Musical and other performance improvisations, improv techniques, and how improvisation can inform other artforms.
Sometime in the Summer of 1991, John Bennison encouraged me to create a set of recordings of piano improvisations. We talked about the how since we knew the where would be the sanctuary of the church we both served. A church member loaned us a beautiful acoustic piano. I had the condenser microphones, but we had to […]
Old Hymns For A New Age – #piano #improv re-release Read More »
“Why prefer blue skies over grey? Because you can sing and play the blues.” ~ Stan Stewart After the opening, at times disjointed part one of Cracked Open Blues comes this very bluesy improv. If you start to dance, be ready for some changes in the count (time signature)! This spontaneous composition bounces around from
Digging Through Blues After digging into the recordings from the Painting Piano series of improvisations, I’ve found a few more tracks that are interesting, but did not make the cut for the album. One of my favorites so far, is “Cracked Open Blues”. Because the improvisation is so long, I’ve split it into a parts one
Crescent moon, Glowing iridescent through Humid clouds, Morning’s orange glow, and Aging eyes. I look Once more Inspired by your Walk across night’s edge. When you shine so Vividly, coaxing night walkers, Early risers, And lovers To wander with you In the darkness, It is easy to Forget that your light Is reflected from another
I wake in the middle of the night My heart is pounding fiercely And the sheets offer no comfort So I slip out of bed. As my feet touch the floor There’s a cold sensation; Knowing your warm, soft body Might as well be a million miles away. The door requires a nudge So I
Life and Thoughts Creating Reality Though I believe in the power of thought and know that we create our own reality, it’s easy to experience things as “life” giving us this lesson or that curve ball. Hopefully, most adults have ways of coping with these moments: yours might be taking a deep breath, going for
Every day it hovers In the corners of your awareness. You know it’s there. And too easily take it for granted. Your life filled with hubbub and Noise may seem to fill every corner Of who you think you can be. But that is nothing compared To the life in the green. Drop to your knees. Press your nose
Don’t let any kind of dread Run a thread Through your head You can always turn To face something Beautiful To shift into Gratitude And that Is surely where it’s at Just put on a different hat And suddenly You’re aware Once again Of the masterpiece Full of wonderment And delight You are ~ spontaneously
This is the third of three piano improvs from May 1, 2014. First, there was “Early (Part 1)“. In it you’ll hear predictable sounds and very stylistic, yet still spontaneously created, themes. Next, there was the student-inspired “Mouse and Elephant” with it’s dissonant chase across the keyboard. The final piano improv from this May Day session
When I was teaching piano lessons in Pennsylvania, I had a student who was a truly inspired young lad. In addition to being a good learner, passionate about music, and with a very creative mind, he enjoyed our explorations into improvisation. So, we did duet piano improv together. My memories of it are sweet and
