He's the key guy who did such a superb artistic job," notes Woods. "So much in life is fortuitous. The dentist chair led me to this high-tech adventure, which took more than three years to develop."
In the meantime, Woods has many new ideas for an updated future version. Calling the MasterClass Jazz Tutor the "hippest jazz teaching tool ever created" is not hyperbole.
- Dr. Herb Wong