Extended improvisation portfolio and video documentary

Introduction

In this project, I will explore improvisation techniques that I have experimented with. I will aim to analyse these methods and evaluate my execution. As a drummer, extended improvisation poses several challenges and breaks habits that I had not considered prior to taking this module. Typically, drummers dominate the role of time keeper and feel generator. Extended improvisation ignores those typical roles and turns it into a completely different palette of sound. 

When I was working in a duo with a pianist throughout this.The challenges were further heightened; the responsibility of each player is much more equal, The roles are not always fixed, and the possibilities are much wider. I have found this expanse of freedom to be both freeing and overwhelming. In more traditional playing structure and context is creates a safe net and direction and there were times that this absence felt uncomfortable. I often had to resist the habitual urge to fall back on familiar concepts such as grooves which while is a tool that should be used in free improvisation, there is much more to explore. However, these moments led to breakthroughs in my thinking and helped to shape a different outlook on music entirely.

This project will focus on the techniques I used and analysing my experience and excecution.

Horizontal thinking

Horizontal thinking, to me, came the most naturally. It is akin to techniques you would use in a solo, especially with no backing. Horizontal playing is a very linear approach to improvising. In a tonal context, horizontal playing tends to utilise scales and modes as a pathway through the piece. I found this could also be applied rhythmically in how you can develop ideas throughout a piece. Horizontal improvisation as a development tool is discussed by Ingrid Monson in saying something. She explains that jazz musicians shape performances over time by gradually developing ideas (Monson, 1996). This relates to my approach of slowly building rhythmic material and pacing musical ideas to create a sense of narrative and structure.

An example of this during one improvisation, I began with a sparse rhythmic motif and gradually added complexity. This approach was like telling a story. I had to be aware of how quickly I developed my ideas whilst also keeping in mind the pianist. My main focus when playing horizontally was to build tension and anticipation whilst also allowing musical ideas to breathe. A challenge of this was to not get too stuck in one idea and allow the piece to transform. Pacing myself in this exercise was hard and there was a constant temptation to fill up the space too soon. But by focusing on the pieces gradual evolution I learnt how important restraint and listening was and how it can give the music more shape and depth.

In one particular occasion shown in the video below: mid way through improvisation, instinctively I tried to develop a pulse. The pianist responded with unpredictable rhythms and abstract textures which led me out of it. This forced me to listen and change my approach to be less fixed and respect the space more which ended up creating an interesting path through the piece. I found letting go of the security of time keeping difficult but this helped me develop more melodic ideas on the drum kit which I had not experimented with too often. This taught me how to contribute in a more subtle and creative way.

I found that creating a story or timeline while playing was a good way to keep playing without burning out too early, and to respect space and dynamics. Exploring horizontal thinking fundamentally changed how I approach form in improvisation. Horizontal thinking encouraged me to focus on how ideas unfold over time, rather than reacting moment by moment. As a drummer this forced me to move away from my habits and commit to longer ideas and allow more gradual progression. This shift was challenging at first but helped me think in a more nuanced and intentional way as an improviser.

Vertical thinking

Vertical thinking, in contrast to horizontal, was important when the intensity increased.On the drum kit it involved layering sound across all 4 limbs. This created textures that responded to the pianists dense harmonic clusters or rhythmic ideas. During this the drums felt like less off a composite instrument and more as its own orchestration. In sync or swarm by David Borgo he describes free improvisation as layered and complex, with multiple musical ideas happening at once. This reflects my use of vertical thinking on the drum kit, where I layered sounds across all four limbs to create dense textures that responded to the pianist’s playing (Borgo, 2005).

I learnt throughout these that a balance of both is essential for different contexts. Though these ideas are quite contrasting, they can still be used in tandem.

