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Roswell Rudd and Friends
Saturday May 13, 2000 at 8pm
Kleinert-James Art Gallery
Woodstock, NY
Our appearance as Roswell Rudd and Friends (aka the Roswell Rudd
Trio) was a memorable and musical interaction in Woodstock. Greg
Millar on guitar and myself on drums have performed with Roswell
in many situations over the last 15 years. Roswell is currently
riding a high of musical and personal proportions that is wonderful
to behold. His playing is very strong and vibrant recalling the
peak of his early musical years. He is at another of those highpoints
with critically acclaimed albums of the New York Art Quartet,
The Steve Lacy-Roswell Rudd Quartet and a new cd on the Knitting
Factory label, Broad Strokes, just released. He is a recent recipient
of a Guggenheim Fellowship that is allowing him the time to compose
and organize his musical activities. Whether more performances
of the Roswell Rudd Trio will result from this recent success
is yet to be seen. Nonetheless Saturday evening displayed the
promise of this musical collaboration. I believe that we all hope
for the opportunity to further explore our unique musical territory.
The music was a mix of original tunes and music by Herbie Nichols.
Roswell's relationship to Herbie is well documented. The two trio
volumes of many of Herbie's previously unrecorded songs serve
as the jumping off point for improvisations both jazz and avant.
We continue to learn new Herbie tunes as well. In addition we
each contribute not only compositions but direction to the ensemble
play of this trio. The lack of a bass is non-evident through the
superb orchestrations of Greg. He continues to devour these challenging
compositions, handling the duties of two or three at once. When
he solos the lines blaze trails of fluid melody through the web
of Nichols' harmonic wisdom. Roswell brought energy rhythm to
the music, communicating confident fragmentations and restorations
of the generous melodic wealth of all the tunes. I felt fluid
and free supporting and stoking the creative flame in my two companions.
At times my sound cracked and sparked inside their terrific dance.
Other times I felt a dark walk of muted rumblings like the approach
of thunder.
Slow blues, medium prance
Broken-triplet trance dance
Double time, long form, free form
Swing Jazz
With side trips into tone texture color shade land
Where the Change of Seasons wells melancholy desire
in the heart of our Ebony Adventure.
Thank you Greg, Roswell and Verna.
-JB 5/15/00
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A Special Note from John
The first series of jazz performances on Thursdays at La Conga
Loca has been completed. As we embark on the next of what promises
to be eight more weeks of inspired spontaneous collaboration I
have these words to offer.
The first evening with Al Tinney (piano), Sabu Adeyola (bass)
and myself on drums found a trio exploring outer limits of the
jazz tradition. Al brings a history to instant music like no other
musician with whom I have played. Yet he always incorporates the
newest sounds and perspectives to the standard repertoire. He
is a bold inspiration in his continuing explorations. With Sabu
there is an understanding of the accompaniment that will propel
the music. He captures the spirit and hurls the music like a groove
slingshot. March 16th found these two musicians and myself on
a joyride that audience members said was one of the finest performances
that they had seen by the incomparable Al Tinney. A couple of
days after the gig Al and I talked about what an outstanding high
it was. I had to insist that I have heard him play like that many
times before. These are two of my favorite musicians.
The evening of March 23 saw Bobby Jones (piano) and Jim Colemon
(bass) perform. This trio with myself included dates back to Harlan's,
the restaurant and jazz spot once located in Theatre Place. Jim
encouraged us to break out of the standards mold and play tunes
like Tones for Joans Bones, Waltz for Dave and other progressive
jazz compositions. Bobby demonstrated why he is in constant demand,
flying about the keyboard, quick with response and ever extending
the phrases of his companions. Much like his personal manner,
Bobby is never slow with an insightful perspective or a humourous
response at the keyboard. Someone recently commented that Jim
Colemon is a musician whom you often don't hear of for long periods
of time but is nevertheless always engaged. Anyone who heard him
this evening will understand why this is true.
