Options
Enforced spontaneity: Perspectives from non music-specialist tertiary students learning free improvisation in Singapore
Citation
Paper presented at the 3rd Redesigning Pedagogy International Conference, Singapore, 1 - 3 June 2009
Abstract
Improvisation is a free elective course offered by the Music Department to students from all disciplines at the main University. Our earlier studies on the non music-specialist students enabled through improvisation have articulated in/formal processes in both reflexive and reflective thinking processes (Dairianathan & Stead 2006, 2008) which we argue are based on the concept of askesis, notably meletē and gymnasia, in the Stoic tradition (Foucault, 1988). Although improvising is based on prior experience, an area not yet critically examined is the way in which that experience is brought together with the immediate requirement to improvise in the moment. In this paper, we study one group of participants whose discussions brought about a consensus that, in their final performance: we would improvise on-the-spot on the performance day itself. In so doing, this group intentionally gave themselves minimal prior rehearsal; what these participants refer to as the in-the-moment (ITM) factor. This study is reliant on an analysis of participants’ performances and excerpts from their journal reflections which critically examine what it means for learners to be engaged in the moment when improvising.
Date Issued
June 2009