This article is written by Toru Hoshino, a jazz bassist and instructor based in Japan who teaches online lessons to students worldwide. In this article, he shares a true story from 2016 about a guy who showed up to a jam session after exactly one day of playing jazz.
The setting: a neighborhood bar near my place. I was sitting alone with a drink, reading a manga, when a young guy sat down at the counter nearby.
Contents
One Night
Young guy: “What are you reading?”
Me: “Oh, this? It’s called ‘Kids on the Slope.’ Ever heard of it?”
Young guy: “Nope, never heard of it.”
Me: “It’s about jazz. You know jazz?”
Young guy: “Oh yeah! I know that! Super cool stuff, jazz!”
Me (thinking): Wow, he’s really into this. Wish he were a girl.
Me: “Oh, I just finished it actually — want to borrow it?”
Young guy: “Really? Can I? Awesome! Actually, I do music too — I’m a guitarist/singer, just moved here from Okinawa. Starting at a music school here in Tokyo this spring.”
Me: “No kidding? That’s some serious commitment.”
We hit it off and kept talking. Since we lived nearby, I lent him the whole series — all 10-ish volumes — and we said goodnight.
The Next Afternoon
The next afternoon: “Toru! I finished the whole series! It was amazing! I’m bringing it back right now!”
Whoa — already?! He came by.
“Man, I got so into it, I actually cried. And the songs in the manga are real songs, so I looked them up and listened — ‘Moanin”, ‘Lullaby of Birdland.’ So cool!”
“Oh nice, got into jazz, huh? Love that.”
“What else is out there?”
“Alright, let me give you the rundown.”
Miles Davis, Charlie Parker, Bill Evans, John Coltrane, Bud Powell, Keith Jarrett. And since you play guitar — Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, Jim Hall, George Benson. And personally, I’d throw in the incredible bassist Esperanza Spalding too.
I scribbled it all down on a sheet of paper and handed it to him.
Then — oh, right!
“Hey, you know what a ‘jam session’ is?”
“What’s that?”
“It’s where a bunch of musicians who’ve never met just bring their instruments and improvise together on the spot. It’s a classic jazz tradition.”
“No way! That’s so cool!”
“There’s actually one tomorrow — I’m playing bass for the house rhythm section. Want to come?”
“I’m in!”
What an enthusiastic kid. I don’t think I’d ever met anyone who said “I’m in!” to a jam session with zero hesitation like that.
The Day After That
The day after that — February 18th, a jam session at a venue in the western Tokyo suburbs. We met at the station at 6:30 and headed over together.
“You ever played jazz before?”
“Nope. But I did practice something called the ‘blues pentatonic’ today!”
“Huh. Huh!”
One day of jazz experience.
One day. There’s something almost poetic about that.
How many days have I logged at this point? Probably past 2,000 by now.
But then again — Christian McBride, Avishai Cohen, Paul Chambers — they all had a “day one” too.
We got to the venue, and I introduced him to everyone.
“This is a guy who just moved here from Okinawa, chasing a music career. One day of jazz experience.”
Everyone’s jaws dropped.
“So, what should we play?”
“Let’s do an F blues. Just solo — don’t worry about anything else. Stick to these notes and you’ll be fine.”
Just F, A♭, and C — that’s all he was told to hang onto.
And he played it exactly like someone with one day of jazz experience. But he had a huge smile on his face the whole time, clearly having a blast.
I remember my own first session — pure nerves and cold sweat the entire time.
Is this kid crazy? Or is he going to turn into something incredible?
It had been a while since I’d thought that about someone.
It was a cold, windy February night. We grabbed ramen on the way home.
“Oh, let me get my share—”
“Don’t worry about it. You came out tonight — this one’s on me.”
“I feel bad taking it…”
“Just promise me one thing — when you book your first real gig, let me know. Put together a band you’re genuinely proud of, and write some great songs.”
“Got it! Thank you so much!”
Somewhere along the way, I’d turned into the kind of person who says things like that. Guess I’d better live up to it myself.
March’s almost here.
Watching someone improvise on three notes with zero experience but total joy is a reminder that the fundamentals — chords, time, structure — are exactly what a teacher helps you turn that joy into real skill.
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This is exactly the kind of thing that’s hard to fix alone — and where having a teacher makes all the difference.
At Line on Bass, I offer an online lesson service where you send me a video of your playing, and I give you specific, detailed feedback — every single day if you want.
Students from around the world are using this to fix exactly these kinds of issues and steadily improve their jazz bass skills.