Category: Book of Memoirs

The “best” jazz bandleaders and conductors I’ve encountered have not only been great players but have also been superb composers or arrangers.

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I first formally studied music composition, ensemble arranging, and orchestration techniques as a professional military woodwind musician. I took all of the basic and advanced music courses offered at the Armed Forces School of Music during my era of service.

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These courses were actually conservatory-level instruction and the school of music faculty were typically alumni of the top civilian schools as well.

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I also constantly took college courses by correspondence or at the schools near the military posts wherever I was stationed every year during the 22 years of my career. And I’m still studying.

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Yay, the 200+ undergraduate credit hours I earned during that period resulted in lots of useful knowledge and skills but not necessarily a DMA. 🤷🏽

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And having a DMA wasn’t the point – gaining useful knowledge and professional experience was always the purpose and goal. Applied competence.

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The military is focused on its members having high levels of competency that can be applied in a variety of high profile professional performance situations. I appreciate that fact more fully now.

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As a Jazz artist who improvises coherently, I have always found having a composer’s knowledge and understanding of music to be advantageous for creating original music spontaneously. 

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Naturally, I still have some “Jazz language” memorized but I understand that the advanced ultimate goal of improvising isn’t stringing together a bunch of “licks” I learned as a solo.

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Being a professional composer and arranger positively impacts directing and conducting an ensemble. 

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You also immediately know what the music should sound like in total. And being versed in the orchestration techniques being applied can help direct performers to serve the music as intended.

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The beauty of the gift of music is that you can do it for yourself and for your entire life, privately or publicly, and still learn something new every day.

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Music makes us better. Jazz can make us smarter.

🔗 https://BurnettPublishing.com 

(ARTICLE)
Musings In Cb: “Scales ARE Chords”

PHOTO by Corinna Gray Photography (2023)

Christopher and Terri (Anderson) Burnett established their branch of The Burnett Family in March of 1979 in Copenhagen, Denmark. They are professional musicians, educators, and entrepreneurs based in the Kansas City Metropolitan area.

I still really enjoy golf. I used to play other sports when I was younger and my knees (and other joints) could take the rigors of sprinting and jumping.

I now do the low impact activities and sports like bowling, swimming, and golf. I’m not very good at it but golf has become my favorite.

Sports are like playing a musical instrument in lots of ways. And to be successful or “good” at either requires “Hand-Eye Coordination” and “Mind-Body Control.” 🏌🏽‍♂️🎵🎶

The objectivity of both music and sports is proven in the results. The musicians and athletes who practice to refine their skills are inherently successful.

The adversities inherent with living can impact our minds, bodies, and spirits. And these are the times when the objective things built into our lives like music and sports can also help us heal our emotional wounds and even grow stronger.

Music, although it is often used to express emotions and opinions, in and of itself – music is what it is. You can either do it or you can’t do it. With either of those conditions not being permanent but based upon whether you practice or not.

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:” Ecclesiastes‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬ ‭NIV‬‬

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(ARTICLE)
Musings In Cb: “ADAPTING TO CHANGE”

PHOTO by Corinna Gray Photography (2023)

Christopher and Terri (Anderson) Burnett established their branch of The Burnett Family in March of 1979 in Copenhagen, Denmark. They are professional musicians, educators, and entrepreneurs based in the Kansas City Metropolitan area.

I did this black ink drawing in 1979 while riding the chartered Army band tour bus to a gig somewhere in Europe.

Although faded to nearly sepia in color, somehow it’s survived these 40+ years. That’s cool.

Sometimes I used that time to write out musical ideas or practice arranging techniques.

Sometimes I would read books, Army regulations, or study leadership.

I tried to always utilize the “dead” time as an opportunity for doing something positive towards tangible self improvement.

And that mentality became a habit that’s still with me to this day. #arts 🎵🎶

#timeflies — at BurnettMusic.biz

(ARTICLE)
Musings In Cb: “TIME FLIES”

PHOTO by Corinna Gray Photography (2023)

Christopher and Terri (Anderson) Burnett established their branch of The Burnett Family in March of 1979 in Copenhagen, Denmark. They are professional musicians, educators, and entrepreneurs based in the Kansas City Metropolitan area.

ABOVE PHOTO: “First Haircut” Christopher, Barber (center), and Dad circa 1957. My mom told me that I wasn’t quite two years old but I don’t remember.

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Clifford LeRoy Burnett (1925-2005) was a great father and I learned lots from him. Dad taught me sports and other things that refined my hand-eye coordination as well as my patience. Dad was patient with everyone. I rarely saw him lose his temper but he rarely needed to flex that side.

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Dad was a member of what journalist Tom Brokaw termed as the “Greatest Generation.” I agree that they were and remain so to this day. They were not perfect but they were instrumental in unifying the country and world in ways that resulted in broader prosperity for most people of earth.

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I will always love and respect my father for the work he did to help me become the positive man I am today. I acknowledge that my propensity to innovate solutions rather than wallow in problems comes from what he modeled during my formative years growing up.

