Using Improv isation as a

Teaching Stra Itegy

By J a n i n e R iv e ire

Trying to implement the Natiional Standards for Music Educationl has led me to the important
i!.coaclusionthat improvisation is a valuable teaching tool. Rather than thinking about it as yet anoth-
c: t1iing to teach in the already ttoo-short music lesson, I have started using improvisation activities
reinforce music learning. B)r doing this, I am not only addressing Standard 3 (improvising
Wi:0to
melodies, variations, and accompaniments), but also giving the students and myself the chance to
develop our improvisational skilIls and overcome our fear of improvisation.
Daily participation in improvisational activities can help everyone learn to enjoy improvisation.
This holds true for general muisic classes and performance ensembles at any level, but getting
improvisation activities into perfformance-oriented classes presents a particular challenge. The chal-
lenge ensemble directors face is breaking away from the traditional rehearsal model and creating a
time slot in each lesson or reheaarsalto step away from notated music to focus on auditory skills or
concepts.
Many educational approaches, especially those that target early
childhood education, emphasize the importance of playing
with or manipulating an idea or skill to deepen understand-
ing of it. What is manipulation? Literally, it means han-
dling, or moving with the hands. More generally for
musicians, manipulation is using the body (finger mus-
cles, vocal cords, arm movements, breath) or the mind
to explore different ways of making or using a particular
sound or combination of sounds. The kind of manipula-
tion of musical material done in improvisation causes
the brain to process the information differently, using
more of the cortex and strengthening a student's ability to
learn.

Sample Improvisation Games

Let me illustrate the benefits of improvisation by outlining three scenarios: a beginning strings
class, an intermediate band classs, and an advanced choir. In the classroom, I try to treat all improv-
isation activities like those descrribedbelow as games that allow students to have fun as they explore
and learn. The materials listed iin the Suggested Reading sidebar can give you addi-
tional ideas.
Solos and Conversations with Strings. In the beginning string class, stu-
dents have recently learned the first four notes on the D string: D, E, F-
sharp, and G. They have played the notes pizzicato in many written
exercises, and they have had free time to experiment with the notes.
They have also been bowing open strings in a variety of rhythms. Today
will be their first time bowing thlese fingered notes, using both hands at
the same time.
There are several possible imIprovisation activities for these students:
(1) playing an open-string acconipaniment (arco or pizzicato) while stu-
dents solo arco; (2) manipulating the rhythm of two pitches (arco) over
a tonic-dominant harmonic pattEern, which can be created by the teacher
on a keyboard or with Band-in-aI-Boxor by the class using open strings or
pizzicato on assigned pitches; arnd (3) "conversations," having pairs of stu-
dents face each other and play nmusicalphrases back and forth, using only those
four pitches. Each of these activities can help students achieve the goals set forth in Standard3 and
reinforces performance skills as well as the concepts of harmonic progression or form.

MUS IC EDUCATORS JOURNAL JANUARY 2006

 Soloing over a neutral harmonic background, as in the first activity, can be done with any new
note set or with a skill in which the note set is not necessarily crucial. The neutral harmonic
background is best with quartal or quintal chords, voiced widely (as with open strings in an
orchestra). One can also create a neutral background with rhythm patterns on unpitched instru-
ments, laps, or a unison pitch.
Playing set pitches over an alternating tonic-dominant harmonic background, as in the sec-
ond activity, helps students develop the feel of tonic and dominant by allowing them to discov-
er dissonance and intuitive voice leading. The third activity, conversations, allows students to
develop an understanding of phrase structure, call-and-response form, various articulations and
dynamic levels, and voice leading. Students strive to keep to the established pitch and to repeat
parts of what the other has "said" in their own responses, as people do in real conversations.
A Registers Gamefor IntermediateBand. In the intermediate band class, students have learned
to play a new scale, using some new notes or fingerings. To develop facility with the notes of the
scale, set up a registers game. This game, typically for groups of three, takes one instrument each
from the high, middle, and bass registers. Students proceed to improvise freely, using notes from
the scale in only the assigned octave. The assigned octave should use the most new material and
be appropriate for the register needed.
Encourage students to move rhyth-
mically slowly at times (e.g., with W
half or whole notes) and quickly
at other times (e.g., with eighth
notes). The effect is similar to
Dixieland-style jazz. After some
time working in small groups,
students can share with the large
group.

Improvisationgames are one way to help

ensemble members master Standard3.

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 *S~~'~ r(~lg ~ ( I'

* Azzara,Christopher."AnAuralApproachto Improvisation."
MusicEducators
Journal86, no. 2 (1999):21-25.

* Bechtel,Ben."lmprovisationin EarlyMusic."MusicEducatorsJournal66, no. 5 (1980): 109-12.

