Glamorously out-of-focus I admit. And you must have noticed. At least that there was something ‘off’, right? Well, that’s how to improvise in a nutshell! What do you feel, what do you desire? For the subject to come into focus – for it to be as sharp as you expect it. So, now you know how to improvise. Need more explaining? Well, allright then :)

In response to the video you’ll likely now be wondering in what form I want you to express yourself freely. Singing, dancing, drawing, writing, speaking, what?

Naturally, expressing yourself freely means doing whatever… But you want to express yourself freely through musical improvisation.

So you want to improvise music?

You mean like complete compositions? A theme with chords and melody?

Oh, I see. You want to improvise on existing compositions. Why didn’t you say so?

This may seem a bit childish to you, but it is of the utmost importance.

Since you will be improvising on existing compositions – your own or from other composers – you will have to take them into account.

Since everything you do is relative – to ‘what is already there’.

Logical, but essential stuff.

Adding to what is already there

A composition can ‘be there’; with its chords and structure. What’s already there can be chords played by other musicians. Just the bass or only the rhythm from the drums. It might be nothing from any instrument, but still, there’s something.

Nothing

There’s nothing. Which means that whatever you do on ‘the white canvas of nothingness’ – unless you do nothing – will truly stand out. Even little things.

And there’s what was there. The memory of the past. What was the last musical statement? The last note, chord or cymbal that sounded. It’s still there.

Where?

Let’s find out where ‘there’ is in the next chapter.