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Dad joined the Navy at 17 years old and served as a SeaBee in the South Pacific during World War Two. He later reenlisted into the Air Force and our sibling family lived in many places beyond our native KC metropolitan area. I was old enough to remember those experiences and I believe that the memories were significant to my serving in Army Music for an entire career.

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Now that I have children and grands, I’m even more appreciative of the subtleties and nuances of being a parent. And in particular, the importance of being a great father to your children as they grow into adulthood.

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Dad was there for me as a kid and by the time I was a man on my own I knew the lessons he was teaching me. I also knew by then that the choices I made in my life were mine and not his responsibility.

SIX “DAD” QUOTES

1 “Tell any intimate associate something confidential, even if you make it up as a test. And if it gets out, you know that you can’t trust them with anything that is important.”

2 “I spend the first six months of the year minding my own business and the other six months staying out of other people’s business.”

3 “A person who will lie to your face is not your friend, son. Regardless if you’re kin or not.”

4 “The benefits of active duty military service are perfect for anyone who wants to travel, learn, and improve their circumstances in life.”

5 “Do the right thing even if it is the hardest choice at first. The impact of doing wrong takes a lifetime to undo.”

6 “Take time to go fishing so you can reconnect with the nature of creation. Sometimes we can forget God’s work and lose appreciation for the things that provide our sustenance.”

QUOTES: Clifford LeRoy Burnett (1925-2005)

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Like most sons, my dad taught me “right from wrong.” And like most sons, I am still trying to make my dad proud everyday.

Happy Father’s Day!

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(ARTICLE)
Musings In Cb: “FATHERS & SONS”

PHOTO by Corinna Gray Photography (2023)

Christopher and Terri (Anderson) Burnett established their branch of The Burnett Family in March of 1979 in Copenhagen, Denmark. They are professional musicians, educators, and entrepreneurs based in the Kansas City Metropolitan area.

🔗 BurnettSchool.net 🎵🎶
Practicing makes you better.

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I have (and have had for decades) the honor and privilege of working with people of all ages studying music.

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School ages to adults. Amateur players to fellow professionals. We’re all perpetual students of music regardless how long we have been practicing it.

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Note how I refer to doing music as a “practice?”

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That’s because it is. Just like a doctor practices medicine and a lawyer practices law. A musician practices music. Music is both art and science.

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Practice is applied research. Practice builds individual competencies and technical skills.

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Practice allows individuals to create and work in harmony with other musicians who also practice.

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Rehearsals are actually not a place for individuals to practice their individual musical parts.

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Rehearsals are the places for directors and conductors to literally create a larger collaborative musical instrument called an ensemble.

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Ensembles serve the musical work as an instrument created from a group of practiced individual musicians collectively performing together.

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Practicing makes you better.

(ARTICLE)
Musings In Cb: “LIFE HABITS”

PHOTO by Corinna Gray Photography (2023)

Christopher and Terri (Anderson) Burnett established their branch of The Burnett Family in March of 1979 in Copenhagen, Denmark. They are professional musicians, educators, and entrepreneurs based in the Kansas City Metropolitan area.

Our redbud tree 🌳 is likely going to be removed because she was initially planted too close to our home.

For the last three seasons she’s grown into that corner of the roof. Not her fault. Trees grow.

We’ve lived in our home for ten years and are going to do more landscaping.

It takes a while to actually do a thoughtful plan that’s based around how we actually live in our spaces inside and outside.

Being good stewards in life includes our relationships with all living things.

Sometimes we as humans forget that plants are living things too. #secretlifeofplants

(ARTICLE)
Musings In Cb: “SECRET LIFE OF PLANTS”

PHOTO by Corinna Gray Photography (2023)

Christopher and Terri (Anderson) Burnett established their branch of The Burnett Family in March of 1979 in Copenhagen, Denmark. They are professional musicians, educators, and entrepreneurs based in the Kansas City Metropolitan area.

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5 years ago Terri Anderson Burnett and I started Kansas City Area Youth Jazz because we had a vision that we believed adds tangible value to life based upon our experiences working in music and also contributing to the KC private jazz education paradigm. Doing positive and constructive things with our lives and helping others has always been possible for us through objective study of music.

Special THANKS to Bill Crain, Rev WM Thornton, David Cunningham, William Crain, Houston Smith, and Greg Carroll for being with us each step of the way.

Thank you to the truly incredible community of artists that make up the “KC Jazz Scene” for so many of you sincerely embracing our original vision of “synergy among” all of our jazz generations and our many jazz industry entities!

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YOUTH JAZZ utilizes the advantages of its diversely talented community of professionals within the greater Kansas City metropolitan area and beyond. It’s us.

We also understand that truly empowering the next generation requires creating an environment that allows all living generations in the music to interact with one another in the types of meaningful contexts our program provides during each season.

Combining applied performance of the art form with music business best practices presented in our educational learning contexts is a unique benefit of YOUTH JAZZ.

