Improvisation as a Cultural Connection: Empowering Student Music Making With Improvised Musical Conversations

With Joe Campbell

Make Sure to grab

an instrument

The personal viewpoints expressed in this session are solely those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or views of Music Will.

Make Some Noise!

Explore your Instrument

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Find some sounds that fit with this song

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Have fun and get weird

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The personal viewpoints expressed in this session are solely those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or views of Music Will.

Presenter Background

• Modern Band Teacher since 2016
• Teach K-12 Music in Nezperce, Idaho
• General Music
• Modern Band
• Northwest Modern Band Teachers Assoc.

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• Two thoughts that led to this presentation
1. What if music classrooms became spaces where students are creating art, not just re-creating art.

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• It is called playing music for a reason

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What About You?

• Who are you?
• Where are you from?
• One thought you have about improvising that brought you here today.
• Question or Concern
• Idea or Belief
• Something Else

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What is Improvisation

• Interaction
• Spontaneous
• Musical

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Some Thoughts About Improvisation

Professional Considerations

• It is a core aspect of the Modern Band approach
• If we wish to teach children to “speak” the language of music, the process of making music has to be emphasized over and above the act of reciting music. – Dave Wish

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• It is part of national and state-level music standards
• Students need to have experience in creating, to be successful musicians and to be successful 21st century citizens. – NAfME statement of principles for Music Standards

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• Improvising is something that professional musicians do all the time!

Direct Benefits

• Fosters creativity
• Students are able to create their own music

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• Enhances critical thinking
• Students become adept at hearing, analyzing, and responding to music

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• Builds musical fluency
• Students experiment with skills being taught in class leading to a deeper understanding of these skills

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• Increases performance confidence
• Students develop the ability to play through mistakes or unexpected events on stage

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We Can’t Teach what We Don’t Do!

How often do you improvise?

1. Every time you make music/Daily
2. Several times each week
3. Weekly
4. Occasionally
5. At workshops like this one
6. Never

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The Most Important Consideration

The more you and your students

make a practice of improvising

the more natural it will become

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The personal viewpoints expressed in this session are solely those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or views of Music Will.

4 Principles that Make it Work

• Regularity
• If possible make it part of every lesson
• Emphasize importance by making it one of the first things you do
• Immersion/Scaffolding
• Using recordings allows students to converse with fluent musicians
• All students playing together – no being on the spot, no waiting for turns
• Use Familiar Elements
• Use Material that Students already know
• Solo boxes and riffs
• Focus on Connection
• Emphasize having a conversation with the music
• Music Selection is Student-Centered

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Let Try It at a Student Level!

• 1 or 2 String Solo Box

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• First Finger on Fret 3
• Guitar and Uke – 2 strings close to floor
• Bass 2 strings close to your nose
• Keys: Any 2-5 white keys
• Other Instruments: Use C Major Scale

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• Try to Keep Exploring for the Whole Song

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On 1 String

On 2 Strings

Fret 3

Lets Reflect!

What did you experience?

What about applying this in the classroom?

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The personal viewpoints expressed in this session are solely those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or views of Music Will.

Lets Try Some Other Locations

• Strings: You can Anchor your finger on:
• String E – 8^th Fret
• String A – 3^rd Fret
• String D – 10^th Fret
• String G – 5^th Fret (Box has a shift)
• String B – 1^st or 13^th Fret
• Keys: Any white keys – try alternating hands
• Other Instruments: Use full C Major Scale
• Vocals – Find a partner

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• Keep Exploring for the Whole Song
• Explore Notes “outside the box” – look for “fit”

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On 1 String

On 2 Strings

2^nd Important Consideration

Improvisation Skills

&

Instrumental Skills or Techniques

are separate

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The personal viewpoints expressed in this session are solely those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or views of Music Will.

Let’s Take a �Quick Look at �Instrument Skills

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The personal viewpoints expressed in this session are solely those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or views of Music Will.

Possible Instrument Skills Progressions

Strings

1. Simple Boxes – 2 notes per string
• 3 fret Box
• 4 Fret Box
• Full pentatonic scale pattern
2. Diatonic Scale Patterns
• 1 String Pattern for Major
• 1 String Pattern Minor
• Full Fretboard Majors/Minors
3. Scale on 1 String
• Great for learning the fretboard
• On any string starting with ”C”:
• [c ^ d ^ e f ^ g ^ a ^ b (c)]

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Keys

1. Jam Cards
2. 5 Finger Pattern (T-2-3-4)
3. Thumb pivot points
• (3-T-1) or (4-T-1)
• Keys of B, F#, C#,
4. Full Scales – single hands
5. R & L hands take turns

Drums (brushes are your friend)

1. Play using 2 limb combos
• Alternate Singles
• Alternate Doubles
• Any Rudiments
2. Mallet Percussion

Vox

1. Echo a friend/own inst.
2. Use Semi occluded vocal tract
3. Use Cardinal Vowels with or without consonants

Winds

1. 1^st 4 notes
2. Work across breaks

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Digital

1. I need your ideas!
2. Push Controllers
3. Turntables
4. MIDI instruments

When students can improvise on one of these skills you know

they really know that skill!

