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Mu2 Improvising
Improvising is a process where musicians take a given musical structure and “spontaneously compose” using musical elements which are appropriate to the music being performed. Improvising develops through the exploration and practicing of the melodic, rhythmic, and harmonic elements of music and revising the results through informal and formal feedback. Purpose, audience, and context play an important role in improvising.
Mu2a The student will improvise an appropriate rhythmic, harmonic, and/or melodic accompaniment for a simple children’s song or folk song.
Examples of activities through which students might produce evidence of improvising appropriate rhythmic, harmonic, and/or melodic accompaniment include:
- Harmonize a simple melody.
- Create an obligato part to a simple melody by using pentatonic scales.
- Create a rhythmic accompaniment to a simple melody.
Mu2b The student will improvise appropriate melodic embellishments for a particular style or genre of music.Examples of activities through which students might produce evidence of improvising melodic embellishments include:
- Preparing for and executing mordents.
- Preparing for and executing trills.
Mu2c The student will improvise within the jazz idiom using appropriate harmonic and melodic concepts for any of the following styles: Early Jazz, Blues, Swing, BeBop, Modal, Latin, Avant Guarde, and Odd Meter.Examples of activities through which students might produce evidence of improvising within the jazz idiom include:
- Play a solo on the Blues using pentatonic and blues scales as well as typical patterns.
- Play a solo on a BeBop song using all forms of the BeBop scale as well as typical patterns.
Proposed Standards:
