RE: memory and improvisation

[Matthias Grob <matthias@grob.org>]

Title: RE: memory and improvisation

> as far as improvising
> musicians not remembering what they played, or what other people
> played . . . i don't know if i agree with that. some of the  best
> improvisers i know are able to sing what they or someone else did
> during an improv - - sometimes many days later. another way to look at
> this is if one is improvising form - - in other words, repeatable or
> recurring sections in an improvisation. it's awfully helpful to be
> able to remember what you or another played did in order to repeat and
> reshape a motif or texture in order to bring a "section"
> back around. in the improv.

shure, if you want such a structure, you may be right (although I am surprised sometimes how themes come back without me remembering them).

But I observe that I dont need this structure as a listener. Most musicians teach me that its necessary for understanding, but I am not sure.

In the last century, we got rid of so many cages, music without melody, without rhythm, without tonal scale, without tonal center was explored, but hardly music without "structure", but I may be totally wrong here...

> it is nice to be able to
> do something one has never done before in an improvisation. but, my
> guess is, if we had to adhere to that as a prerequisite for doing any
> improv, most would have to stop right now!

I think the atitude is important: I find it much different to repeat some cliche because it just comes up, or to repeat it because I think its smart or necessary or different or whatever.

> i tend to think that
> improvisation means different things to different people: for some it
> means "jamming on rock tunes/jazz standards"; for some it
> means "total free playing"; for some it means "using
> written material for a jumping-off place"; for some it means
> "spontaneous composition."

right!

> how to use looping in
> improv. if one is looking for complete freedom and non-repetition (if
> that is one's definition) in improv, it seems that looping can hinder
> that "complete freedom." the very fact that something is
> looping in repetition can be a lock. of course, if one's idea is that
> improv is "spontaneous composition," looping does not
> necessarily need to have a negative effect - - it is part of the
> "composition."

I wonder how the new technology with non volatile memory for lots of loops influences this.

The memory can be used to save the "cliches", or to free you from the effort (distraction?) to remember the theme (once you want to do such structured music).

You save a loop and bring it back the next night, save another line with it and such make the composition richer each time you improvise it...

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