* Bradshaw,Merrill."Improvisationand ComprehensiveMusicianship."
MusicEducators
Journal66, no. 5 (1980): 113-15.

* Camilleri,LelioA."ModularApproachto MusicCognition."Interface18, no. 1-2 (1989): 33-44.

* Campbell,PatriciaShehan."Unveilingthe Mysteries of Music Spontaneity."Music EducatorsJournal78, no. 4 (1991):

21-25.

* Dobbins,Bill."Teaching Know IsWhatYou Get."Jazz Educatorsournal18,no.3 (1986): 14-17,

Improvisation:WhatYou
62.

* Erwin,Joanne."Beyondthe Page."TeachingMusic3, no. 3 (1995): 28-30.

* Findlay,Elsa.Rhythmand MovementApplication
of DalcrozeEurhythmics.
Evanston,IL:Summy-Birchard,
1971.

* Gordon, EdwinE.JumpRightIn:TheMusicCurriculum.
Chicago:GIA, 1985.

* Hall,EdwinT."Improvisationas an Acquired,MultilevelProcess."Ethnomusicology
36, no. 2 (1992): 223-35.

* Hickey,Maud."TeachingEnsemblesto Compose and Improvise."MusicEducators

Journal83, no. 5 (1997): 17-21.

* Keetman,Gunild.Elementaria.Translated
by MargaretMurray.London:Schott, 1974.

* Keyes,Christopher."TeachingImprovisationand Twentieth-CenturyIdioms."MusicEducatorsjournal86, no. 5 (2000):

17-22.

* Mickolajak, TeachingMusic 10, no. 5 (2003):41-44.

MaryT."BeginningSteps to Improvisation,"

* Sarath,EdwardW."Improvisationfor Global Musicianship." Journal80, no. I (1993): 23-26.

MusicEducators

* Schafer,R. Murray.CreativeMusicEducation.
New York:Schirmer,1976.

* Whitcomb, Rachel."Step by Step:Using Kodalyto BuildVocal Improvisation,"

TeachingMusic 10,no. 5 (2003): 34-38.

Registers (the separation of lines by
an octave or more) make counterpoint
more palatable to the novice. The
interval of a minor ninth is less dis-
tressing or stressful to the ear than a
minor second, for example. In this
way, more than one person at a time
can achieve free improvisation within
an agreed-upon key. Students learn to
respond to their partners by alternat-
ing active and sustained lines (creat-
ing "rhythmicwindows") and discov-
ering how to create cadences.
Cadenzas and Dissonances with an
Advanced Choir In the advanced
choral rehearsal scenario, students
have begun to improvise original
melodies over assigned chord progres-
sions. Students can now work on
42
vocal repertoire, such as opera arias,
that traditionally has included
improvisation. For example, they
might work collectively on an aria of
appropriatedifficulty that has a caden-
za and then discuss the use of scales,
arpeggios, and perhaps even trills in
an improvised cadenza. Listening to
recorded examples may help kindle
this exploration by providing exam-
ples of common patterns used.
Students can practice individually and
then share their version of the final
phrase.
Improvised cadenzas can happen
in a classical, jazz, or pop context.
Students should begin by listening to
numerous examples. During the
game, the cadential harmony is
MUSIC EDUCATORS JOURNAL
played repeatedly, and the resolution
to tonic is gradually delayed to give
students time for extended explo-
ration. A live pianist may be best
here, but prerecorded or synthesized
accompaniment can work. The lack
of individual exposure involved in
individualized mass practice is use-
ful the first few times this game is
played; volunteers can share their
results after everyone has practiced.
These advanced choral students
could also use improvisation to work
on improving intonation of har-
monies in a given piece of repertoire,
especially one that uses cluster
chords or other dissonances. A tradi-
tional approach might involve iden-
tifying one or more difficult chords
JANUARY 2006
 Phase Time Allotment Energy Activities

Introduction/Warm-ups 8-10 minutes Moderate Transitionalactivities; preparingfor music

making;tuning,when appropriate;warm-ups,
includingscales, rhythms,and harmonies;
cross-listening;and adjusting intonation

Review/Old repertoire 5-15 minutes Moderate, moving to Playinglearned material, reinforcing what was
lower new in the last rehearsal, observing dynamics,
correcting rhythms,emphasizing phrasing,etc.

