Week 8: May 28 - June 1

Theory Class
Topic: Jazz Ensemble?
Reflection Question: What do you think of your jazz ensemble?

I think the performance of my jazz ensemble went pretty well. I was nervous at first because when we practiced last Tuesday, there are still a lot of things that we still need to improve on especially the ending of the song. However, we were able to play the whole song pretty well and we only made a small mistake towards the end which did not stop us from continuing playing the song.

Instrument Class
Topic: -

We did not have any instrument class today because of the practical assessment.

Practice #14

This is a video of my group and I practicing our song, "The Girl From Ipanema" at Jordi's house. As a group, I think we did well enough. However, we still need to do more practice in order to synchronize better. We also need to practice the ending of the song. However, as an individual, I cannot really asses my playing from this video because the guitar cannot be heard at all here.

Practice #13

This is a video of me practicing my part of the song The Girl From IPanema for next week's jazz ensemble practical assessment. I think I did well on this practice even though I made a few mistakes in playing the part of my solo. What I need to figure out is how to make the sound produced by my guitar larger so it can be heard while the piano, violin, and the saxophones are played as well. I also need to practice more with my group.

Week 7: May 21 - May 25 2012

Theory Class
Topic: Music Jingle
Reflection Question: What do you think of your music jingle?

My partner in this assessment task is Jesslyn and we are to make a music jingle with the theme "Beautiful Indonesia". We chose 3 instruments; flute, violin, and guitar. In the process of making the jingle, we both decided on the chords first, Jesslyn wrote the melody of the flute, I wrote the chords of the guitar and the melody of the violin. The main melody of our jingle is in the flute which makes it more Indonesian. We did not use any pentatonic scale however the music sounds quite Indonesian to me. To be honest, our music jingle makes me a bit nauseous but despite that, I think Jesslyn and I did a great job.

Instrument Class
Topic: The Girl From Ipanema

We were given time to practice with our group during instrument class. My group and I made some progress and we were quite good already. However, there are still a lot of things that need to be improved in order to put up a good performance next week. We decided to take turns in playing solos for the refrain which I think is a good idea. We can already play well alone, however we need to do more practice in order to improve our synchronization.

Practice #12

This is a video of me practicing the chords of the song "The Girl From Ipanema" which is the song my group and I chose for the music ensemble performance. I am not sure whether or not I did good in this practice because the chords sound a little queer to me. I will ask Dio and Mr. John to make sure I am on the right track.

Practice #11

This is a video of me practicing the melody of the song "The Girl From Ipanema" which is the song my group and I chose to play for the music ensemble assessment. My group consists of Sarah, Nico, Jordi, Sake, Richard, Dio and I, which means, 2 pianos, 1 violin, 2 saxophones, and 2 guitars. I did not do very good in this practice because I played most of the notes wrong and I probably read the value of the notes wrong as well. But again, this is one of my very first practices which makes it okay to make a lot of mistakes. I will do more practice in order to play this song better for the upcoming assessment.

Week 6: May 14 - May 18 2012

Theory Class
Topic: Jazz Ensemble
Reflection Question: How was the progress of my Jazz ensemble group?

My jazz ensemble group only made a small progress this week because my group and I were not given enough time to practice. However, we were able to perform the song "The Girl From Ipanema" in front of the class quire well. I will practice the song myself and with my group as well so that we can give a good quality performance on the assessment.

Instrument Class
Topic: The Girl From Ipanema

During instrument class, I asked Mr. John to teach me the melody and the chords of my chosen song which is The Girl From Ipanema. I will practice what he taught me at home.

Practice #10

This is a video of me practicing the song "Etude" which is basically a fingering practice that is given by my guitar teacher. I think I did quite well in this practice because I only made one mistake in the middle of the song. However, I still need to improve my fingering, so I should practice more in order to be able to play songs better.

