As part of a collaboration with Joseph Avenue Arts and Culture Alliance (JAACA), Hochstein faculty members Herb Smith (trumpet) and Wynton Rice (dance) led a free Jazz & Dance Workshop this past Saturday at the Baden Street Settlement on Joseph Avenue.
David J. Pacific, JAACA’s Executive Director, said, “The Joseph Avenue Arts and Culture Alliance's partnership with The Hochstein School has been instrumental in igniting a passion for the performing arts and arts education across our community. Hochstein was founded on Joseph Avenue and had its first recital at Baden Street Settlement. [Read more about this long history here.]
“It's truly an alliance as we bring our histories into the 21st century and create one-of-a-kind opportunities like the Jazz & Dance Workshop. Herb and Wynton are living legends, and the kids and families who came today have made memories that will last a lifetime.”
A member of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra’s brass section, Herb Smith started by talking about the early years of jazz, which he demonstrated by playing songs like “West End Blues” by Louis Armstrong (who was also a trumpet player). Jazz is the quintessential American art form, with its roots in black communities in New Orleans, and also incorporates elements from marching bands and the blues. Herb also played recordings by musicians like Big Mama Thornton (Ain’t Nothin’ But a Hound Dog”) to explain the structure of the blues.
He then worked with the participants to create their own blues, pulling out his guitar to accompany the words they came up with:
“I’m so tired, I don’t know what to do
I’m so tired, I don’t know what to do
Sittin’ on the side of my bed, thinking ‘bout how much I miss you …”
After that, Wynton Rice got everyone up and moving. The Chair of Hochstein's Dance Department, Wynton spent 10 years performing internationally with the Garth Fagan Dance Company. He explained the origins of jazz dance, which included styles like the cakewalk. The cakewalk was a dance developed from the “prize walks” held in the mid-19th century, generally at get-togethers on plantations where Black people had been enslaved, before and after emancipation in the Southern United States. He then demonstrated some of the steps of the Charleston, which has similar origins, and the students danced to music from the era.
The workshop ended with everyone in attendance dancing along to the “Cupid Shuffle,” a 2007 dance single which was on the Billboard Hot 100 and spawned a popular line dance. Bryson Bernard, better known by his stage name Cupid, is an American singer and songwriter from Lafayette, Louisiana. The dance involves stepping four times to the right, then four times to the left, then kicking your feet in front of you in time to the music before pivoting to start it all over again. What fun!
There will be one more chance to participate in Herb and Wynton’s Jazz & Dance Workshop on Saturday, May 4 from 12:00-1:00 pm at the Baden Street Settlement. The workshop is free and will be held in the Gym at Baden Street Settlement, 13 Vienna Street, Rochester, NY 14605. See below for a map showing where to park and the entrance to the building.
Bring your friends and family and learn from the best as we unleash our creativity through movement and music!
Additional photos and videos courtesy David Pacific, JAACA.
Watch video clips from the workshop below or at https://youtu.be/9nk7gARkPoA?si=BvnYzGyYRa1I4PK0