Let’s Look at �Improvising Skills

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The personal viewpoints expressed in this session are solely those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or views of Music Will.

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Levels of Improvisation

Strategies for Developing�Improvisational Complexity

Imitate the vocal

• Matching playing to words or phrases
• Either in the Song orMake up your own
• Example: Chuck Berry's "Maybellene"

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Fill the Pauses

• Only solo in vocal pauses -recording
• Add 4 or 8 beat pauses between phrases of a known song e.g. Happy Birthday

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Converse with a Partner

• Designate a leader and a follower
• Guided switch at first then self-directed
• Have a plan for switching partners
• You can be your own partner
• Instrument and voice
• Right Hand and Left Hand

Use a Rhythm

• Start with a rhythm and add your own notes

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Explore the Riff

• Remix a riff
• Use a riff from the song
• Explore ways to change it

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C D D D C C D D C

Connection!

Ideas for

deepening learning

&

other applications

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The personal viewpoints expressed in this session are solely those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or views of Music Will.

Going Deeper Part 1

When you improvise pay attention to how the notes you are playing “fit” into the song

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Notes that feel stable are Nouns

• Chord tones
• The root of the key

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Notes that feel unstable are Verbs

• Passing Tones or Extensions

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Going Deeper Part 2

Pay attention to when the notes you play align with an existing part of the song.

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Look for moments when your improvisation unconsciously aligns with the melody.

• Matching single notes leads to complete phrases, riffs, and melodies.
• This can be developed into transcription
• The use of notation to create musical memory
• Helps develop reading ability

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Going Deeper Part 3

Record your improvisations to form the basis for composing a new song

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1. Set Up a backing Track
• Can be a Song recording or Instrumental Loop

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• Students record improvisations in a separate track

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• Recorded improvisations can lead to a whole new composition

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Wrapping-Up

Implementation ideas

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Final Jam

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The personal viewpoints expressed in this session are solely those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or views of Music Will.

The 30-Day Improvisation Challenge!

How to do it:

• Pick one song every day that you love or that speaks to you in the moment
• Find the Key of the song and improvise in that key for the whole song
• You can use the strategies we’ve discussed or
• Just take some time out of your day to vibe with music you love
• You will be amazed at the results!

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Remember – We can’t teach what we don’t do

Every Day for 30 days start your playing by improvising for 1 whole song

How I Implement With My Students

• Use Improvising for Bell Work or a “Bell Ringer”
• Easy way to make improvising a part of your class routine
• Allows for consistent repetition
• Simultaneous improvisation by all students creates a low-pressure environment
• Great way to play more student selected songs

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• How it looks
• Students enter classroom and set up their instruments
• Hit play on a recording
• All Students improvise
• I often incorporate breaks and sing-alongs for beginners
• Talk about technique and strategy after (do before explain)

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Sample Class Progression (50 min classes)

• Setting-Up instruments 1-2min
• Improvisation ”Bell Ringer” 3-4minutes
• Warm-Up and Skill Building (Formal Instruction) 10 min
• Scales
• Rhythms
• Chord Progressions
• Revisit improv
• Etc.
• Student-directed band rehearsals (Informal Instruction) 30 min
• Clean-up 5min

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Final Thoughts/Jam/Musical Convo

1. Join me in playing this riff
2. C Jam blues
3. Play in Duke Ellington Context first
4. Use riff in other songs in key of C

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• Have a backing track and then fade it out so that the conversation can flow around the room

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Thank you for Making Music with me today!

Music Will will make all presentations available after the conference.

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Please be sure to fill out your session evaluation form in the event app.

Contact Me:

jcampbell@nezpercesd.us

The personal viewpoints expressed in this session are solely those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or views of Music Will.

The Boneyard

Ideas left over from 2024 that I don’t think I’m going to use but I am keeping just in case

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The personal viewpoints expressed in this session are solely those of the presenter and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs or views of Music Will.

Diatonic Progression

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2^nd Finger Anchor

4^th Finger Anchor – or Minor Anchor

Student Handout Example

Note:

There will be links to these handouts in the keys of C, G, D, and A at the end of the presentation

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Why it Works – C Major Chord Example

C Major + D = Cadd9

C Major + F = Csus4 or Cadd11

C Major + A = C6

C Major + B = Cmaj7

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Often the “Extension” in a chord is just a passing tone in the melody

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Levels of Improvisation Skill

John Kratus proposes 6 levels of sophistication in improvising skill

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• Exploration: Beginners explore sounds and their instruments without concern for musical structure or rules.

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• Process-Oriented Improvisation: Improvisers begin to understand and use simple patterns and structures.

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• Product-Oriented Improvisation: Improvisers create more coherent and structured musical statements, aiming for pleasing outcomes.

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• Fluid Improvisation: Improvisation becomes more spontaneous and less reliant on pre-learned patterns.

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• Structural Improvisation: Improvisers use larger-scale structures and forms in their improvisation.

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• Stylistic Improvisation: Improvisers demonstrate a high level of proficiency and can improvise convincingly within various styles.

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Link to Student Hand-outs

• C Major
• G Major
• D Major
• A Major

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