Practice #9

This is a video of me practicing the song "Romance". I think I did okay in this practice because I only made a few mistakes such as playing the notes late. I was also able to maintain my tempo while playing this song, however, my tempo was a little bit too slow, but again, this song is supposed to be slow. I should do more practice so I can play this song better.

Week 5: May 7 - May 11 2012

Theory Class
Topic: Singing Assessment "Close to You"
Reflection Question: How did my singing assessment go?

We are to sing the Jazz song "Close to You" in groups of 4. My group members are Jesslyn, Adam Bahfen, Dhanes, and I. The assessment went pretty well in my opinion. My group and I were able to cooperate well and we took this assessment seriously, however, we were also able to perform with some expression.

Instrument Class
Topic:-

We did not have any instrument class this week because of the singing assessment.

Practice #8

I did not make any improvements in this practice. In fact, I made more mistakes than the mistakes I made on my last practice. This is most probably caused by my lack of focus during this practice. I did not play in a steady tempo, I slipped up a lot of times and I stopped a lot. I should put more focus during my future practices so I will not make the same mistakes again.

Practice #7

In this video, I practice the same song I have been practicing last week again because we did not have any instrument class thus we did not learn anything new to practice. I think I did okay in this practice. I did not make any major improvements though. However, I was able to minimize my mistakes which is a good sign of improvement. I was also able to play this song more fluently. However, there are a lot of things that I still need to improve such as the dynamics and the picking technique.

Week 4: 30 April - 4 May 2012

Theory Class
Topic: Music Notation and Close to You
Reflection Question: How does business and industry affect music-makers and users?

The business industry helps spreading music that musicians made. Their job is to record the music and make it more popular. It makes the musician's job easier and harder at the same time, because musicians have to maintain a good reputation since they are now famous.

Instrument Class
Topic: -

We did not have any instrument class this week because we have to prepare for next week's singing assessment.

Practice #6

This another video of me practicing "Song of Gypsy". I think I have made some improvements in this practice compared to my last practice. I was able to speed up the tempo a little even though I was not able to maintain the same tempo all throughout my practice. I also only made a few careless mistakes. I will keep on practicing.

Practice #5

This is a video of me practicing the song "Song of Gypsy". I did not do very well on this practice. The tempo I played in was too slow, I read some of the notes' annotation wrong, I misread the notes, and I slipped while playing. I also blanked out in the middle of practicing so I it took me a while to find which line and bar I was on. I will do more practice in order to play this song better.

Week 3: 23 April - 27 April 2012

Theory Class
Reflection Question: How have developments in technology changed the ways in which we engage with music?

Developments in technology have definitely increase our engagement in music. Back then, only rich people are able to enjoy music because music was only available in concerts, but, as technology develops, people can listen to music everywhere. People can listen to music from the radio, TV, mobile phone, concerts, and many more. The developments of technology makes music's audience wider as well. It also allows people to listen to music anywhere and anytime. Therefore, it increases our engagement in music.

Instrument Class

We did not have any instrument class this week due to the Role of Music in Society Presentations.

Week 2: 16 April - 20 April 2012

Theory Class
Reflection Question: What are the functions of music in society?

Music has always been and will always be significant in the society. This reflection question basically summarizes the presentation that my group and I have prepared for next week. According to us, music plays an important role in the society because it carries a lot of health benefits, it is the most popular form of entertainment, it is a media to express one's thoughts and feelings, and it is a very beneficial hobby. There are a lot of other roles of music in our society that cannot be mentioned one by one, but what I am certain of is, without the presence of music, our lifes will never be the same.

Instrument Class

During instrument class, Mr. John again prepared us for the up-coming music notation test because most of us are not that prepared yet especially since Mr. Herry announced that we will be given a song and we should identify the chords from the melody.

Practice #4

This is a video of me practicing the melody of the song "Smile". I chose to do a practice on this song because its melody does not contain a lot of syncopatic notes which makes it easier for me to play. I think this practice is well enough because I only made a few mistakes. However, I did mute some notes as I was playing. I should improve it next time.

