Free Improvisation: A Practical Guide

Improvisation is a big part of our daily lives, essential to the things we love to do and the music we love to hear. Improvising together seems natural when we’re playing a game or having a conversation, yet improvising music together is often viewed as mysterious and forbidding. Free Improvisation: A Practical Guide provides a practical way for any group of people, no matter what their style of music or level of musicianship, to learn about improvising together. With over 100 improvisational exercises and invaluable instructional tips, this book is an essential tool for every musician, teacher, or music lover.

Improvisation is a big part of our daily lives, essential to the things we love to do and the music we love to hear. Improvising together seems natural when we’re playing a game or having a conversation, yet improvising music together is often viewed as mysterious and forbidding. Free Improvisation: A Practical Guide provides a practical way for any group of people, no matter what their style of music or level of musicianship, to learn about improvising together. With over 100 improvisational exercises and invaluable instructional tips, this book is an essential tool for every musician, teacher, or music lover.

Tom Hall is an improvising saxophonist, educator and author of "Free Improvisation: A Practical Guide". A graduate of New England Conservatory, he teaches free improvisation ensembles at Brandeis University and M.I.T., and has conducted improvisation classes at New England Conservatory, Wellesley College, the Royal Conservatory, and the Rotterdam Conservatory. Tom also maintains an active performance schedule, and produces The Sessions, an improvised music series that brings together great improvisers from all styles of music and sets them loose in a free improvisatory setting. In addition to his ongoing performances and teaching, Tom took the entire year of 2012 to create and host ImprovLive 365, a daily web-series dedicated to exploring, documenting, and sharing the improvisational, spontaneous creativity of life that produced 365 online episodes, improvisatory public performances, and community based educational programs. "From the moment we're born, until the moment we die; from the most creative artistic endeavor to the most mundane action, improvisation is an inextricable part of human life. Life is one big improvisation, and we are all master improvisers." -Tom Hall