Students and teachers at two Global Connections and Exchange Program
schools had a special opportunity to enjoy live jazz music in
March. The Pacific Brass ensemble is a US Air Force Band visited
the Safi Uddin Sarker Academy and College in Tongi and the
Garib-E-Nawaz High School in Chittagong. The musicians are all
members of the US Air Force, but they are professional musicians at the
same time. They tour different countries, to give foreign
audiences the experience of a live jazz band. The band includes
two trumpets, two trombones, and a tuba.
In December, the Global Connections and Exchange lesson focused on the
universality of music, and we talked about how each country has its own
musical style, and how different musical styles are fusing and building
on each other in modern musical forms. We discussed how jazz is a
uniquely American style of music which developed in the 20th century.
Just as Americans came from all over the world, jazz has roots in many
cultures, and was particularly influenced by Americans whose families
had come from Africa.
The Pacific Brass Ensemble played songs from the 1930s through the
1960s, including Big Band music and movie themes which were written for
orchestras. The band also did their best to play, a traditional
Bengali song. The audiences enjoyed their entire performance, but went
wild when they heard familiar music coming out of the brass
instruments.
At both performances, students and members of the school community also
put on a performance for the band, so they could enjoy Bangladeshi
music and dance. The student songs consisted of some traditional
music, as well as modern rock songs. |
