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https://www.musical-u.com/learn/improvising-music-the-basics/
There are a number of ways people approach improvising music. However, the most important thing to know is that improvisation is not a magic gift and it is not necessarily an advanced musical skill. In this article learn the 3 basic foundational blocks that will get you on your started! https://www.musical-u.com/learn/improvising-music-the-basics/

https://www.musical-u.com/learn/3-singing-exercises-to-improve-your-vocal-pitching/
What can you do if you have trouble singing in tune? The Musical U team collaborated to bring you 3 singing exercises that will help you improve your vocal pitching. https://www.musical-u.com/learn/3-singing-exercises-to-improve-your-vocal-pitching/

Hi, this is Christopher Sutton, the Founder and Director of Musical U, and I’d love to share with you what’s new at Musical U this month.

This month was Improv Month at Musical U, meaning everything was themed around the topic of improvisation! We still have one week left in the month, but let’s run through everything that’s happened so far…

You can watch the video below or read on to learn more:

On the Podcast

First of all, on the Musicality Podcast, I had the pleasure of talking to four fantastic experts on the topic of improvisation. We had Nick Mainella from the 10 Minute Jazz Lesson podcast, David Wallimann of Guitar Playback, Brendan Lowe from Jazz Piano School, and David Reed, from Improvise For Real.

It was fascinating to hear each of their perspectives on learning to improvise. We also had teaching episodes on the podcast about how to approach improvisation, improvising rhythm, improvising using scales and chords, and how to add structure and phrasing to your improve. On the website we had a bunch of new articles about improvising including for classical music and three great guest posts from friends in the music education world.

Last but not least, inside Musical U we’ve been releasing a ton of new content to help our members learn to improvise step-by-step. Let’s have a quick look at the three modules we’ve released so far, as well as the new instrument pack resources for learning to improvise.

New Improv Training Modules

The first thing to mention before we dive into those new modules, is that we already had two modules about improvisation inside Musical U. The first is Approaching Improvisation, which is all about the mindset, and overall mental frameworks you need to be a successful improvisor, and avoid the common traps and pitfalls that lead to robotic, or very limited improvisation skill.

Approaching Improvisation is where we recommend everyone starts to really get clear on what is it you’re embarking on if you want to become a free, confident, and capable improvisor. We had also released Improvising Melody, a module all about the specifics of improvising one note at a time, and what goes into that in terms of pitch, and rhythm, what your options are. Then this month, as part of Improv Month, we released Improvising with Chord Tones, which connects melody to the idea of notes in chords, which we call chord tones.

This is a really interesting module because it’s something that a lot of people think is quite a sophisticated aspect of improvising, but it can actually be part of your repertoire from day one. As you’ll see, we break it down, and show you step-by-step how to connect the notes you’re choosing for your melody, to the notes that are in the chords you’re playing over. This has a dramatic impact on how musical, and how effective your improv will be.

The second module we released is Harmonic Tension and Release, which goes into more detail of that interplay between harmony and melody, and it has a bunch of listening exercises and explanations and opportunities to try it, so that you learn how to create tension, and how to release it in your improvisation.

There’s a lot that goes into this, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. Again, it’s something that makes a really big impact on how musical and how moving your improv is.

The third new module this month was Phrasing and Structure. This was an interesting one because we started out putting it together as an improv module – but as you’ll see here it’s actually classified under Melodies now, because we realized as we were working on the material that what we wanted to share goes way beyond improv. The idea of phrases and the idea of structuring music is obviously universally applicable, it’s not just something for improv. Although we use improvisation as kind of the vehicle for explaining all this, and it’s a great way to play around with it, actually what you learn in this module helps you with interpreting written music, it helps you understand the music by ear, it helps you just perform the music you’ve learned before.

This is really a module that goes way beyond improv, but will have a big, powerful impact on how you shape the music you play when you improvise.

Something that wasn’t on my list before, but I should mention was we also had our “Fireside Chat” in Musical U this month on the topic of improv. This is an initiative that our community conductor Stewart put together, where it’s just an opportunity to come and hang out live with the team, and talk about a particular topic. This chat was all about improv. We had a bunch of members show up and share their experiences, their questions, their concerns about improv, and the team were there to share our own ideas, experiences and advice to help our members get into improv.

Improv Resource Packs

As well as our new training modules, we released new Resource Packs for guitar, piano, and bass on the topic of Improvising with Phrasing and Form. Here’s a preview post that gives you a little glimpse inside each of those resource packs. As always, these are about helping you connect to your core training as Musical U to the particular instrument you play with exercises, ideas, and technique specifics that apply on that instrument.

… and more still to come!