Practice #3

This is a video of me practicing the chords of Close to You. I did not know some of the chords at first but I did some research so I know all of them now. I think I did quite good in this practice because I only made a few mistakes. I would like to add more variety to the rhytm next time though.

Week 1: 9 April - 13 April 2012

Theory Class
Reflection Question: What is the role of music in your life?

Music plays a really important role in my life. Music has been my inspiration and a place to turn to when life is difficult. It has a really great power over my life, and over everyone's life too, I suppose. I can even say that my life without music will definitely be incomplete. Music affects my mood and my perspective. It has the power to change people's life. One other thing that music can do to me is motivating me to do my homeworks. I somehow feel more motivated in working on an essay task while listening to my favorite instrumental songs. Because of these reasons, I feel that music really does play an important role in my life.

Instrument Class
During instrument class, I practiced one song from the booklet Mr. Herry gave us. I practiced the melody of the song Close to You by The Carpenters. It is the song I like most from the collection of jazz songs compiled by Mr. Herry. Mr. John also prepared us for next week's notation test.

Practice #2

This is a video of me practicing the first half of the song Twilight by Kotaro Oshio. I did not do so good in this practice because I made quite a number of mistakes. I also did not play in a steady tempo. I think my picking is good already, the problem lays in my left hand. Sometimes, I press the fret board incorrectly which causes the note to be mute. I also slipped while playing some glissendo notes. I should do more practice so that I can improve these things and I should also practice the second half of this song.

Practice #1

This is a video of me playing the melody of the song Close to You. This is the song I like most from the booklet that Mr. Herry gave us. In this practice, I did not play in a steady tempo, I read some of the notes wrong and play some of the notes late. I will practice more to try to minimize my mistakes.

Practice Week 10

I managed to increase my speed in this practice. I think I did pretty good however I still made some silly mistakes that I really need to eliminate in my next practice.

This is my final practice for tomorrow's assessment. I think I did pretty good even though I made some minor mistakes. I hope to eliminate these kinds of mistakes in tomorrow's assessment.

Practice Week 9

This is my practice of my 12 bar blues. I think I have made a lot of improvements since my previous practice. For starters, I did not make any mistakes in starting playing my 12 bar blues. I however made a mistake in the middle so I really need to improve it for next week's assessment.

This is me practicing the chords of my 12 bar blues. Mr. John said that it is better to play the chords using its movable chords form so I tried however I did not play it so well because I do not really play chords with bars that well.

Practice Week 8

This is the video of me practicing all of my 12 bar blues consequently.I made a lot of mistakes in the beginning but I willt try my best to fix it as the assessment is in 2 short weeks.

I still make a lot of mistakes at the beginning. I couldn't see any major improvement. However, I will keep on practicing and hopefully I will be able to start playing my composition without making too many mistakes next time.

Practice week 7

This is me practicing the second 4 bars of my 12 bar blues. I think I did pretty good, however there are still a lot of things that I need to improve on on my next practice.

I think I was able to improve on the third line of my 12 bar blues a little, however I still make some mistakes. I should practice more and by next week I should be able to play all of my 12 bar blues consequently.

Week 10: March 19- March 23

Theory Class
Topic: 12 Bar Blues Performance
Question: How did my understanding of Blues change after my performance?

My understanding of Blues definitely changed after the performance. Since I have performed it myself, I now understand that Blues is all about our feelings. If we do not enjoy performing it, then it will definitely show in our music. I also learned how to collaborate with my group mates.

Instrument Class
Topic: 12 Bar Blues

We did our final practice of our 12 bar blues in front of Mr. John. Mr. John also helped us fix our mistakes if we have any.

Practice week 6

This is my first practice for my second four bars of my 12 bar blues. I think I did pretty good but I still have a lot of things to improve on.

