In my experience, students have no chance of learning to improvise when their teacher does not model it for them. No chance at all. Can a student learn math when the teacher doesn't SHOW the class how to do it? Can a student learn to play volleyball when the teacher doesn't SHOW the class how to perform bumps, sets, and spikes? How about drawing, ballroom dance, and marching band? Anything that requires skill development cannot be learned unless modeling is a significant part of the learning process. (Click here for my lengthy research paper on modeling.)
So, what can a music teacher do if they cannot improvise? Certainly just talking about improvisation and encouraging students to "try it" is not enough. Since over half of all music teachers have little jazz experience and believe they cannot improvise, I have put considerable effort into creating a jazz improvisation method that allows any competent classically-trained ("legit") musician to instantly begin modeling jazz improvisation for their students. Here are a few of the ways Improv Pathways helps teachers do this:
1. The teachers manual has notated call-and-response patterns in three different keys and 15 progressively-more-advanced levels. So, the students learn these patterns "by ear" while the teacher plays them from standard notation - no need to make up your own jazz patterns as you go!
2. Improv Pathways contains many short improvisation activities with very specific parameters or gudelines. Because you can follow directions, and because you are, by far, the strongest musician in the band room, you will have NO PROBLEM demonstrating the improvisational elements for your students.
3. The Improv Pathways curriculum helps music teachers fill in the gaps that are typically missing in their understanding of how to improvise. Thus, you will feel empowered and confident in your ability to go from just understanding the music theory behind jazz improvisation to playing a strong, exciting improvised solo over the chord changes.
At the end of the 4-month curriculum I have no doubt that you, the previously inexperienced jazz educator, will be the best jazz soloist in the whole band program at your school. Perhaps some of you are thinking, "big deal...the others are all just middle school students". However, this is a BIG DEAL, because many music teachers now feel weak in jazz and improvisation, and believe that many of their own students are more skilled with it (especially those students who are taking private lessons). Not any more! Now you KNOW exactly what to do when its time to improvise a solo, and you can DO it with confidence! As you MODEL jazz improvisation for your students, they will be inspired and educated...and your coolness factor may just go up a few notches as well.
Oh, yah!
Curtis Winters
1. The teachers manual has notated call-and-response patterns in three different keys and 15 progressively-more-advanced levels. So, the students learn these patterns "by ear" while the teacher plays them from standard notation - no need to make up your own jazz patterns as you go!
2. Improv Pathways contains many short improvisation activities with very specific parameters or gudelines. Because you can follow directions, and because you are, by far, the strongest musician in the band room, you will have NO PROBLEM demonstrating the improvisational elements for your students.
3. The Improv Pathways curriculum helps music teachers fill in the gaps that are typically missing in their understanding of how to improvise. Thus, you will feel empowered and confident in your ability to go from just understanding the music theory behind jazz improvisation to playing a strong, exciting improvised solo over the chord changes.
At the end of the 4-month curriculum I have no doubt that you, the previously inexperienced jazz educator, will be the best jazz soloist in the whole band program at your school. Perhaps some of you are thinking, "big deal...the others are all just middle school students". However, this is a BIG DEAL, because many music teachers now feel weak in jazz and improvisation, and believe that many of their own students are more skilled with it (especially those students who are taking private lessons). Not any more! Now you KNOW exactly what to do when its time to improvise a solo, and you can DO it with confidence! As you MODEL jazz improvisation for your students, they will be inspired and educated...and your coolness factor may just go up a few notches as well.
Oh, yah!
Curtis Winters
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