Former Student Describes Reuben Jackson’s Jazz-infused Poetry Class
“I’m going to play you some John Coltrane,” he said, his voice serious, soft-spoken. “Some people say Coltrane sounds like a bunch of salad,” he continued, “but it’s all in the way he mixes it.” He pressed “PLAY” and told us to write what came to mind.
Miles Liss, who recently graduated with an MFA in poetry from Vermont College of Fine Arts, reflects on his time taking classes under maestro Reuben Jackson in this short essay. You can read the whole thing on Past-Ten here. Read Reuben's poetry here.
In the essay, Liss describes Reuben's unorthodox approach to teaching poetry, specifically his focus on extemporaneous writing in a similar vein to the off-the-cuff soloing and improvisation of jazz musicians. Below is an excerpt:
“I’m going to play you some John Coltrane,” he said, his voice serious, soft-spoken. “Some people say Coltrane sounds like a bunch of salad,” he continued, “but it’s all in the way he mixes it.” He pressed “PLAY” and told us to write what came to mind. Like a silent Miles Davis exiting the stage to give his fellow musicians an opportunity for expression, our instructor left the room.
As Coltrane played, I pressed my pencil against notebook paper and started writing. The words came out in a rush, in rhythms I had already possessed. It felt natural, in a way fiction never did. There was no agonizing over characters, plot charts and index cards. It was pure emotion.
We went around the room, reading our poems. I had two short pieces, riffs on cityscapes, and though I was nervous, I read them aloud. When I looked up, he was watching me, deep in thought and leaning back in his chair. He said nothing. Weeks later, he’d verbalize his praise, but for the time being, the silence spoke. As Miles Davis knew so well, the real music was in the silence.
Mark A. Pritchard Reads from His Novel, “Billy Christmas”
It’s that time of year again. As I’m sure you know. That time of year to rediscover all those things one loves and yet stores in boxes during the sunnier months–ornaments, heirlooms, wax statues, wreaths, and the classics. And although one should not consider Billy Christmas a novel pigeon-held by its festive nature, for it is good any day of the year, (as are the classics!) we are so happy the holiday season is here to give us an opportunity to promote Mark A. Pritchard’s incredible young adult novel.
Grace Cavalieri’s November 2018 Exemplars of Poetry
Every month for the Washington Independent Review of Books, the amazing Maryland Poet Grace Cavalieri, author of Other Voices, Other Lives, does a round-up style review of the best recently released independent books of poetry and books about poetry…
Small Press Week 2018: Tuesday, New Releases 2019!
ASP Autumn 2019 Lineup As ASP has taken 2018 to prepare for a huge 2019 season, let’s take a look at what’s coming up! Linda Watanabe McFerrin: Writer, poet, journalist, […]