I have made some improvements this week because I was able to play the second 4 bars of my 12 bar blues without committing any mistakes this time.

Week 9: March 12-March 16

Theory Class
Topic: 12 Bar Blues improvisation
Question: Explain your progress in understanding improvisation in Jazz Blues!

I cannot simply explain my progress in understanding the improvisation in Jazz Blues because I have not been taught how to improvise at all. I also think it is very much absurd that we are told to make a copy of our improvisation in Finale because I thought improvisation was supposed to be spontaneous. But nevertheless, I know that it is in Mr. Herry's best interest for us to be able to "improvise" well, that is why he asked us to make a draft of it first, to make it easier for us. But because of that, I still do not really quite understand Jazz's element of improvisation.

Instrument Class
Topic: 12 bar blues

We practiced our 12 bar blues again during instrument class. Mr. John also taught us how to play the chords of our 12 bar blues.

Practice week 5

This is me practicing the first four bars of my 12 bar blues. I aim to be able to play the first four bars well by the end of this week. But as you can see, I did not do so well in this practice. I have so many things to improve on for my next practice.

This is my second practice video for the first four bars of my 12 bar blues. I feel that I have made a lot of improvements and I am happy about it. I will be practicing the next 4 bars of my 12 bar blues next week.

Week 8: March 5- March 9

Theory Class
Topic: 12 Bar Blues Rehearsal
Question: Explain the role of Blues in the early development of Jazz!


Blues can be described as one of the important origins of early jazz. This is why Blues music is so improtant because Blues is really the "father" of Jazz for without Blues, Jazz music would never be brought to existence. Theme and emotions are 2 very important keys in Jazz because Jazz music was originally created to express the feelings of African-Americans.

Instrument Class
Topic: 12 Bar Blues

Mr. John lets us practice our 12 bar blues again. He was there for us to ask questions.

Practice Week 4

Because Mr. John was absent this week, I practiced the melody of All of Me at home. I did not really do a good job though. I made quite a lot of mistakes especially in the triad notes.

Week 7: Feb 27- Mar 2

Theory Class
Topic: 12 Bar Blues Practice
Question: How did I practice and apply my 12 Bar Blues at home?

I practice my 12 Bar Blues step by step at home. I first practice the first 4 bars, then the 5th to the 8th bar, and this week I finally practice my last 4 bars. I think this way of practicing is more effective because this way, I will not have to learn too much things in a week. This way, the improvements made by practicing can also be seen more.

Instrument Class
Topic: 12 Bar Blues

Mr. John again allows us to practice our 12 bar blues improvisation. I am amused by Dhanes because he can immediately improvise whereas I still can't. It is really fascinating and I hope to be able to do it someday.

Practice Week 3

I did not do any video for week 2 because Mr. John was absent so we did not learn anything new during instrument class.

This is my first practice on the chords of the Jazz song "All of Me". I did not do so well because the chords given by Mr. John and Mr. Herry are not the same. I am using Mr. Herry's chords. I made a major mistake towards the end but I will try my best to fix it.

This is my second practice for the All of Me chords. I think I improved from my last practice however my tempo is not quite constant. I need to improve on that. 

Week 6: Feb 20- Feb 24

Theory Class
Topic: 12 Bar Blues Submission
Question: Did you face any challenges working on your 12 Bar Blues?

I had a really difficult time in composing my 12 Bar Blues mainly because I have never learned how to play Jazz before and it is really hard to learn a new type of music in a very short period of time. I also had a problem with my Finale software because I could not hear my composition in this software so I was not really sure whether or not the melody goes well with the given chords.

Instrument Class
Topic: 12 Bar Blues

Mr. John checked in on us playing our 12 Bar Blues. He also gave us feedbacks on our composition and help us improve it if there is a wrong note. He also helped us play our 12 Bar blues.

