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Record: 1 Title: Author(s): Source: Peer Reviewed: ISSN: Descriptors: Jump Ahead and Take the Risk. Rudaitis, Cheryl, Comp. Teaching Music, v2 n5 p34-35 Apr 1995. N/A 1069-7446 Classroom Techniques, Discovery Learning, Educational Theories, Elementary Education, Harmony (Music), Improvisation, Learning Activities, Music Education, Music Techniques, National Programs, Orff Method, Rhythm (Music), Teacher Attitudes, Teacher Behavior, Teaching Methods, Tempo (Music), Elementary Education Arts Education National Standards, Orff (Carl) Maintains that nothing requires more meticulous preparation than guiding and supervising lessons in discovery and improvisation. Discusses the discovery learning techniques of the Orff-Schulwerk method of music instruction. Includes a teaching example based on the National Standards for Arts Education. (CFR) Theme issue topic: "Focus on Improvisation." Journal availability: Music Educators Natl. Conference, 1806 Robert Fulton Dr., Reston, VA 220914348. English Teachers; Practitioners Reports - Descriptive; Guides - Classroom - Teacher; Journal Articles Not available from ERIC CIJFEB1996 1996 EJ512725 ERIC

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Full Text Database: Section: Focus on IMPROVISATION GENERAL MUSIC

JUMP AHEAD AND TAKE THE RISK

"Nothing requires more meticulous preparation than guiding and supervising lessons in discovery and improvisation." American Orff teachers agree with this statement by Wilhelm Keller. They will tell you that the seeds for creating music extemporaneously should be sown in preschool and kindergarten, when instructors begin familiarizing students with the elements of music. But student preparedness, though important, is not enough; it is the teacher who holds the trump card in student improvisation success.

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Steve Calantropio, general music teacher at the Cherry Hill School in River Edge, New Jersey, says it's especially important to prepare an improvisation lesson well. "If a teacher lacks confidence in the lesson, the students will not want to take the plunge," he said. "The kids will also have trouble focusing, which could lead to behavioral problems. The bottom line is that lessons in improvisation should not be improvised." For improvisation to work in the classroom, the teacher must be willing to take risks and be open to a broad range of possibilities, according to Carol Erion, American Orff-Schulwerk Association president. She says that because the training and experience of many teachers did not include improvisation, they may feel uncomfortable improvising with their students. If this is the case, Erion advises teachers to seek out opportunities to work on this skill. Experimenting with the voice or their instrument of choice and taking Orff teacher training courses are two suggestions. In Orff training, teachers build improvisation skills by starting with single elements and narrow parameters and gradually expanding the possibilities. With these kinds of experiences, it is easy for teachers to design sequential lessons in improvisation for their students. While the thought of teaching improvisation may be a little intimidating, the benefits to students are many, asserts Doug Goodkin, a music teacher at The San Francisco School in San Francisco, California. "Since improvisation is the jumping-off place from imitation to creation, it directly involves the student in the music-making process. Improvisation can provide the student with a sense of ownership and pride in his or her work. When a student improvises, all the lights are on--thinking, hearing, feeling, and doing. Because they're so completely engaged, most students love to improvise. However, improvisation also means jumping ahead and taking a risk in front of one's peers. Some students--shy children and middle school students--prefer the safety and comfort of the right answer." Another important function of improvisation is assessment. Goodkin says, "It's possible for a student to cram for a test, take it the next day, do well, and then forget the material he or she has learned. Improvisation is an honest assessment tool, exposing the extent of the student's understanding of the musical ideas and skills introduced by the teacher." Judith Thomas, an Orff-Schulwerk specialist at Upper Nyack Elementary School in Nyack, New York, says a teacher should begin teaching improvisation by modeling the desired technique and then inviting the class to try it. "The teacher must show confidence and warmth," she stressed. "If the teacher projects any vibes of tension, the class will pick up on those right away." ORFF Teachers Have Their Students improvise movements, rhythms, melodies, songs, and different harmonic accompaniments. Language and poetry are often the center from which the improvisations develop. As Goodkin describes the process: "I might begin my first class asking each child's name and then expressing it in a variety of ways--clapping or patting the rhythm, gesturing, or speaking it expressively--with the group imitating. After sufficient imitation, I ask, 'Does anyone else have an idea of how to play this
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name?' From names, we move into chants, nursery rhymes, and poems. At the end of the process, small groups of children can take a poem away to a corner of the room and come back with their own composition that might include an original melody and accompaniment, movement, and drama." According to Calantropio, structuring improvisation is critical for student success. "Too many musical elements to pick from is worse than too few," he said. "It's important to limit how much students have to do; a rondo form usually works well." Goodkin agrees. "It's scary for students to have too wide a choice. If I ask a student to go to the middle of the room and improvise a dance, he or she will naturally be hesitant. But if I establish a form and invite a variation--as in teaching a set folk dance and then having the students substitute their own motions within the given form--the task is more manageable. Similarly, when I want students to improvise melodically, I begin with a small range of time and pitch, as in creating an eight-beat melodic pattern with three given notes." While Improvisation May Sometimes be taught as an isolated skill, Orff teachers usually integrate improvisation into the context of the music or the musical concepts the class is working on, says Erion. "Improvisation is not a separate unit in my curriculum, but is woven into the fabric of every class," Goodkin said. Thomas adds, "A knowledge of improvisation contributes to a student's overall musicality. Since improvisation is just a step away from a fixed piece, it's a little like feeling the fabric before you cut out the dress." Erion concludes, "Improvisation overlays the whole aesthetic of Orff-Schulwerk. It helps students develop the ability to 'think with the ears of a composer,' a goal of Orff-Schulwerk described by Carl Orff himself." ILLUSTRATION: Children often create music based on the rhythm patterns of names and other words. ~~~~~~~~ Compiled by Cheryl Rudaitis, MENC staff. MUSIC TEACHING EXAMPLE Grades K--4, Standard 3a Improvising melodies, variations, and accompaniments: Students improvise "answers" in the same style to given rhythmic and melodic phrases. During a review of body percussion echoes, students are invited to improvise their own rhythm patterns in response to the teacher rather than imitating exactly what they hear. After practice, the class is divided into two groups. Two classroom timpani (or hand drums) are placed opposite one another a few feet apart, and the students line up behind them. Using a third
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drum, the teacher plays a "question" rhythm and, one at a time, the drummers "answer" by improvising a rhythm pattern that is the same length (eight beats) as the teachers "question." As students become more comfortable with their improvised rhythms, one drum is designated as the "question" and the other as the "answer." As each student comes to the head of the line, he or she takes a turn improvising the part assigned to the drum and then immediately hands the mallet to the next person in line. On another day, the students continue their question-and-answer improvisations in small groups, assigning two timbres of their choice to the question-and-answer players. The teacher next helps the students transfer question-and-answer improvisations to the recorder. Students echo the teacher in short melodic patterns, using a limited range of pitches (three to five, depending on the students' skill level). When the students are secure, the teacher encourages them to improvise their own answers rather than imitate the pattern he or she plays. Students, playing in small groups, respond with "answer" patterns or phrases to build confidence before playing individually. The instructional activity is successful when: The students improvise a new pattern rather than imitating what they hear The students exhibit understanding of phrase or pattern length, steady beat, and antecedent and consequent phrases or patterns in their improvisations Teaching example excerpted from MENC's Teaching Examples: Ideas for Music Educators (1994) Copyright of Teaching Music is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.

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