My experience is mostly in NYC, so I can speak to that. Our experiences sound basically the same, though I can confirm that NYC generally expects a level of pro

My experience is mostly in NYC, so I can speak to that. Our experiences sound basically the same, though I can confirm that NYC generally expects a level of proficiency higher than just about anywhere else. Yeah, I am so happy with about the last +/- decade of jazz's development. The crusty OG's yelling "get off the bandstand!" are dying out, and like you said, there's so much more focus on original compositions, and thus actually having rehearsal time (instead of just showing up to a gig and being expected to read everything -- though that's still super common, even with originals, in NYC. That was why I got work: I'm a guitarist who's a good sight-reader) And there's much more support amongst the players (albeit above a certain level of expected proficiency -- you gotta "join the club" still). Overall it's nice to see. Much more positive and supportive while making (IMO) way more interesting and better music, pushing the genre forward rather than wallowing in dick-measuring contests.