(part 4 of 20)
Learning to Improvise
Improvisation requires setting all inhibitions aside. It isn’t difficult to learn, but the fear of making “mistakes” or playing something “stupid” or “bland” can be a serious barrier, especially for adults and older kids. Teaching five-year-olds to improvise is quite easy. For those new to improvisation, transport the mind back to age five, and think of this process as finger painting at the piano…minus the paint.
Black-key improvisation:
- Choose a scale/tonality to work with: the five black-key pentatonic scale (F# major pentatonic) is a good place for beginners to start.
- Begin with a single note or octave in the left hand as a drone on the tonal center (first scale degree/tonic). So F# in this case. Repeat it slowly, over and over as it fades out.*
- In the right hand, improvise a little melody above this sustained bass note. Even a simple three-note pattern will be a nice place to start. Thinking in terms of “patterns” rather than “a melody” can be less intimidating to get started.
- Shift the melody/pattern around, experiment with steps and leaps, slow rhythms and fast.
- As things get more comfortable, pick a second, then a third note in the bass to slowly alternate between. Notice how these bass tones change the atmosphere and character of the melody.**
- Very slowly, alternate between the tonic and every other scale degree in the bass. Spend a lot of time with each bass note against the simple melody in order to really hear the different effect of each on the melody.
- Then move more freely with a slow bassline made from the notes of the scale. Notice how the tonal center acts a bit like a magnet, always tugging the bassline toward it. Resist its pull, but periodically give in, returning to the tonal center.
White-key improvisation:
- Start with the right hand in a five-finger ‘C position.’
- The left hand can simply hold a low C, repeating it as it fades away. Meanwhile, the right hand should find a simple five-note pattern to play, repeating it several times until memorized.
- The left hand can now move to a new bass note, perhaps up to D. The right hand should also shift up, so the thumb is now on D, and the same pattern can be repeated several times.
- The two hands can slowly shift around together in this way, E in the bass, right hand thumb shifting up to E playing the same pattern. This will give a sense for different tonal colors–or different modalities–expanding the improvisational canvas.
- Rapidly shifting between two different positions with the same musical pattern can be quite effective: play a simple pattern starting with both hands on C, then immediately shift it to E, then back to C.
- Jump around as desired, alter the melodic pattern, alter the rhythm, play it faster, slower, louder, quieter, and change the single bass tone to a repeated rhythm, or to a simple pattern that moves between two or three notes, and on and on.
Work on improvising several times each day. As experience is gained, try reversing the hands: melody in bass. Then try creating a basso ostinato (or ground bass: repeated pattern in the bass), with the melody in the right hand. Play a simple repeated rhythm on a single bass note to get started. Again, eventually try switching hands. We often get stuck in our comfort zone, so as confidence grows, increase complexity and push to try new techniques in order to keep growing and developing. This is a great way to quickly acquire new skills.
As basic improvisation skills are gained, there’s no reason to postpone composition.
Notes:
*Instead of repeating the bass note over and over as it fades out, sometimes younger kids find in easier to use a sustaining synthesizer sound or organ sound on a keyboard. That way they can simply hold down their bass key and focus on playing patterns in their right hand.
**I like to use the term ‘color’ as the bass (the ‘background’) changes the way we hear the melodic patterns above (the ‘subject’).
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Index
- Introduction
- Why Piano?
- Improvisation:
- Notation:
- Related Skills/Knowledge:
- Composition: