Clickkkk!

Lots of things clicking lately.  I know I've written about this before, but I think it's starting to sink in a little better.  You know, the whole classical music versus improvised music thing, and how having one language helps with the other, and principles that appear unique, in fact, dictate universally.

One of the most noticeable changes has been in learning and practicing classical music.  I've been trying to play everything like it's improvised, and in so doing, my understanding of the compositional technique is totally different.  I think it's probably more along the lines of what was going through the composer's head at the time it was all set to paper.  More about motives and gestures, and about what one wants to hear next.  The phrasing is definitely all different, too.  I'm paying more attention to harmonic shifting in a bigger picture, rather than in the moment.  Maybe that's the thing that's happening... more big picture, less raw instinct.  But in a good way.  In a balanced way.

On the flip side, I've really pared down my improvs lately.  It's finally dawned on me, in a practical sense, that my improv will simply not be as complex as the classical stuff that I play.  And I need to stop forcing it there.  I suppose it was in listening to the construction of some Bjork stuff, of all things, that I realized this.  It's music that feels very full, but if I listen for the elements, they're all pretty straight forward and simple.  And I think, maybe all along, I've been wanting my improvs to be complex by virtue: every melody, every chord, every color.  And so most of it just sounded like a big mess.

Anyway, it takes time for these things to be understood.  I'm sure that some day soon, this day, too, will have just been another stepping stone along the way.

Here we go, Day 211: https://ia600802.us.archive.org/32/items/Improv31212/20120312144925.mp3