That’s all available inside Musical U now for our members. This week, we’ll be releasing one more module. It’s our Improv Practice module, that has a bunch of backing tracks you can use to practice all of the exercises in those other modules, and our full Improv Roadmap, that leads you step-by-step through these modules, and other exercises to help you learn to improvise from step one, through to being a capable and confident improvisor.

The final thing to mention is that this coming Saturday, we have a very special guest, Nick Mainella, presenting an online masterclass for us on the topic of improvisation. This is free, and provided online. If you haven’t already, please register to attend this masterclass and learn what Nick has to share on the topic of improvisation.

That was Improv Month at Musical U. I hope you guys have been enjoying it as much as I have!

This last week is going to be a fantastic one. We still have our guest expert roundup post with a whole bunch of pro improvisors and music educators sharing their favorite improv, and of course we have that masterclass you won’t want to miss.

Thanks for joining me for this look inside what’s new in Musical U this month. We also, I should mention, have a big special promo coming up this weekend, to round off Improv Month. That’s going to be a great opportunity to join Musical U if you’re not a member already. I would love to see you in there. Be sure to check out our Facebook page, and take advantage of that promotion!

The post What’s New in Musical U: March 2018 appeared first on Musical U.

https://www.musical-u.com/learn/jazz-improvisation-ear-training-5-tips-from-chris-cooke-learn-jazz-faster/
Ready to start jazz improvisation? Chris Cooke from Learn Jazz Faster has these 5 tips that will help you to take a step back and simplify your playing. https://www.musical-u.com/learn/jazz-improvisation-ear-training-5-tips-from-chris-cooke-learn-jazz-faster/

https://www.musical-u.com/learn/songwriters-secrets-mastering-the-melody/
Writing lyrics is an important step in the songwriting process. But to really shine, a great set of lyrics needs a good melody. A tune that the audience finds memorable and enjoyable. Musical U shares some tips you can use to improve your melody writing. https://www.musical-u.com/learn/songwriters-secrets-mastering-the-melody/

https://www.musical-u.com/learn/introduction-to-improvisation/
Improvisation: a topic that is full of once-in-a-lifetime moments, tremendous virtuosity, freedom and… controversy. Why controversy? Because there’s a healthy dose of misconception as to what is improvisation actually is. https://www.musical-u.com/learn/introduction-to-improvisation/

https://www.musical-u.com/learn/hearing-harmonies-active-listening/
Learning to hear harmonies has many benefits for all musicians whether interested in singing in a choir, composing an interesting piece of music or just strengthening your ear training skills. https://www.musical-u.com/learn/hearing-harmonies-active-listening/

https://www.musical-u.com/learn/twelve-tips-for-learning-to-improvise-music/
Learning to improvise is a long-term mission, one which will push you to your musical limits and then beyond. You’ll need to be armed with some tips, tricks and strategies to help ensure you continually improve. https://www.musical-u.com/learn/twelve-tips-for-learning-to-improvise-music/

This week, it’s time to put it all together and give it some structure.

We introduce our upcoming Instrument Packs for improvising with phrase and form, provide an exercise in structured major scale improv, interview a master guitar educator on his take on improvisation, and release a podcast episode that explains the importance of phrasing – by comparing it to the phrasing naturally present in speech!

Form and Phrasing

This month, we’ve been discussing how to improvise with purpose – that is, not just noodle around with random notes, but use musicality concepts to create riffs and licks that stick.

One of the keys to unlocking this musicality in improv is form and phrasing, or the practice of shaping your musical expression into words, phrases, questions, and answers. In other words, telling a story through your improv.

So this month, we’re incredibly excited to announce our Instrument Packs on the topic of improvising with phrase and form. Our resident pros for piano, bass, and guitar teach you how to create cohesive improvised solos that fit any genre and style, how to expand a single musical idea (or even a single note!) into a full solo, and of course, how to elevate your improv from riffs and licks to full-fledged storytelling.

Improvisation is not just something that musicians do during a song… it can also be the path to writing a song! For generations, musicians have improvised their way to new compositions, allowing their muse to guide them along the way. Guitar.com takes us through Songwriting 101, detailing how the pros compose by improvising.

Of all the instruments, perhaps none is more universally known for improvisation than the saxophone. This month, we’ve been introducing some new words into your musical vocabulary that you may not have used before – to really cement your understanding, check out this guide to improv vocabulary from the Best Saxophone Website Ever.

Steve talked about how backing tracks are a great way to have fun while practicing improvisation. These days, there are so many different options available for backing tracks online – how are you to know which ones are good? Sean from Guitar Ramble compiled a list of 5 jazz guitar backing tracks to inspire your improvisations this month.

