Teaching Improvisational Skills

Before I start teaching improvisation I do a game called I've Got The Rhythm/I've Got the Beat

Students stand in a circle and I demonstrate and say: I've got the rhythm, now check my beat (I use a dotted rhythm for the first part and 4 quarter notes for the second).  I use four levels of body percussion to demonstrate a four beat pattern.  I do several patterns and then when the students are ready, we go around the circle.  Sometimes some students will do a rhythm because they confuse the two.  The second time around the circle I change the chant to I've got the beat now check my rhythm.  My students want to do elaborate step dance moves, so I ask them to either clap or pat the rhythm and that makes it easier to echo.  

Note: I do this activity a few times a year because I have so many new students all the time.

After this activity we will talk about the difference between beat and rhythm.  I ask questions like, "What do your toes tap when you hear music? or When you tell me that song has a great beat, what do you really mean?"

Next I ask the class to clap a four beat rhythm and then I extend it to 8 12 and finally 16.  I count it out 1234, 2234, ect.  On the 16th beat I tell them to hold their hands up in the air.  

The extension to this exercise is going to the instruments and having each family echo me--woods, metals, skins, etc.  If there are some students who are not shy, I'll call out solos.  At the end all the instruments improvise for 16 beats and then we rotate.  

This year I did this activity the week before Valentine's day.  The following week we did a passing game to Big Bunch of Roses

I bought some plush roses at Oriental trading company and the students did a passing game with the song.  We did the song twice and then I had them improvise a rhythm.  The first time I had them improvise while audiating the song one time and then extended it to two times.  I extended it by transferring the activity to the instruments.  When the students are improvising on the Orff instruments I ask them to try and get a secret song--this prevents them from playing like kindergarteners with their hair on fire.

There's an activity in GAMEPLAN, grade three that is also wonderful for shorter improvisation.  The students learn the song Old Joe Clark

I only use the first verse and on the B section (m.9) I play the piano while they clap for 4 beats, pat for 4 beats, clap 4 and pat 4.  There are two instruments set up in the middle of the circle.  I use conga drums and a washboard, but anything will do.  One person improvises on the clapping and one on the patting.  I do have to model some ideas otherwise many of them will just play 4 steady beats.

Question and answer improvisation activities:

I start many classes by having students echo rhythm patterns and will eventually segue into Q and A by asking them to substitute beat one of the pattern with something else, then beat three and continue until they have a different four beat pattern than the one they are echoing. After this is secure I will have the group do an answer to my rhythms for 4 beats and then extend that until they can comfortably do 16 beats.  

 

Acka Backa Soda Cracker

The first part goes like this:
My mother, your mother

Visit every day

But every night they have a fight

and this is what they say:
Acka Backa Soda Cracker

Acka Back Boo

Acka Back Soda Cracker

Out goes you

In partners, students do a simple hand clapping pattern (clap r, clap own, clap left, clap own)  and on the Acka Back one student will walk away from his partner waving a finger in the air as if yelling at someone.  On the word "you" the partner returns and then the second partner has a chance.  

The following week I have the students line up in two rows.  On the acka backa section a student from one side will improvise a rhythm using rhythm syllables and the student from the other side responds. Before this activity starts I do about 7 minutes of reading and/or playing rhythms as a preparation.  I extend the activity to hand drums and then melody instruments the third week.