Theories Of Jazz Improvisation

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Theories of Jazz Improvisation
Melissa Da Costa
400010241
MUSICCOG 3SP3
Monday, December 4th, 2017

Abstract
Improvisation is the ability to create an unplanned and spontaneous musical excerpt, with the level proficiency being dependent upon prior knowledge. In order to understand the logistics behind improvisation, we must establish the concepts behind it, why we learn and are intrigued by improvisation, whether it is practiced patterns or learned procedures, and whether or not changing from a familiar key to an unfamiliar key limits ones’ ability to improvise. While an understanding can be established, there is yet to be a general consensus within this field of study. The ongoing debate is in regard to whether or not improvisation …show more content…

Almost all styles of jazz consist of a combination of both predetermined and improvised elements, with the proportion of one to the other differing greatly. Mastering the skill of improvisation is in the ability to create an unplanned and spontaneous musical excerpt, with the level proficiency being dependent upon prior knowledge; a musician must have a set of learnt skills that enable their music making. The study of improvisation does, however, present obvious difficulties. Through the theoretical frameworks of cognitive science, many researchers and scholars have attempted to investigate the characteristics of a musicians’ knowledge and how they use it within the context of improvisation (Goldman, 2013; Nettl et al., 2013). To fully understand the practice of improvisation, we must establish the concepts behind improvisation, why we learn and are intrigued by improvisation, whether its practiced patterns or learned procedures, and whether or not changing from a familiar key to an unfamiliar key limits ones’ ability to …show more content…

(2013). Towards a Cognitive-Scientific Research Program for Improvisation: Theory and an Experiment. Psychomusicology, 23(4), 210-221
Johnson-Laird, P. (1991). Jazz improvisation: A theory at the computational level. In P. Howell, R. West, & I. Cross (Eds.), Representing Musical Structure (pp. 291). London, UK.
Larson, S. (2005). Composition versus improvisation? Journal of Music Theory, 49, 241. Doi:10.1215/00222909-008
Nettl, B., Wegman, R. C., Horsley, I., Collins, M., Carter, S. A., Garden, G., . . . Kernfeld, B. (2013). Improvisation. Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online. Oxford University Press.
Norgaard, M. (2014). How Jazz Musicians Improvise: The Central Role of Auditory and Motor Patterns. Music Perception, 31(3), 271-287.
Pressing, J. (1998). Psychological constraints on improvisational expertise and communication. In B. Nettl & M. Russell (Eds.), In the course of performance: Studies in the world of musical improvisation (pp. 47-67). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago

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