Practice Week 1

This is a video of me practicing the song "When the Saints Go Marching In". This is my first practice of this song at home. That is the reason why I made a couple of mistakes. I also did not pluck some notes right which makes the sound dies before it is supposed to. I will improve on my picking and I will try to minimize my mistakes next practice.

This is my second practice on the song "When the saints go marching in". I think I have improved a little. I only make 1 mistake and I picked all of the notes right. I will now try to play the melody with the chord.

Week 5:Feb 13 - Feb 17

Dates: Tuesday, 14 February 2012
          Wednesday, 15 February 2012

Theory Class
Topic: Blues
Reflection Question: How is my understanding of Blues and applying 12 bars Blues?

I still do not really understand the difference between Blues and Jazz. I also do not understand why we were learning the history and background of Jazz but we are expected to make an improvisation of Blues now. I still do not know how to improvise though, so I have a difficulty in making the 12 bars Blues. I also think that one does not simply learn jazz improvisation in only a couple of weeks.

Instrument Class
Topic: 12 bars Blues improvisation

During instrument class, we were given time to practice our 12 bars blues improvisation. We also helped each other during this process.

Week 4 : Feb 6 - Feb 10 2012

Dates: Tuesday, 7 February 2012
          Wednesday, 8 February 2012

Theory Class
Topic: Assessment Tasks
Reflection Question: How do you understand the learning of jazz through your assessment tasks done until now?

I understand a lot more about Jazz after doing the 3 assessments I have done so far which is the 2 essays on Jazz and singing the Jazz song "What a A Wonderful World". Now that I have sang a jazz song myself, I understand more about jazz. And even though my assessment did not go so well, I still find some benefits in singing this song.

Instrument Class
Mr. John was absent.             

Week 3: Jan 30 - Feb 3 2012

Dates: Tuesday, 31/01/2012
           Wednesday, 1/02/2012

Theory Class   
Topic: Deeper Analysis of Jazz
Reflection Question: How did I do my essay and how did it affect me when learning and applying jazz?

Because I did an assignment on Jazz last year, I just needed to take my old assignment and paraphrase  its history part. It affects me by reminding me that jazz is the only type of music where we can really express ourselves as freely as possible.

Instrument Class
Topic: "All of Me"

Mr. John taught us the chords of the jazz song "All of Me:. We played the chords together however I am a little bit confused because the chords are a little bit different from the chords Mr. Herry gave us.

Week 2: Jan 23 - Jan 27 2012

Dates: Tuesday, 24/01/2012
          Wednesday, 25/01/2012

Theory Class    
Topic: The Roots of Jazz
Reflection Question: How is my progress in learning the roots of jazz?

I am amazed when I found out that the African-Americans are the one who invented jazz especially since they were under slavery at that moment. I learned that the chords used in jazz are usually the 7th chords usch as C7, G7, Cmaj7,Dm7 and many more. I am familiar enough with most of them already, however, I still need to learn more 7th chords.

Instrument Class
Mr. John was absent this week so we didn't really learn anything new.

Week 1: Jan 16 - Jan 20 2012

Dates: Tuesday, 17/01/2012
          Wednesday, 18/01/2012

Theory Class            
Topic: Introduction of Jazz
Reflection Question: How do you find the topic of jazz and how did the teacher do it?

My first impression of jazz is that it is hard because we have to improvise in the middle of the song. This is proven difficult because the musicians have to be able to play by ear and therefore have to familiarize themselves with all of the notes of the key of the song in their heads. This means, jazz musicians cannot play by knowledge alone, they also need skill and talent. So this is why I think jazz is hard.
The music teachers however have put together a very good and inspiring performance of the song Autumn Leaves by Joseph Kosma.

Instrument Class
Topic: "When the Saints are Marching In"

Mr. Herry told us to learn the melody of the jazz song "When the Saints are Marching In" so Mr. John taught it to us. I am inspired especially by Dhanes because he is very good at playing by ear even though he is not able to read musical notes.