Chu Nero and Paul Laduca joined me on the 30th of March. Chu is
always ready to stretch out. We have had many incredible gigs
with Lester Bowie, Multi-Jazz Dimensions, Jubal (at the Unique
Blend) and of course the Chu Nero Trio. A few days after this
group performed I received a very kind note from a special person
that had been in attendance. He and his companion commented that
this trios performance was one of the most satisfying musical
events that they had attended in quite some time.
April 4 brought Wally Jederman and John Werick to the stage. John
has been playing excellent of late. A strong sound and sure time
anchor the music with his acoustic wood bass. Wally was loose
and sprightly on this evening. He served up jazz standards and
vocal numbers that projected his charm and wit to the appreciative
crowd.
Latin Jazz night will be a monthly feature of this series. I will
present a trio with Wendell Rivera, conga, added to help establish
the latin groove. Our first collaboration in this style happened
with Pat Georger on keyboards and Greg Piontek on basses. From
the outset the group was swinging in Latin time. Greg brought
three basses and used them all. Pat had a synth along to add melodic
color. Vibist Dave Kayne sat in on a few numbers as did trumpeter
Jeff Hermanson.
Greg Millar was on fire for the performance with Sabu Adeyola
on April 20. This is a trio that I have wanted to perform with
for a very long time. It was worth the wait. The first set was
accented by the conga of Wendell Rivera. During the second set
we established a trio groove including a free time then hard swing
version of Naima. Sabu commented that we went to different places
in the music that evening. I agree and I hope we visit them again
soon.
The final evening brought our largest crowd yet. Although they
were noisy at times and many of us had grown used to the quiet
attentiveness of the previous weeks , I must say that it was encouraging
to see a crowd of non-musicians digging the sounds of Dave Schiavone,
Michael Jones, Paul Laduca and myself. The added strenghth of
the quartet with sax helped to project a very definitive sound.
Dave played beautifully on all of his instruments: soprano, alto,
tenor saxes and flute. The intensity of the rhythm trio was inspiring.
This is an exceptional quartet that I am sure will be working
more in the near future.
- 5/4/00
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Gary Burton Vibraphone Clinic
Monday May 1, 2000
Cuyahoga Community College Metro Campus
Gary Burton is a true master of the vibraphone. He is the innovator
of many of our standard notions of contemporary vibe playing.
Mallet dampening, chord melody vibe playing, jazz-rock vibraphone
and of course his signature Burton 4-mallet grip are but a few
of the important contributions that he has made. All of these
useful innovations are but the means to a greater musical end.
Burton's melodicism and his ability to project that melody through
the mallet keyboard voice is his true strenghth. We witnessed
a brief sampling of that at his clinic.
He talked of how he begins with a musical phrase and using common
musical techniques, expanding, twisting a new shape, molding an
instant form he transforms the melody. Most importantly he brings
the original idea back on occasion in order to keep the listener
with him. He spoke of the importance of speaking the language
that the listener understands. In that way he feels that subconciously
he uses different language depending on where he is playing. He
articulated this idea with the example of how you might speak
in musical terms to describe your own playing if you were in front
of a college music class.
Conversely, in a demonstration for non-musicians you would not
use specific musical terms. In this way you communicate the same
idea but through different means. This is an excellent metaphor
for all musical performance and highlights the improvisational
advantage: The improviser has the unique ability to adapt and
serve the situtation.
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Percussive Arts Society, New York State Chapter Day of Percussion
April 29, 2000
Fayetteville Manlius High School
Hosted by Cathy Thielke and Mitch Lutch
The day featured workshops and clinics by Kristen Shiner-McGuire
(Mallet Keyboard Improvisation), Tony Padilla (Latin Percussion),
Kay Sonefelt (Snare Drum) and myself (Drumset). Performances were
given by Bernard Woma of the Ghana National Dance Ensemble on
Gyil (African Xylophone), The Nazareth College Percussion Ensemble
under the direction of Kristen Shiner-McGuire and a mass ensemble
playing the Connecticut Halftime rudimental snare deum solo.
