Jazz Concert Report

When Joseph joined the band on the first day of school, he was excited to learn to play the trumpet. During the summer, his father had shown him some videos of a jazz trumpeter playing a complicated solo with her band and Joseph decided he wanted to be just like her someday.

Learning the trumpet took a substantial amount of time, so Joseph practiced every day after school for at least an hour. Joseph's rapid progress and enthusiastic dedication impressed his band teacher, Ms. Watson.

One day in early October, Ms. Watson stopped Joseph after class had ended.

"I think you're ready for a solo when we have our winter concert in six weeks. How would you feel about that?"

Joseph beamed and started to nod his head yes. But he hesitated and looked at her with a doubtful expression.
Do I play well enough to have a solo?"

Ms. Watson replied, "Of course, you do. Otherwise, I wouldn't have picked you."

Excited by the prospect, Joseph took the sheet music from Ms. Watson. For the next six weeks, he focused on practicing the 20 notes of the solo for fifteen minutes each day.

Within a week, he knew the notes by heart, but he still rehearsed the solo daily to perfect it for the performance. Joseph watched more videos of jazz legends to see how they performed solos. He imitated them when he worked on his own solo.

Despite all his preparation, Joseph woke up feeling very nervous on the day of the winter band concert. To calm himself, he thoroughly cleaned his trumpet before school. Before he placed the trumpet in its case, he played the solo one more time. Joseph felt ready to play it for all to hear.

In band class, Ms. Watson had all the soloists play their pieces. Joseph listened to the other soloists play. Some were flawless the first time through, while others stopped and started as Ms. Watson guided them with feedback.

Joseph was playing his notes in his head when Ms. Watson said, "Joseph, you're