In James Joyces’, “A Portrait of the artist as a Young Man”, the hero write in his journal,
“Welcome O Life, I go to encounter for the millionth time the reality of my experience, and to forge in the smithy of my soul the uncreated conscience of my race.”Every encounter is a new event. The improviser encounters the other improvisers, a melody, new every time (Lester Young- “Tea for Two” listen to both cuts on Aladdin). The painter encounters a scene, a landscape, a sunflower etc. The dancer encounters their body, the floor, the other dancers. Each individual improvisation is only a sketch of it’s specific and perfect conclusion in that moment within each reality of experience, no more or less important. The creative process is the forging and bending of burning and passionate ideas in the depths of our soul for the value of humankind, that the conscience of our human race is not already created, rather, it is always forming and growing and living.
The improviser is a creator, reaching deep within the human conscience and collective and through their realities, pulling, tugging, forging their own individualized manifestations and ideas on the whole, pushing for new realities.
1) In lessons/clinics we will work from an individual-interest based foundational approach to classical, jazz studies and improvisational studies.
2) Practicing is the individual’s responsibility outside of lessons, and will involve transcribing and learning standard tunes, chords, and scales, and classical repertoire for performance and competition, but the main reason is to have a solid foundation for individual expression.
3) All lesson materials (recordings for transcribing, scale and harmony sheets, and musical recordings) will be provided by myself in the form of copies. If he needs or wants original manuscripts or books, he will have to buy those.
4) I believe that musical training, the devoted study of melody and harmony, not only develop creativity in a positive way, but also help to develop character and important life skills such as responsibility, consistency, and hard work.