(1) Preparing music to a high level for recording,

(2) performing concerts in the community,

and (3) serving as peer mentors are among the opportunities that FELLOWS are afforded.

Networking among peers and developing relationships with industry mentors are vital skills for building infrastructure and community.

Meet some of our colleagues who have embraced our vision + joined us in this work at the link below.

We’re not alone.

👨🏽‍💻👩🏼‍💻 https://YOUTHJAZZ.US

(ARTICLE)
Musings In Cb: “JAZZ IS ALSO COMMUNITY”

PHOTO by Corinna Gray Photography (2023)

Christopher and Terri (Anderson) Burnett established their branch of The Burnett Family in March of 1979 in Copenhagen, Denmark. They are professional musicians, educators, and entrepreneurs based in the Kansas City Metropolitan 

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The US Air Force drummer in the band came to the TLA hotel where I was staying near the Naples American High School on my first night in Italy. His name was Stanley Swann. He knocked on my room door, I answered, he introduced himself and said get your horn and let’s go play. I said okay.

I got into his car which was the smallest Fiat I had ever seen in my life and had to hold my alto saxophone in my lap because Stanley’s drums took up the remaining unoccupied space.

We drove quickly in and out of traffic, honking at other cars and people, then stopped at a deli where two Italian musicians were already setting up in a space near an outlet.

Stanley introduced me to bass player Massimo Luise e DINO MASSA the pianist and when he was finished setting up his drum kit we played jazz standards for a couple of hours then ate Napoli pizza and talked. At that time I only knew a few rudimentary phrases in Italian but their English was good enough that I didn’t notice any communication barrier.

Besides, Stanley spoke fluent Italian. I played jazz gigs with this same basic quartet every night that I wasn’t working locally or away touring with the Commander In Chief, Allied Forces Southern Europe NATO Band.

The NATO Band assignment turned out to be my best military band assignment and we did it alone from each other on two different continents as an “all others” tour. The first of only two military duty assignments in a 22+ year career without Terri and our children with me. The money I earned playing those off-duty gigs paid for my plane tickets home to visit my family. Something so cool. Something so sad. Life’s best gifts. Bittersweet like that.

Fast forward to today and I am glad that Stanley and I kept in touch over the years. He was the son of a professional drummer and originally from Chicago. That’s where he got his killer shuffle beat. Stanley ultimately settled in the Boston area after the Air Force where he recorded, performed and taught at the Berklee College of Music. My friend Stanley passed away a few years ago.

I have never heard directly from Massimo Luise the bassist after I left but was told by him when we were playing jazz together that he would take over his family’s yacht harboring business and leave music ultimately. I searched the web and saw that he is doing that now. (https://luise.com)

However the jazz pianist Dino Massa has remained professionally active and successful over the years. We even reconnected on Facebook many years ago and before the pandemic he came to visit us in Kansas City. We played several co-led concerts and gigs in KC at venues like The Blue Room at the American Jazz Museum, Museum at Prairiefire, Take Five Coffee + Bar that was once at 5336 W 151st St. in Leawood, Kansas, along with recording the critically acclaimed album titled “Echoes of Europe” as Dino Massa Kansas City Quintet at Craig Rettmer’s studio in midtown. (https://ChristopherBurnett.us)

Dino has remained a dear friend of more that thirty years and counting…
Music is positive and powerful.

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(ARTICLE)
Musings In Cb: “JAZZ IS A CULTURAL BRIDGE”

PHOTO by Corinna Gray Photography (2023)

Christopher and Terri (Anderson) Burnett established their branch of The Burnett Family in March of 1979 in Copenhagen, Denmark. They are professional musicians, educators, and entrepreneurs based in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. 

Another article in my
“AGEISM IS REAL BUT I DON’T CARE”
series of articles.

You all can thank our mother, Violet for my being well over sixty years old and yet still not having very much visible gray hair.

Many people who don’t know me, often mistake my age as being significantly younger because of this.

But for the most part most people I interact with tend to not look at me as the senior citizen that I proudly am.

The only situations that any ageism towards me becomes an obvious part of the dynamics of interaction with others are those where everyone dealing with me legitimately knows my age, like medical appointments, the DMV, etc. #OkayBoomer

In those situations I am careful not to give the impression that I am in any way, shape, or form feeble minded or otherwise impaired by age.

Sounds hilarious but it is true.
Ageism is real.

I’m having to add this new layer of defense in ways similar to the precautions I have had to deploy living my entire life as a black man.
That’s still real too.

The best advice I’ve learned to live is the same advice that our parents gave us siblings growing up and that is to live life beyond the ‘isms.

And, after living more than six decades, I can say from experience that our parents’ approach works.

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MUSINGS IN Cb
BurnettFamilyUS.org

PHOTO by Corinna Gray Photography (2023)

Christopher and Terri (Anderson) Burnett established their branch of The Burnett Family in March of 1979 in Copenhagen, Denmark. They are professional musicians, educators, and entrepreneurs based in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area.