I was fortunate to have a very receptive audience for my clinic.
We covered drumset rudiments and chart reading. Students and teachers
asked important questions. The highlight was an improvised duet
with Tony Padilla on conga. We played together briefly before
the clinic began and then again to conclude my clinic. It was
a pleasure to work with an outstanding drummer like Tony. We hooked
up immediately and were able to communicate through the music
without any discussion or rehersal. Tony is an active percussionist
in the Rochester, NY area. I hope we get to do it again soon and
given our close proximity I am sure we will.
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Dave Holland Quintet.
Curtains drawn on a crisp and bright Sunday afternoon in the Albright-Knox
Art Gallery auditorium. Outside Elmwood Avenue and Delaware Park
alive with activity, inside Dave Holland and many of the arriving
audience enjoying the vibrant collection. The music was brought
to us by Robin Eubanks, trombone, Chris Potter, saxes, Steve Nelson,
vibes, Billy Kilson, drums and Holland master musician whose talents
have joined with Miles, Chick, Dejohnette, Braxton, Metheny and
many others of the post-bop fusion and avant garde worlds of improvised
European and American music. 4/4 was the oddball time feel in
the adventurous compositions that moved freely from composed to
improvised passages, engaged soloists over odd vamps and cycled
through maze like forms. One composition by vibist Steve Nelson
evoked a chamber music sentiment. The ensemble, sans drumset,
performing a through-composed ballad with improvised bluesy interjections
by the composer. On two occasions during the performance Nelson
tread in the deep waters and brought up the prize I had been waiting
for, that gleeful moment when you can’t help but sing a great
soulful "yeah man" as your belly quakes with a chuckle. Kilson
was a true crowd pleaser following his bandmates every moves,
inspiring with aggressive interplay, expressive dynamics throughout
his solos and flashy one hand rolls and stick maneuvers. Holland,
solid as a rock, fleet of finger, clear, swift, angular, melodic,
smiling at his charges explorations and discoveries. Much of the
music will be featured on the group’s newest recording. The group
will be performing in the new Western Campus Auditorium of the
Cuyahoga Community College as part of the Tri-C Jazz Fest on April
6. This is a premier group in jazz and is well worth any opportunity
to listen.
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A Romantic View Of Improvisation
Improvisation is the art of making things up on the spot. It uses
intellect and emotion. It can be as simple as preparing a meal
or as complicated as a way of life. Music, the art of organizing
sound, is a particularly liquid medium for the expression of improvisation.
Style, musical materials, instrumentation, environment, experience
and desire all have an effect on the outcome. Yet, the subtle
variation of these and other factors cannot prevent an improvisation
from occurring. On the contrary, improvisation thrives on the
variety and change that different people and their experiences
bring to the act. By exploiting evolution, improvisational practice
has sustained itself through the millennia of musical ages.
The Romantic era of Western art music is a particularly confusing
time for improvisation. At first glance improvisation seems to
be on the decline. Yet many of our great masters were known as
excellent improvisers. What factors caused the diminished role
of improvisation during the Romantic period? How was improvisation
practiced during this time? What remnants of Romantic improvisational
practice exist today?
Defining Improvisation
Improvisation as a musical term can be interpreted and defined
with many subtle variations. Much like the act of improvising
itself, the clarity of the definition takes shape through the
musical experiences of the individual. To some, improvisation
suggests jazz and the freedom of expression that this art form
allows. Others see improvisation as "making things up as you go
along". The Harvard Dictionary of Music defines improvisation
as "The art of performing music spontaneously without the aid
of manuscript, sketches or memory." The Grove Dictionary of Music
and Musicians adds, "Improvisation may involve immediate composition
by performers, elaboration or adjustment of an existing framework
or anything in between." Improvising guitarist Derek Bailey notes
in his book, Improvisation, Its Nature and Practice in Music,
that many improvisers in both jazz and other musical forms regard
what they do as "playing". In essence improvisation is so integral
to their art, that creation in the moment cannot be distinguished
from the act of music making itself. These definitions not only
expose some of the difficulty in researching and understanding
improvisation but also reveal the fact that the widespread practice
of improvising is not accidental but rather integral and I dare
say necessary to musical performance.
