INTRODUCTION

The International Association for Jazz Education, Wisconsin Chapter (IAJE-WI)
created a jazz improvisation event in 2001 under the direction of IAJE-WI President
Steve Wiest for the the Wisconsin School Music Association’s (WSMA) Solo & Ensemble
Festival. Wisconsin became the first state to include jazz improvisation as a festival
event. The intention of IAJE-WI was to promote students’ understanding of and
appreciation for jazz improvisation, to encourage the study of jazz improvisation
through performance, and to further legitimize jazz improvisation in music education.
Improvisation is the essence of jazz, but it is not sufficiently addressed in jazz contests
and festivals. For practical reasons, a minority of jazz ensemble members have a
personal and meaningful experience with improvisation. This WSMA event will allow
all students that opportunity. The event will also serve as a means to satisfy national
and state standards for improvisation.
Most of the songs on the event’s music list come from the well-known Jamey
Aebersold Play Along publications. WSMA requires students to play along with the
recording (students must provide their own portable playing device). Rules also require
the performer to play a specified number of choruses of both the melody and an
improvised solo. The difficult level of the songs are categorized by class: A is difficult, B
is intermediate, and C is easy. The following page lists the songs from the WSMA list
for which resource guides have been created.