Fostering Vocal Improvisation in Elementary Music

Importance of “Vocabulary” • Vocabularies: listening, speaking, thinking & conversing, reading, writing

“In learning language, individuals develop four ways to use their vocabularies: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Musicians also acquire a vocabulary and develop various ways of using it; improvisation in music plays the role that speech and conversation play in language. Just as students can broaden their speaking vocabulary by listening to and learning language by ear, students can broaden their music vocabulary by listening to and learning music by ear.” (Azzara, p. 22)

Developing Readiness for Improvisation (Tonal/Rhythm “Vocabulary”) 1) Repertoire of songs and chants (listening and performing by ear)2) Sense of context/syntax (resting tone, macrobeat/microbeat)3) Tonal patterns and rhythm patterns (with and without solfege/syllables)4) Harmonic progression (chord roots/chord tones)5) Individual response!

Steps to Rhythmic Improvisation *Starting on neutral syllables (e.g., “bah”; = Aural/Oral)

1) Macrobeats & Microbeats

2) Rhythm Pattern Vocabulary

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Fostering Vocal Improvisation in Elementary MusicHeather Nelson ShouldiceEastern Michigan University

[email protected](she/her)

3) Improvise Rhythm Patterns Charlie the Fish, Hickety Pickety Rhythm conversation- “Peepers” finger puppets

*Then adding rhythm syllables… ( = Verbal Association)

1) Macrobeats & Microbeats with Syllables/Identify Meter Engine, Engine- trains, switching game

2) Rhythm Pattern Vocabulary with Syllables Charlie the Fish, Hickety Pickety

3) Associate Syllables to Rhythm Patterns Charlie the Fish, Hickety Pickety

4) Improvise Rhythm Patterns with Syllables Charlie the Fish, Hickety Pickety

-can also change to triple meter!

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Steps to Tonal Improvisation *Starting on neutral syllables (e.g., “bum; = Aural/Oral)

1) Resting Tone

2) Tonal Pattern Vocabulary

3) Chord Roots

4) Improvise Tonal Patterns High, High Hill- student on the hill sings a pattern for class to echo. Valentine- st. sing patterns and place pieces on “Morphing Marty”

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*Then adding tonal solfege… ( = Verbal Association)

1) Resting Tone with Solfege/Identify Tonality

2) Tonal Pattern Vocabulary with Solfege

3) Identify Tonal Pattern Function

-shake on tonic, high-five on dominant

4) Chord Roots/Chord Tones with Solfege Biddy Biddy, Hello Everybody, Valentine

5) Associate Solfege to Tonal Patterns -“translate” -tonic/dominant separately at first

6) Improvise Tonal Patterns with Solfege Morphing Marty, Hello Everybody- improvise a tonic on handshake Replace parts of familiar songs- Valentine, Love Somebody

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Steps to Melodic Improvisation *When improvising: Model - Audiate - Whole Group - Individuals

1) Improvise new responses to call & response songs

2) Improvise new endings to familiar songs

3) Improvise an “answer” Antecedent/consequent phrases on neutral syllables

Tonal Conversation

4) Improvise melody for a familiar chant Engine, Engine- You sing phrases 1 & 3; students sing phrases 2 & 4. Students sing phrases 1 & 3; you sing 2 & 4. Students sing all phrases.

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5) Improvise melodies over chord roots/harmonic progressions Nanny Goat- informal creativity/improv. over accompaniment I See the Moon- create a new melody over chord roots Biddy, Biddy- 7 Step Process:

a) Sing the melody.b) Sing the chord roots (or chord tones).c) Improvise rhythms on chord roots/chord tones.d) Improvise chord tones on macrobeats.e) Improvise chord tones on microbeats.f) Improvise chord tones on macro/micro.g) Add passing/neighbor tones, other rhythms, etc.

12-Bar Blues- 7 Step Process

Improvisation can become Composition! Improvise, replicate, revise - Melody for a familiar chant, poems, Blues songs, etc.

“Composition refers to the act of creating new music with the intent of revising the created music to suit the composer’s intentions. Improvisation, on the other hand, is the spontaneous creation of music without the intent to revise. It is this difference in ‘intent to revise’ that marks the fundamental distinction between composing and improvising.” (Brophy, p. 34)

Creating an improvisation-friendly environment from day one... • Sing and chant to your students. This will help develop “listening vocabulary.”• Make individual response the norm in your classroom. Students need

opportunities to perform alone in order to “own” their skills.• Be a good model: Let kids see and hear you improvising!• Be a good model: Let kids see and hear you MAKE MISTAKES. If they see that

you are not afraid to explore and make mistakes, they won’t be either!

Resources/ReferencesAzzara, C. D. (1999). An aural approach to improvisation. Music Educators Journal, 86(3), 21-25.Azzara, C. D. & Grunow, R. F. (2006). Developing musicianship through improvisation. Chicago: GIA

Publications.Bailey, J. (2002). Sing-to-kids songbook. Self-published on TeachersPayTeachers.com.Bolton, B. M. (2009). Musicianship. Bestbael Music. “Katangaroo” and “Fives, Sevens, and Crazy

Eights” also available. (To purchase, contact [email protected].)Bluestine, E. (2001). The ways children learn music. Chicago: GIA Publications.Brophy, T. J. (2001). Developing improvisation in general music classes. Music Educators Journal,

88(1), 34-41+53.Gordon, E. E. (2003). Improvisation in the music classroom. Chicago: GIA Publications.Guilbault, D. M. (2009). The effects of harmonic accompaniment on the tonal improvisations of

students in first through sixth grade. Journal of Research in Music Education, 57(2), 81-91.Shouldice, H. N. (2020). Everyday musicality: Unlocking the inner musician through MLT [Audio

podcast]. Retrieved from https://everydaymusicality.com/podcast/Shouldice, H. N. (2020). Research to real life: Practical applications of music education research for

teachers. Retrieved from https://everydaymusicality.com/research-to-real-life-blog/Taggart, C. C., Bolton, B. M., Reynolds, A. M., Valerio, W. H., & Gordon, E. E. (2000). Jump right in:

The music curriculum. Chicago: GIA Publications. Valerio, W. H., Reynolds, A. M., Bolton, B. M., Taggart, C. C., & Gordon, E. E. (1998). Music play:

The early childhood music curriculum. Chicago: GIA Publications.

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