People who both play and teach are typically high on the idea of playing at jam sessions. Yes, they can be intimidating, but they are also educational, testing the mettle of the established player as well as the aspiring student. They’re not only good for helping you learn to play solos more confidently, but also for learning how to blend in with other players. And because nothing in a jam is planned, they help you learn how to respond to something unplanned and unexpected.
Often a music student will rehearse a tune they want to play at a jam session so they know exactly what they will play when they get their chance. But the leader might surprise you by asking you to play that song in in a different key, or maybe count off a different rhythm than you’d planned for. No matter how much you’ve practiced that song and your solo, comping as well as soloing under those circumstances can be challenging.
Playing at jam sessions is also a great way to learn to overcome stage fright, for what you’re sure to find no matter the jam session is that there will be a sizable audience eager to hear what you can do.
“The value of a jam session to a musician is the type of practice it offers,” offered pianist and my Music Life and Times Podcast partner Kevin Bales. Bales is a jam enthusiast, not only for himself but for his jazz students, for whom he believes the sessions offer incomparable opportunities to grow and learn. “You can get up and try anything. You don’t need to be hired, you just show up and you get to play. You get to practice working with different people and adapting your playing to fit cooperatively with everyone, the true democracy of this music.”
No matter where you live, there are likely to be several jam sessions in the area for you to attend. Find one with a welcoming host and you’re bound to go home happy that you came, and a better player for it.