The Sound of Improvisation
In the written history of music there are many references to the
incredible improvisations of our greatest masters. Yet, Improvisation,
by its very nature, cannot be fully experienced outside of the
moment in which it occurs. Herein lies the first great dilemma
in studying improvisations of the past. It is obvious that prior
to the advent of recording devices, we can have no audio record
of an improvisation. The Romantic Era is the last era of Western
art music before the rise of recording. Therefore we cannot hear
the harmonizing above a cantus firmus in 14th century liturgical
music, the organ improvisations of J.S. Bach, the entertaining
salon improvisations of Frederic Chopin, or the music played by
Johannes Brahms in the brothels of Hamburg. These sounds are lost
to us forever. Yet Improvisation is more than the sound that it
produces. In fact many improvising musicians see the recording
of their music to be irrelevant and misrepresentative since it
eliminates the environment in which the act occurred and all but
selected auditory sensations. Regardless, technological forms
of transferring music are valuable in understanding specific aspects
of improvisation because they give us at the very least a partial
understanding of the sound of these works.
The best source for transferring improvisational practice is the
aural (oral) tradition. The tools of improvisation being handed
down person to person through the ages. In this way the conversational
chain letter of improvisation has been able to break the time
barrier without the aid of technological devices. Since improvisation
uses many of the same tools as composed music it is safe to assume
that master musicians have the potential to become great improvisers.
Many people regard improvisation as a form of musical composition
the difference being that improvisation occurs in real time. A
command of harmony, melody, rhythm and musical taste is essential.
Without a thorough knowledge of these musical essentials, improvisation
risks sounding pale and superficial as compared to written composition.
The renowned teacher Nadia Boulanger is credited with teaching
improvisational methods by requiring her advanced students to
write progressively more involved fugal studies. Only after a
student has mastered the elements of music can he/she become a
successful improviser. Yet, there is something additional that
must be present in the true improviser. Something innate, intangible,
and indescribable. This is the natural gift that improvisers possess
and it is this that must be passed on to subsequent generations.
Before the Romantic Era
Before the Romantic Era of music, improvisation was integrated
into the performance of Western art music as far back as history
records. We know that after the dissolution of Greco-Roman civilization,
new music in Western Europe was worked out in performance or improvised
on the spot. Early melodic improvisations took the form of a melisma
that occurred on the jubilus, the final syllable of the word Alleluia,
of Roman Catholic liturgical chant. Ensemble improvisation was
evident in the addition of a second improvised line added to these
chants. During the 14th century the development of precise musical
notation allowed more complex music, like the iso-rhythmic motet,
to be worked out and preserved. This did not hinder improvisation
though as composed and improvised music learned to co-exist as
in the adding of 3rd’s and 6th’s above an existing chant. Improvised
counterpoint above a cantus firmus presented a first glimpse at
the problems that arise when comparing written and improvised
music. When this type of counterpoint is improvised, a loosely
expressive feel is gained by having two or more people weave melodic
lines simultaneously. The dissonances and awkward part writing
that are unavoidable in improvisation can be resolved only through
composition.
The 16th century brought about the innovation of composing all
of the parts of a piece simultaneously rather than one at a time.
This created a more elaborate type of control for the composer.
Conversely it also limited the performance possibilities since
a piece could not be performed without the requisite parts. The
previous method of composing one part at a time allowed any number
of players to be utilized for an effective sound. During this
time it was still common for singers to improvise above the cantus
firmus. Churches in Italy are known to have used both written
and improvised methods. In this way improvisation served a functional
purpose in preparing music for liturgical needs.
During the Renaissance, musicians created contrapuntal improvisations
on the organ and lute using the intervals of existing music. They
also improvised variations on the melody and harmony of songs.
