7 Responses

1. Evas

   August 22nd, 2010 at 12:13 pm

   1

   When I did teach, the basis was a clear analysis of how I played. One cannot teach what one cannot do and one must be self aware of how it is done before giving knowledge to another. All of the previous answers regarding music theory are correct and the best thing to do is really expand knowledge before attempting to teach. Best wishes.

2. pianojazz man

   August 22nd, 2010 at 12:13 pm

   2

   learn all chords
   learn all scales
   transcribe solos

3. Matthew Hayden

   August 22nd, 2010 at 12:13 pm

   3

   The principles of improvisation are going to be a little different in whichever idiom you play in.

   However, improvisation is primarily composition in real time. So one way of learning to improvise is learning to compose, that is, learning to write down what you hear in your ears, or even "in your head".

   A good way to start learning this is to transcribe solos, but there are also specific methods that have been developed.

   As a self taught jazz musician myself, I’d advise you to stay away from the academic’s favourite of "chord-scale theory" and improvise instead in the way that Louis Armstrong and Bix Beiderbecke did, by improvising with specific melodies instead.

   If you want a specific method that uses this ideology, use Ed Byrne’s linear improvisation method. His books are fairly cheap. You’ll need to learn a little music theory to understand this.

4. grademusictutors.com

   August 22nd, 2010 at 12:13 pm

   4

   Hi, here’s how I’d go about it

   1. Teach the language – in musical terms, you have to learn the basic “words” and eventual “phrases” with which you will communicate. It’s the same thing as when you learn a language different from your own.
   Try using a game of call and response, or “I play, you play,” often with a backing track playing in the background. If you like jazz, for example, someone could play a few jazz licks. As you become familiar with what you’re hearing, you’ll be ready to begin. The other person plays a lick and then the student plays a lick. This continues until the phrases, or riffs, are internalised by the student. Then they reverse roles: the student plays a phrase, and the musician responds.
   For first timers, I will typically stay inside one key, either C or G, and move first from licks (if teaching guitar for example) to two measure phrases, then four measure phrases, and so on, using call and response. But I don’t spend much longer than 20 minutes of an hour-long lesson on improvisation techniques. For example, I might start talking about chords but then I guard against giving too much information all at once.

   2. Use scales – whatever the students experience, by the end of their first lesson, they would be able to improvise on a scale. I recommend choosing songs with chords in one key as they are great for call and response with melody. This way, the student experiences success while taking a small initial step toward learning how to improvise.

   3. Use rhythm – tapping the beat is important and also fun. Before you play your instrument, you need to be able to feel a pulse and nod your head/body to the rhythm.
   In any improvisation lesson, the teacher should set the rhythm on the two and four count beats and instruct the student to pick up their instrument, but NOT play it. Instead of playing, the student should learn to tap/clap on the two and the four counts. Then you can use some call and response and then it’s on to something a little more advanced like the teacher playing their instrument while the student improvises a rhythm.

   Let me know if this helps

5. naps with cats

   August 22nd, 2010 at 12:13 pm

   5

   (The following can be applied to ANY instrument, including piano, vocal scat, sax – ANY instrument).

   Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer by Ted Reed;

   Syncopation No. 2 — In the Jazz Idiom for the Drumset by Ted Reed

   Anything by Ted Reed is good.

   The first lesson to give (assuming the students read music) is to explain what "Improvisation" is. Pass out the books and explain that you’ll be discussing and using these books to get a good feel on how to make a song your own, and/or throw in some great improvisation/riffs for solos, etc., no matter what the timing is – transpose it into the timing being used.

   Let them know that each bar in these books can be played (sung) forwards, backwards, you can mix a couple bars from page 8 with 6 bars from page 32, etc., to make them completely their own. (This way, everyone is not learning the exact same way to improv/riff; they’re making it their own because their are a million ways to improv from these books.

   If you have the entire band and you’re letting each one do a solo during a piece (our band leader would point to who was doing the next solo), let the students know they are "answering" the previous soloist, i.e., do something similar, but change it up and make it more difficult as an example. I also used to dance Brazilian samba, and the soloists would "answer" depending on the way the dancer moved. It’s really cool and gets everyone in the groove! (Ahhhh, the groove!)

   I would also suggest (A trick I learned) to play both right-handed and left-handed which gives you even more freedom to do endless things with any instrument. (Not to mention working with both sides of the brain)

   Going in and out of the set rhythm is key!

   Ahhhh, the ‘ole days . . .

   ADD: One last thing – I’d let the students know that when they are improvising/riffing/soloing to throw all technicality in their minds to the wind and just play what they feel, going in and out of the rhythm while staying in "the groove".

   Dang, I miss that feeling!

6. RockIt

   August 22nd, 2010 at 12:13 pm

   6

   In jazz, you could teach improvisation from a chord substitution perspective.

   Take common chord/jazz progressions and make chord substitutions. These substitutions can provide for some new melodic ideas.

7. !!!

   August 22nd, 2010 at 12:13 pm

   7

   Study a piece of music that was improvised via the sheet music. Does the improv part generally fit in with the key. Where do most the the notes fall? Between what octave? Is a pentatonic scale being used or dominant 7th?