New material/Extension 5-15 minutes Lower New concept or skill in new or familiar
of technique music. Material introduced verbally by instruc-
tor, demonstrated or modeled, then attempt-
ed and practiced collectively by students

Manipulation/Improvisation 8-10 minutes Moderate Opportunities for students to wrestle with

the new material in an individualizedand cre-
ative manner; improvisation games

Closure 4-10 minutes High A musical activity in which all perform a

meaningfulsection of music they know and
enjoy

U *6

and structuring a game of singing in
and out of tune with a specific chord
or voicing of a chord. Stack it,
breathe, sing it again deliberately off
pitch, and then return to the correct
chord within a set time (perhaps one
beat). The choir should check the
chord against the starting pitches.
A more improvisational approach
is to further individualize and
expand the exploration: while the
group holds the chord, one student
or a small group of students deliber-
ately sings dissonances (that they
discover themselves) and then
resolves them by returning to the
original chord. This teaches several
things: comfort with dissonance, the
ability to stick to an assigned pitch,
careful tuning of harmonies, and lis-
tening to others in the ensemble.
Over time, a teacher can extend
how far the students should wander
in their improvisations. When stu-
dents sing longer phrases to disso-
nance and back, they learn to create
melodies on the spot without fear of
dissonance.
Dissonance search works best
when there is a constant pitch or
chord against which to create the
dissonance. It can be used in a group
setting to improve intonation of
individual chords, or it can encour-
age melodic improvisation that
embraces dissonance while also
training students to hold a pitch
against other parts' dissonance. This
can be a particular challenge to
vocal students, but it is not exclu-
sively a vocal problem.
Repertoire for Improvisation
Repertoire from the mid- to late-
twentieth century by such com-
posers as Harold Budd, Christian
Wolff, and others uses graphic or
narrative scores that require a much
freer interpretation of symbols or
instructions than traditional nota-
tion. Imagine interpreting this
instruction: "choose to play (or not
to play) between one and seven
sounds." Or imagine interpreting the
sound of symbols like these: * * *.
Composers using such symbols may
provide a key for interpretation, but
they often do not. Pieces such as
Wolff's "For 1, 2, or 3 People" or
Pauline Oliveros's "The Klickitat
Ride" require no particular instru-
mentation. This is fun but challeng-
ing material from which to develop
improvisation activities. Class explo-
ration of an excerpt of one of these
works can spread student awareness
beyond the traditional classical
repertoire and help them develop
different habits of listening and
thinking.
Alleviating Fear
An important key to any of these
activities is to consider your students'
and your own anxiety about improv-
isation. Many musicians and students
fear improvisation for different rea-
sons, but it is important to remove
the element of fear and allow the
musical mind to play. That is the
essence of improvisation. If the anxi-
ety level is moderate to high, then be
sure to call these exercises "games,"
since games are usually perceived as
nonthreatening activities.
You can most effectively reduce
anxiety by creating an encouraging
environment. There must be trust in
the room. Students must feel safe to
experiment without being berated or

WWW. MENC. ORG 43

belittled for what they perceive as
wrong notes or bad sounds. Teachers
and classmates must all agree to
ground rules of behavior (e.g., no
laughing or grimacing) and cri-
tiquing (e.g., there are no wrong
notes, only ones you would change if
you played it over). As the teacher,
you are the model for this behavior
and must hold everyone in the room
responsible for maintaining a stan-
dard. Without trust, students will
only reproduce what they have seen
or heard before, and that is not
improvisation.
All these activities allow the
teacher to informally assess individ-
uals' grasp of improvisation based on
the pitches provided. The level of
complexity or difficulty of the stu-
dent's performance provides a fur-
ther window into the student's
achievement and understanding of
the skill or concepts being assessed.
As students become comfortable
with the activities, they may become
useful for formal assessments as
well.
Planning
The crucial change I have had to
make in structuring the arc of the
rehearsal or lesson has been creating
a time slot for manipulating new
concepts. I drew this idea from a dis-
cussion about lesson structure with
a colleague who applies principles of
Education through Music (ETM) in
her teaching.2 The lesson plan for-
mat she uses recognizes the impor-
tance of giving a child time to play
with or manipulate an idea or skill
to deepen and personalize his or her
understanding of it. We find this
idea in Orff-Schulwerk as well.
Improvisation is the ultimate manip-
ulation activity, and so I believe it is
the most powerful tool for that
phase of a lesson.
Lesson structure also relies on
pacing and the teacher's manipula-
tion of the class's energy level.
Robert Culver's work from the 1980s
describing the master teacher and
the class energy profile is key in for-
mulating this lesson structure.3 An
effective lesson begins with moder-
ate energy, slows down for the
detail-oriented work of extending
technique or learning new material,
44
and then increases in energy to a individually with the harmonic
high level by the end of the lesson. background so that you can assess
The high energy helps to build stu- their learning.
dent motivation. My goal has been If the new material is a skill, such
to place improvisation activities in as shifting to a higher register, then
the high-energy part of the profile you need a different activity. One
for maximum benefit. possibility is for each student to take
Table 1 shows the procedural out- a passage from the new material and
line I have developed. Remember expand it to create a little exercise
that every lesson or rehearsal will that they practice for a minute, and
have one or two very specific objec- then share. Or you can ask students
tives and one or two general objec- to play any notes in the lower regis-
tives. Time indications are ranges for ter for one measure and then play
varying lesson times, from the thir- the first beat of the next measure on
ty-minute class to the fifty-five- a particular note from the higher
minute class. register, then rest and repeat. In this
Which improvisation activity is way, the students practice arriving at
planned depends on the objective of a particular goal tone from a variety
the lesson or rehearsal. For example, of self-created lead-ins.
if the new concept is cadence or It can be time-consuming to plan
tonic and dominant, then you would these activities, and it is not always
work with students to identify easy to surrender rehearsal or
places in the repertoire where domi- instructional time to them, but this
nant or tonic cadences occur and approach is effective and genuinely
have them play those excerpts. For instructional. If applied consistently
improvisation on that concept, give over a period of months, your efforts
the students the chord pitches to will be rewarded by increased stu-
choose from for tonic and dominant, dent motivation and achievement.
set out a harmonic background, and
let students create short cadential Learning through Play
phrases from the notes available. At This is discovery instruction,
first, all students can play whatever which is very powerful. It works
they want while all others are also within the higher levels of cognitive
playing. After this free practice time, processing: application, analysis,
ask students to take turns playing and synthesis. Students learn to
o m
z
z
|W,
o MENCResources
The following MENC resources offer more informationon improvisa-
tion.To order books or back issues of any MENC magazines,call 800-828-
0229. Past articles are also availablein periodicaldatabasesat many libraries.
* Inks,Kimberly(Burns)."Standard 3 Is RiskyBusiness:PracticalIdeasfor
Improvisationin the Classroom."TeachingMusic 12,no. 5 (2005):22-26.
* Madura,Patrice D. GettingStartedwithVocalImprovisation.
Reston,VA:
MENC, 1994. Item #1626 ($11.25, MENCmembers;$15.00, nonmem-
bers).
* Marshall,Herbert D. "ImprovisationStrategies and Resources for
General Music."GeneralMusicToday17, no. 3 (2004): 51-54. Available
online to MENCmembers at www.menc.org/journals.
* Volz,MicahD."lmprovisationBeginswith Exploration."MusicEducators
Journal92, no. 5 (2005): 50-53.
'1134- -01
MUSIC EDUCATORS JOURNAL JANUARY 2006
explore their instruments, which
may unlock the secrets of practice
time for some students. This atti-
tude of exploration can inspire more
from the student who only does Designed for Professional Educators
\'1I 1;(
RI
MUSICACE
what the teacher suggests and does- Combiningall lessonsfromMusicAce?
andMusicAce?2, MusicAce?Maestro
n't think to go beyond what is ,o

is a completeseriesof 48 engaging - ' .

expected but who has talent to go
beyond what is happening in the
class. Furthermore, students devel-
op a habit of listening more acutely,
t_,,.
-^ music lessons and games that teach
beginningmusicstudentsof all ages the
. . basics of music theory, rhythm,pitch,
note reading, listening, and the keyboard.

Music Ace* Maestro is designed for

which will enable them to partici-
pate more fully and effectively in
any ensemble.
All good teaching takes planning,
and it takes time to get comfortable
with a new teaching strategy.
Nevertheless, implementing this par-
ticular strategy is one effort that is
worthwhile. It addresses the spirit of
the Standards and allows you to fos-
4
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ter your students' skills so they are 'T

I
ready for grade-level benchmarks in
the improvisation Standard.
Using this approach, students are
learning to improvise in a low-stress
setting. When it's time to address the
more difficult aspects of the improv-
isation Standard, such as improvis-
ing an actual melody in a particular
style, the task is less frightening,
because the attitude of playful exper-
imentation has already been shaped.
^^,BB
Notes
1. Consortium of National Arts
Education Associations, National
Standardsfor Arts Education (Reston, VA: .' w-I^ a
MENC,1994).
2. Developedby MaryHelen Richards
in the 1960s, EducationthroughMusic
(ETM)uses "song-experiencegames"as
a startingpoint for learningaboutmusic
and everything else in a young child's
life. Thereare particularlystrong corre-
lations for success in literacy building
and English-language learning. For
more informationabout ETM,visit the Inspirational Music Training in Beautiful New Hampshire
Richards Institute of Education and
Research'sWeb site at www.education
throughmusic.com/etm.htm. Summer 2006 A unique, creative
3. Robert Culver, "The Master
TeacherTraining approach to music
Teacher Profile" (workshop, Texas
Music Educators Association Annual Institute training through
Conference,San Antonio, TX, February Young Musicians improvisation and
1987); or The Master Teacher Profile: Program composition.
Elements of Delivery and Work in the
Classroom, DVD (Madison: University of
Wisconsin Division of University
www.waldenschool.org (415) 648-4710
Outreach, 1988). ?

WWW. MENC. ORG 45