Furthermore they improvised preludes that would establish the
mode of a vocal work. Throughout this time performers were the
composers of the music and therefore could change or re-use the
material from their compositions at will. These methods show a
direct correlation to methods of improvisation that would live
through the Romantic era and into the present day.
The dawning of the Baroque era can be seen in the improvisational
practices of singers at the end of the Renaissance. The practice
of improvised diminution involved the ornamenting of a single
melodic line. Essentially long notes were broken into smaller
rhythmic units to create a more active melodic phrase. This improvised
variation influenced the composed music of the time and anticipated
the solo instrumental writing of the Baroque period.
The practice of improvised accompaniment was at its peak throughout
the Baroque period. From the 16th well into the 18th century we
see developments in the improvised accompaniment that point to
this era as the most fruitful for improvised Western art music.
The act of improvising was so integral to music at this point
that it is difficult to separate improvised essentials from the
written compositions. Yet today we do not hold as deep a respect
for the act of creating along with the composed music as we do
for the act of performing the work exactly as written.
Additional improvisational characteristics can be found in Italian
Opera of the 18th century. These operas were attended nightly
by many of the same wealthy patrons. They became accustomed to
the liberties taken by soloists during their arias. It became
common practice for singers to improvise the melody to entire
aria. Luigi Marchesi, considered the greatest castrato at the
end of the 18th century, was credited with improvising not only
the aria but his recitative as well, a practice that was continued
into the 19th century.
Improvisation in Folk Music
The use of Improvisation in folk music throughout the cultures
of the world is widespread. As in many cultures, European folk
musicians were commonly employed for ritual and celebratory occasions.
Musicians who possessed the vast and varied repertoire needed
to succeed at these engagements were few and far between. The
Gypsy musicians of Eastern Europe are a good example of the traveling
musician providing the music for village life. Wedding feasts
at which these musicians performed could last for as long as 24
hours. During such an extended engagement, knowledge of the functional
elements of the music were important. A strong dance rhythm, recognizable
melodies and an ability to shape the performance to the mood of
the festivities were essential for success. Improvisation was
an important element in extending their repertoire. Since these
musicians often played more than one instrument, a common way
of stretching out the material was to play the same song on different
instruments. In Worlds of Music writer Mark Slobin relates an
anecdote about the performance of a 52 year-old swineherd from
Hungary. The gentleman performs the same ballad-like Hungarian
melody first as a sung solo, then on birch leaf and finally on
a strummed zither. The vocal interpretation is a bare and straightforward
performance with each syllable of the text receiving one melody
note. When performed on the birch leaf the melody is freer, the
notes stretched out with embellishments characteristic of the
continuos reedy quality of the instrument. The zither performance
must make due with none of the held melody tones of the other
versions. The performer compensates with a rhythmic strummed interpretation
that utilizes the multi-note texture of a repeated drone over
which the melody dances. Each of these versions requires improvisational
abilities in order to adapt the song to the strengths and limitations
of the particular instrument. Taking advantage of the performance
situation in this way is a common thread throughout much of the
improvised music of the world both in folk cultures and in art
music.
The music of the Eastern European Gypsies had a profound effect
on many composers and performers. Johannes Brahms first engagements
outside of his hometown of Hamburg were as accompanist for the
violinist Eduard Reményi. Their recital program concluded with
Reményi’s improvisations on Hungarian Gypsy tunes. Brahms adapted
and accompanied the violinist in his own manner. Brahms knowledge
of folk music and his ability to adapt and extend the music were
important during his adolescent piano playing in the bordellos
of Hamburg. There he performed waltzes, quadrilles and other dance
music for the sailors and their streetwalking companions. The
bawdy environment required continuos music for up to 12 hours.
The ability to extend and modify the music at a moments notice
were essential to keeping the customers happy.
