Piano improvisation is intoxicating for any musician. You open yourself up to giving free rein to creativity. Being a good piano player entails knowing how to improvise. You let your personal emotions come through when playing, but how do you master piano improvisation? What techniques has a musician adept at improvising mastered?
Improvisation is sometimes more appreciated than composing as all composers must first master the art of improvisation after all. Second, improvisation involves more advanced techniques and deeper knowledge of music and its secret language. Additionally, understanding the foundations of harmony is necessary to become a master in improvisation.
Above all, improvisation is a state of mind a musician enters to create their own sonic universe. What’s also important is the self-confidence to successfully improvise. It’s necessary to look away from the score to dream up a beautiful improvisation.
Listening to Music
A great musician dares to improvise. To improvise at the piano, a musician must have a strong musical sensibility. He or she must learn to listen to music and then attempt to improvise as improvisations are the product of all the music one listens to.
For a beginner, the goal is to learn to improvise by playing a melody in the right hand while continuing chords in the left.
Rules to Follow
To create a melody on the piano, following some basic principles is essential. First, you must have mastered the structure of the key you’re improvising in. A melody is always connected to a certain key, specifically a set of seven notes. In addition, chords played by the left hand are crucial. If the only one improvising is just a solo pianist, he’s already earned some kudos.
During a solo concert, all the notes are important, from the first to the last.
An improvisation depends on the abilities of the musician, not his mood. During an improvisation, the musician must be sure that everything to come next musically is already in his head. At the same time, he must create a musical conversation with the public. The experience of being on stage plays a key role. It is what creates the style.
One thing is clear: With improvisation, it’s not reason, the mind or the heart running the show, but the fingers that take over. It’s a technical exercise for any experienced musician.
Once you start to improvise, you let yourself go to another universe where imagination reigns. Plus, improvising means being on the hunt for an adventure as it entails standing on uncertain ground. When improvising at the piano, you are uncovering your inner strength to be able to produce the most beautiful musical creations.
Piano improvisation is at the heart of music. Successfully creating an original melody requires a lot of technique and imagination. Moreover, it requires an innate musical sensibility conducive to improvising. Therefore, improvisation is free of the constraints of any musical genre.