This is very interesting topic here…

First of all, I want to agree with your excellent definition of improvisation and thank You because of opening up this interesting discussion.

I would say there´s no difference what instrument we play, so that´s why I´m not referring here to the string instruments.

“Making something up “on the fly” with no preparation! Yes, I agree, but maybe would just define it to “compose on the fly”, (well the same thing…)

As a saxophone artist and improviser (and also a composer & educator of improvisation) who has performed professionally and worldwide for years, I´d like to put up some ideas and things that come from experience of mine.

With my regular working group Esa Pietilä Trio which nowdays performs a lot of collectively improvised music & expression, with no preceeding ideas or/and agreed guidelines how and what should we play. Because of that group, plus some others too, and my experience of performing also totally improvised solo saxophone concerts in the genre of free jazz, I feel that I have something to say, and things I would like to share ( and discuss too.)

What I think is relevant that a jazz artist in general knows (of course) his or hers history of music, harmony, rhythmic and aesthetical aspects etc. and has mastered the instrumental skills enough for to really feel secure and free enough to improvise the way he/she likes…this brings me to what I think is the essence of improvising:
“how does he/she would like to do it”???

Well, the history of jazz is full of great masters, and why they are masters, and why they have become such, is that they played the way THEY wanted and heard the music in THEIR way, putting their OWN expression to it. In other words, the created a style that others followed. This I think is the real goal for any jazzmusician / improviser.

History also tells use that there is millions of clones of the great players, I just can´t understand that. Of course we all have to first imitate someboby, sometime at our early ages & state of studies, to get started with, we all know that. But to stay on that level for the whole life and career, I don´t know…there´s too many players of that kind already. The real masters were stubborn enought to play the way they wanted, I think that´s a real contribution to the music, If You really put Yourself into it – Your ideas, Your vocabulary, Your drama, Your sense of motives, form, expression etc….

Trying to be short here, and just to share some experience too as an educator of improvisation. My groups mostly play free jazz/avant garde expression. That is the genre I also teach at conservatory & give masterclass in schools abroad of my homecountry.

But what I´d really much like to stress here educationally wise, is that there is really no difference with the basic “laws” of how the drama moves in the expression of music, and how the different basic elements of music work together regardless of style. To give simple example: the counterpoint is still a counterpoint no matter what music or style You play. A musical question is still a question and answer is still an answer, no matter what style…the list goes on…

Basically I´m saying that the important keys are:

to learn how to keep the dramaturgy ( the “red line”) happening in one´s playing and music, to build up a vocabulary of Your own, to be able to go from any note to any note with as many possible ways as it is possible, and last but not least, the importance of solfege and hearing – to really try to HEAR what You´re going to play a split second later, and be able to listen to the others – if one does not listen, how can he/she react to other musician´s statements. Or not to react, that´s also a equally good skill – beeing able to judge in the middle of your playing, what and how and when to react, and when not to react…Also, mastering the technique – that gives You a lot of freedom!

These thoughts hopefully give some ideas and a plateau how to create a style of Your own.

How to do it is the question.

The answer:
Marriage of Intuition – technique- expression

please feel free to comment…

very best,

Esa Pietilä
saxophone / improviser / composer

http://www.esapietila.com
http://www.myspace.com/esapietilatrio

I really like your definition, as having no preparation like you said would assume that the improviser has done nothing up to this point to shape his/her style and flavor.

Each person has their own style- some people think and hear in their head exactly what they want to do before they plat it. Some simply just DO it.

I myself do a combination of hearing what I want to play next, and then strange as it sounds sometimes I decide not to play based upon notes- but upon my muscle memory, allowing my fingers to go into autopilot doing what they have been practicing.