The fact that the improvisations of Brahms and Reményi were used
to close their recital programs reveals not only the show-stopping
virtuosity of their performance but also the common practice of
clearing the palate of the listener with the joyful spontaneous
interaction of simultaneous composition after the heavier intellectualism
of the composed works. This technique of combining improvised
and composed works highlights the expressive qualities of each.
We see this idea used today in the music of performers and composers
in New York City (John Zorn, Tim Berne), Europe (Karlheinz Stockhausen,
Vienna Art Orchestra) and in Rock music (Frank Zappa, Sonic Youth).
These composer/performers and others like them create compositions
that require the pre-thought inherent to written music. They also
are able to conceive music in the moment. Interestingly improvisers
today seem less associated with Western art music than with Jazz,
Rock and other styles.
The Virtuoso Improviser
The rise of the virtuoso pianist was initiated by technological
and manufacturing developments in the pianoforte itself. With
the increased range, greater dynamic control and tuning developments
of the 19th century piano, came individuals capable of expanding
the technical abilities of the instrument. In addition the social
liberation of the period produced many individuals with the freedom
of spirit needed to improvise. Unfortunately many were lacking
in the good taste necessary to this lofty endeavor. Increasingly
improvisation became the realm of the virtuoso pianist and was
an area not to be tread by mere mortals.
Anecdotal evidence of the improvisational abilities of Frederic
Chopin is plentiful. Chopin was such an astounding improviser,
that his friends often viewed his compositions as an inferior
substitute for his extemporaneous creations. It is unfortunate
that none of them thought to transcribe his creations in the moment.
Despite their lack of foresight, Chopin himself was known to write
down his improvisations at a later point in time. These compositions
were often simplified to accommodate the prevailing appetite of
amateur musicians. Chopin’s playful, dramatic improvisations are
legendary. He was adept at improvising music "for" or "about"
a particular person, often women, in order to entertain at parties.
He was able to improvise in the style of many well known contemporary
musicians and those of the past. He would imitate not only their
playing style but also their facial and body expressions. At times
he would perform music and then create a dramatic character that
he would act out as a representation of the music. This ability
to improvise in a dramatic style, although unique and astounding,
points to a characteristic common to improvisers of all genres.
Improvisers often take personal strengths and abilities that otherwise
might be under utilized in their performances and incorporate
them wholeheartedly and with success into their immediate compositions.
In this way improvisers often anticipate innovations in written
music
.
Incredible improvisational abilities were not unique among composers
of the Romantic Era. Beethoven was regarded by many including
the musical pedagogue, pianist, teacher and composer Carl Czerny
as the greatest of all improvisers. Published in 1836, Czerny’s
treatise, A Systematic Introduction to Improvisation on the Pianoforte,
attempted to catalog and systematize the learning of improvisation.
This text is, along with A.E.M. Grétry’s manual on preludizing,
the only text we have on the subject of improvisation during the
Romantic Era. Czerny isolates modes of improvisation beneficial
to the concert soloist. In his text we see that many improvisational
methods present in the early historical texts are still in practice.
Of particular note is that improvised accompaniment is not addressed.
In fact the improvising of realizations of thorough-bass had virtually
disappeared by 1836. This demise can be credited to the increase
in composed accompaniments in sonatas, chamber writing and art
songs of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The variety of
dynamics, texture, tempo and expressive qualities offered by the
composers of the day far exceeded the attempts by average accompanists
and therefore became preferable to the inexperienced improviser.
Czerny does discuss the act of improvising a prelude to an existing
work. As previously stated this practice was utilized during the
Renaissance. In fact, at the beginning of the 19th century, it
was considered in bad taste to begin a concert without first performing
a prelude to set the tone for the coming composition. A prelude
in this era could be as simple as a few chords that would establish
the key of the work or as complex as an entire introduction. Czerny
suggests that any existing introduction written by a well known
composer may serve as a model for this type of improvisation and
he outlines favorable techniques that may be utilized. He also
suggests that it is inappropriate to perform a prelude before
more serious works. He singles out the work of Beethoven in this
regard.
