Shed Sessions

HISTORY OF SHEDDIN’

Sheddin’, or woodsheddin’, is a term in jazz for focused, serious practice to hone your skills. The term is believed to have originated from musicians retreating to woodsheds or other secluded places to avoid disturbing others while they played and experimented with new techniques.

The term’s genesis is most commonly attributed to legendary musician Charlie ‘Bird’ Parker’s 15 hour practice sessions. The story goes he “went to the shed” after having an embarrassing experience on the band stand with the Count Basie Orchestra.

Excerpt from Martin Chilton’s Independent article:

Bass player Gene Ramey, one of the musicians present that day, recalled what happened in the book Jazz Matters. “Bird kept getting lost in a chord sequence, and Jo Jones kept hitting the ball of his cymbal like a gong to get Bird off the stand,” said Ramey. “Jo was supposed to have thrown the cymbal all the way across the floor, but he just dropped it at Bird’s feet, and that stopped him”

Before walking off in tears, Parker defiantly told the band, “Oh, man, I’ll be back. Don’t worry, I’m comin’ back.” His response to an insulting gesture from [Jones] was to relocate to a resort in the Ozarks and begin a period of such obsessive practice that it helped him become one of the greatest saxophone players of all time.