Source: Jazz at Lincoln Center: "Jazz for Young People: What is New Orleans Jazz?"
Funding for the VITAL/Ready to Teach collection was secured through the United States Department of Education under the Ready to Teach Program.
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This is one segment in a series from Jazz for Young People: What is New Orleans Jazz features jazz musician Wynton Marsalis and his band. We learn collective improvisation means instruments playing together as if they are having a conversation. Collective improvisation gives you the freedom to express your personality, but you also have to accommodate the personality of the other instrument. During collective improvisation, instruments have to follow certain rules just like people having a conversation have to do. They have to listen to each other, and one instrument should not be louder than the other. For more about collective improvisation, see video segments, "Together" and "Collective Improvisation".
Download and ShareThe following suggestions are best suited for elementary or middle school students using this video in an English language arts lesson. Be sure to modify the questions to meet your students' instructional needs.
Frame (ELA) What unspoken rules do you follow when you are having a conversation with someone?
Focus (ELA) Learn what rules musicians have to follow in collective improvisation.
Follow Up (ELA) What does it mean to be a good listener and a good speaker? What habits annoy you when you are having a conversation with someone?
WYNTON: Now we’re going to hear them have a conversation in music. Check it out.
The music plays.
WYNTON: Uh, huh. You hear that. That’s right. Now, I want ya’ll to realize something about these two things now. What a second before we get too happy. Improvisation gives you the freedom to express your personality but collective means. Ah, the collective part, it means that you have to also listen to someone else and accommodate their personality. You can’t just get up there and play anything you want to play. Because there is no room for ego-tripping. Let’s see what would happen if they had this conversation and Mr. Gardner for example decided that he wants to play louder?.just play any kind of thing regardless of what Mr. Mayfield is playing.
The music plays.
WYNTON: Man, you see what I’m saying? You see what that sounds like? It’s obvious if you play too loud, you can’t hear you can’t listen to what anyone else is playing. So learning how to speak and listen to one another is important to everyday conversation and it’s also important for collective improvisation.
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