Improvisation Ideas

In improvisation, it’s easy to focus too much on your instrument and not enough on the musical ideas inside your head.

David Wallimann, founder of GuitarPlayback.com, music educator, and guitarist extraordinaire has the following counterintuitive-yet-brilliant advice to give: put the instrument down!

David’s fresh approach to improv emphasizes and prioritizes musical ideas, and recognizes music theory and instruments as simply a means to an end to express those ideas.

In Tell Your Own Story, with David Wallimann, David discusses how to break out of the improvise-by-numbers trap that many musicians fall into, shares the importance of music theory in improvisation, and spills the secret of putting self-expression at the center of your improvisation. This interview is an absolute must-hear for anyone seeking freedom through their improv!

David filled us in on how he broke free of the standard fretboard patterns for improvising music. The counterintuitive method that he talked about is certainly inspiring! For more tips to get started on guitar improvisation, check out Stuart Bahn’s ultimate guide.

Perhaps one of the most poisonous myths in the music world is that learning theory will somehow rob you of your creativity. That’s kind of like thinking that learning the difference between a noun and a verb is bad for a creative writer! Music theory has a place for all musicians that want to experience more freedom in their musical expression. The Struggling Guitarist exposes this myth and why it is rubbish.

No matter where you are in your musical journey, there are roadblocks that you will run into, and frustrations that you will experience. One of the things that we loved about talking with David was his positive mindset to his musicality. This can make such a big difference as you work on perfecting your art! To help you get beyond what you think is possible, here’s some serious motivation from Keyboard Improv.

Starting to Improvise

This month’s content has been geared towards introducing you to improvisation tools and how to use them.

Time to put some of these to the test, by diving into some simple exercises in improvising with the major scale!

Whether you don’t know how to play the scale or can blaze through it with your eyes closed, you’ll find something helpful in First Steps to Improvisation. We run through some basic theory for scale-building, introduce the concept of building musical motifs from the major scale, and show you how to combine and manipulate motifs to make complete musical statements and tell a story in your improv.

Scales are a great starting point in your improvisation journey. To learn more about how to apply scales into a chord progression and more, check out the Play Guitar Podcast’s exploration of how to really understand guitar scales.

Moving past just playing around with scales, a good piece of improvisation must tell a story, with the use of melodies and motifs. In the same way that certain words are better when starting a written sentence, there are ways to start a musical sentence that pack a punch. Tim Hansen explores four different ways to start a musical sentence for Soundly.

After completing this lesson, wouldn’t you enjoy some practical ways to apply scales to your improvisation? Nick from Jazz Duets goes through a number of different exercises that you can try out today.

Shaping Your Improv

With the release of our Instrument Packs on improvising with phrase and form just around the corner, you’ll want to put yourself in the mindset to create music that sounds like a conversation.

In About Improvising with Structure and Phrasing, we define a musical phrase by relating it to its cousin: the verbal phrase. Just as a sentence is the first level of structure we give to our speech, the musical phrase is the basic unit of improv, lending it the shape it needs to avoid becoming a formless string of notes.

This opens up a world of possibilities: we can think of how one phrase relates to another, how to use them to create tension and release, and most importantly, how to use these concepts to bring your music to life.

We talked about the importance of phrasing when you are improvising music. Phrasing can really make the difference in your improvisation being memorable and catchy, or just a collection of notes. Mika Tyyskä takes us through a simple melody, with an approach to building phrasing that can be applied in almost every context!

No matter what style of music you prefer, we all want our improvisation to be musical. After all… isn’t that why we started playing in the first place? Harmony Music Center shares some quick tips that will change the way you approach improv!

It’s no secret that the Musical U team are big fans of podcasts. So, when we found an episode from Tune In, Tone Up that explored adding interest to improvisation through phrasing, we couldn’t wait to share it!

A Musical Statement

As you’ve probably realized, chords, scales, and notes themselves are like sentence fragments and singular words – small components of a meaningful whole.

By shaping, expanding on, and combining your licks, riffs, and melodies in the right ways, you can create complete musical statements that are more than the sum of their parts – that will engage the listener and tell a story.

The post Form and Phrasing, Improvisation Ideas, Starting to Improvise, and Shaping Your Improv appeared first on Musical U.

https://www.musical-u.com/learn/5-improvisation-insights-jeffrey-agrell/
Improvisation doesn’t have to be hard. In fact, it can be a game! By learning to treat musical improv as a game you free yourself up to experiment and learn the skills in a much more enjoyable way. Learn more with Jeffrey Agrell of Improv Insights. https://www.musical-u.com/learn/5-improvisation-insights-jeffrey-agrell/