With the rise of the individual spirit during the Romantic era,
we see the adoration of individual musicians reaching new heights.
Beethoven, the supreme individual spirit, a solitary creative
force of extreme impact offered no hospitality to collaboration.
Simultaneously his works introduced quasi-improvisational ideas
that seem to compensate for the freer feeling inherent in improvised
music. Today it would seem bizarre to attend a concert on a respectable
series where the soloist would walk on stage, sit down and improvise
an introduction before performing a well-known sonata of Beethoven.
But It was not until late in the Romantic era that this practice
fell out of favor. The letters of Franz Liszt contain a scathing
criticism of this practice. Liszt calls his own transgressions,
adding ornamentations, cadenzas and entire passages to the works
of Beethoven as in "bad taste" and "sacrilegious". Eventually
respect for Beethoven’s works prohibited common practice improvisation
techniques.
Modeste Mousorgsky is another of the great master composers whose
legend as an improviser has survived. During the summer and fall
of 1879 Moussorgsky accompanied the opera and concert singer Daria
Leonova on a tour of the provincial towns of Russia. In addition
to accompanying the singer’s operatic arias and songs, Moussorgsky
was expected to perform solo works. The compositions that he performed
possessed spectacularly dramatic titles suggesting the rituals
of war, royalty and peasant life so close to Modeste’s heart.
These compositions were entirely improvised. Of particular note
is a piece entitled, ‘Storm on the Black Sea" that appears to
have confused audiences with a lack of actual music relying on
effects to simulate the programmatic title.
The availability of the piano through extensive manufacturing
and the excess income of the growing middle class allowed more
people to have an instrument in their homes. The market for compositions
for this amateur class created a busy publishing industry. Many
composers were faced with writing for and teaching this new group
of aspiring musicians. Interest in improvisation, by this group,
tended toward shallow crowd pleasing virtuosity. Consequently
Czerny’s text can be thought not as a representation of wide spread
success of improvisational methods but rather as a sign of improvisation’s
ill-health. Creating the two varieties of preludes, cadenzas,
fermatas, other elaborations, improvising on a single theme, multi-thematic
improvisation, the potpourri, variations, fugal improvisation
and capriccios are the areas of study. There is no proof to suggest
that Czerny himself was a great improviser, but we do know that
his texts are popular and he was a widely distributed author.
The Romantic Art
The spirit of individualism in music, art, politics, philosophy
and daily life that took hold during the middle of the 19th century
has had a lasting effect in Western history. In some ways this
spirit is a defining factor in our cultural heritage. The products
of this period of our development have had such a lasting effect
because they are the fruits of our deepest motivations. We are
a people of individuals who work together to maintain that ideal.
Improvisation is a pure representation of that ideal. Working
now to produce individualistic points of view in a collective
environment, improvisers reflect our culture and history. This
is a truly Romantic act.
- Fall 1999
Bibliography
Apel, Willi. Harvard Dictionary of Music, 1972.
Bailey, Derek. Improvisation; Its Nature and Practice in Music.
New York: Da Capo, 1992.
Czerny, Carl. A Systematic Introduction to Improvisation on the
Pianoforte, Opus 200. Trans. Alice L. Mitchell. New York: Longman,
Inc., 1983.
Ferand, E.T. Improvisation in Nine Centuries of Western Music.
Cologne, 1961.
Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians.
Seroff, Victor. Modeste Moussorgsky. New York: Funk and Wagnalls,
1968.
Slobin, Mark. Europe/Peasant Music-Cultures of Eastern Europe.
In Worlds of Music: An Introduction to the Music of the World’s
Peoples Ed. Jeff Todd Titon. New York: Schirmer, 1992.
Swafford, Jan. Johannes Brahms: A Biography. New York: Alfred
A. Knopf, 1997.
Szulc, Tad. Chopin in Paris: The Life and Times of the Romantic
Composer. New York: "A Lisa Drew Book"/Scribner, 1998.
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