Interaction and Musical Conversation

Interaction and musical conversation I found is a very fun and unique way to play. I like how emotion driven it is and how individual it can sound. Derek Bailey states that improvisation is a social process based on listening and responding to other musicians. This supports my experience of improvisation as a conversation, where my decisions were shaped by the pianist’s ideas and required constant listening and adaptation (Bailey, 1993). Each player has their own perspective about what each other are saying or how to respond and what that means. Working in a duo especially exposed how easy it is to improve as two separate monologues instead of listening taking your time and choosing a prescribed response. This made me increasingly aware of how my playing affects others in a performance and how to listen for invitations from other musicians.

I became aware that getting stuck in a rut of similar ideas was easy when playing like this so it was helpful sometimes to bounce off the other playing by reflecting their passage and doing the opposite instead of playing similar material. Though sometimes adding sections of agreement by playing similar things was also a powerful tool. Plotting emotion using this tool was a mix of restraining myself whilst also bursting out when I though necessary.

The conversational approach my understanding of how to shape a piece of music collaboratively and expanded my methods of how to fluidly respond to impulses in a way that contributes to the music.

Motivic Development

Motivic development is a very useful strategy when trying to maintain coherence across improvisations. I experimented with introducing a short rhythmic motif and finding way to expand it. Paul Berliner notes that improvisers often develop small motifs to create coherence, even in free contexts (Berliner, 1994). This mirrors my use of short rhythmic motifs that I transformed over time to maintain continuity in the improvisation. At first I expanded it texturally and timbrely by changing the orchestration before slowly adding different ideas to transform the idea. The aim was to grow the piece block by block and then seamlessly return back to the core idea I began with to experiment with how it can evolve.  

This in contrast to the conversational approach yielded a much less episodic outcome due to the constantly present starting material. This continuity allowed me to really explore what different ideas could turn into by exploring one idea instead of creating new ones

This process encouraged a more patient approach to improvisation. It allowed ideas to unfold fully instead of being abandoned prematurely. By resting the impulse to add new material I became more attentive to subtleties like changes in rhythm, articulation, feel, dynamics and timbre over long stretches of time. This demonstrates how small changes can have a big domino effect on music and can be applied to all genres.

Organising Sounds

Organising sounds and timbres was very useful to keep my playing focused and intentional. Early on I noticed how using the full kit lacked clarity or depth and could either clutter the overall sound when in group settings. I noticed that using the full drum kit continuously often resulted in music that lacked clarity. Alan F Moore discusses how timbre can be used as a structural element in music. This supports my approach of limiting and organising sounds on the drum kit to create clarity, contrast, and form in otherwise free improvisations (Moore, 2010) . In response, I began deliberately limiting my sound palette.

By limiting myself to only certain parts of the kit it not only subdued why part to a much thinner texture but also experimenting with getting as much out of the instrument as possible and opened my mind to a lot of different techniques I hadn’t thought of before.  In my video I experiment with the different sounds of the hi hat whilst using cymbal rollers. Having a change in drumstick allowed me to get double the amount of sounds due to the felt and wood. This made my performance more coherent and subtle. It changed how I operated the drumsticks, how I operated the hi hat. This changed the articulation, dynamics, and rhythm compared to what I would typically play whilst holding the sticks in match grip. This technique can also be applied equally to all parts of the kit or even anything that you can hit that emits a noise.

Structurally organising sounds makes a performance more defined whilst keeping clean and sensical transitions. Though you have to be careful of dynamics as the limited range can get monotonous if the accents and dynamics aren’t clear and intentional.

This technique helped me learn restraint but also spark creativity in different possible timbres.

Conclusion

Overall, this project changed how I think significantly. It has not only reshaped how I think about improvising but also music as whole. Whilst the lack of traditional methods can feel uncomfortable at times I think breaking them down has helped me understand my self more and my own good and bad habits. My vocabulary has been significantly expanded and will influence all performative aspects of me as a musician.

Bibliography

Bailey, D. (1993) Improvisation: Its Nature and Practice in Music.
Berliner, P. (1994) Thinking in Jazz.
Borgo, D. (2005) Sync or Swarm.
Monson, I. (1996) Saying Something.
Moore, A. (2010) Music and Meaning.