How to play jazz

"one of the most important things to keep in mind while playing .... , is to play the eighth notes correctly. in the past, a bar of eighth notes was played as dotted eighth followed by sixteenth notes. it was believed that eighth notes played in this manner best exemplified the syncopated feel of jazz. however, modern conception demands that a bar of eighth notes be played as quarter notes followed by eighth notes in a triplet figure. this notation most accurately defines the proper jazz conception to employ when playing eighth note patterns.
there are three phrasing marks which are used continually in this method:
> the note is accented and held its full length
^ the note is accented and played short
- the note is given full value and attacked with a legato tongue"