Abstract
This chapter explores a specific and unique aspect of the craft of music education by addressing the particular pedagogical challenge of: how do we teach musical improvisation improvisationally? The response offered to this question is in two parts: the first is concerned with what we are trying to teach when we teach musical improvisation, and the second is concerned with how we should teach musical improvisation. A greater understanding of the what and the how provides us with knowledge about the craft of teaching musical improvisation improvisationally, a unique craft that is of special significance to the discourse of music educators. A theoretical framework that views teaching musical improvisation improvisationally as a hybrid craft enriches this discourse. The framework unites the theory and craft of musical improvisation with the findings of empirical research into the improvisational craft of teacher expertise (Sorensen, Improvisation and teacher expertise: a comparative case study. PhD thesis. Bath Spa University, 2014). These two crafts are brought together by a third dimension of metacognitive self-reflection, characterised by the ability to transfer knowledge between these two domains and to critically reflect on this process. The chapter concludes with some examples of how the theory is put into practice drawing on a case study of an innovative programme of improvisation workshops offered at the British and Irish Modern Music Institute (BIMM) in Bristol, UK, and offers suggestions for the further professional development of music educators.
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Sorensen, N. (2021). The Craft of Teaching Musical Improvisation Improvisationally: Towards a Theoretical Framework. In: Holdhus, K., Murphy, R., Espeland, M.I. (eds) Music Education as Craft. Landscapes: the Arts, Aesthetics, and Education, vol 30. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-67704-6_13
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