Improvisation is the process of devising a solution to
a requirement by making-do, despite absence of resources that might be expected
to produce a solution. In a technical context, this can mean adapting a device
for some use other than that which it was designed for, or building a device
from unusual components in an ad-hoc fashion. Improvisation in the context of
performing arts is spontaneous performance without specific preparation. The
skills of improvisation can apply to many different faculties, across all
artistic, scientific, physical, cognitive, academic, and non-academic
disciplines.
Musical improvisation is usually defined as the composition of music while simultaneously singing or playing an instrument. Improvisational comedy is a theatre art performed throughout the world and has had on-again, off-again status throughout history. Dance improvisation as a choreographic tool. Improvisation was originally rarely used on dramatic television. A major exception was the situation comedy Mork & Mindy where star Robin Williams, famed for this kind of performing, was allotted specific sections in each episode where he was allowed to perform freely.
Improvisation also exists outside the arts. Improvisation in engineering is to solve a problem with the tools and materials immediately at hand. Improvised weapons are often used by guerrillas, insurgents and criminals.
Improvisation in engineering is to solve a problem with the tools and materials immediately at hand. Examples of such improvisation was the re-engineering of carbon dioxide scrubbers with the materials on hand during the Apollo 13 space mission, or the use of a knife in place of a screwdriver to turn a screw.
Engineering improvisations may be needed because of emergencies, embargo, obsolescence of a product and the loss of manufacturer support, or just a lack of funding appropriate for a better solution. Users of motor vehicles in parts ofAfrica
develop improvised solutions where it is not feasible to obtain
manufacturer-approved spare parts.
The popular television program MacGyver used as its gimmick a hero who could solve almost any problem with jury rigged devices from everyday materials, a Swiss Army knife and some duct tape.
The skills of improvisation can apply to many different abilities or forms of communication and expression across all artistic, scientific, physical, cognitive, academic, and non-academic disciplines. For example, improvisation can make a significant contribution in music, dance, cooking, presenting a speech, sales, personal or romantic relationships, sports, flower arranging, martial arts, psychotherapy, and much more.
Techniques of improvisation are widely used in training for performing arts or entertainment; for example, music, theatre and dance. To "extemporize" or "ad lib" is basically the same as improvising. Colloquial terms such as "let's play it by the ear", "take it as it comes", and "make it up as we go along" are all used to describe "improvisation".
The simple act of speaking requires a good deal of improvisation because the mind is addressing its own thought and creating its unrehearsed delivery in words, sounds and gestures, forming unpredictable statements that feed back into the thought process (the performer as listener), creating an enriched process that is not unlike instantaneous composition [with a given set or repertoire of elements].
Where the improvisation is intended to solve a problem on a temporary basis, the "proper" solution being unavailable at the time, it may be known as a "stop-gap". This applies to the field of engineering. Another improvisational, group problem-solving technique being used in organizations of all kinds is brainstorming, in which any and all ideas that a group member may have are permitted and encouraged to be expressed, regardless of actual practicality. As in all improvisation, the process of brainstorming opens up the minds of the people involved to new, unexpected and possibly useful ideas. The colloquial term for this is "thinking outside the box."
Improvisation is usually defined as the composition of music while simultaneously singing or playing an instrument. In other words, the art of improvisation can be understood as composing music "on the fly". Improvisation can take place as a solo performance, or interdependently in ensemble with other players. When done well, it often elicits gratifying emotional responses from the audience. One notable improvisational pianist is Franz Liszt. The origins of Liszt's improvisation in an earlier tradition of playing variations on a theme were mastered and epitomized by Johann Sebastian Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Ludwig van Beethoven.
Notable improvisational musicians from the modern era include: Keith Jarrett, an improvisational jazz pianist and multi-instrumentalist who has performed many completely improvised concerts all over the world; W. A. Mathieu aka William Allaudin Mathieu, was the musical director for the Second City in Chicago, the first on-going improvisational theatre troupe in the United States, and later was musical director for another improv theatre, the Committee (improv group), an offshoot of the Second City in San Francisco. Derek Bailey, an improvisational guitarist, Stephen Nachmanovitch, an improvisational violinist, and Eugene Friesen, an improvisational cellist.
Improvised freestyle rap is commonly practiced as a part of rappers' creative processes, as a "finished product" for release on recordings (when the improvisation is judged good enough), as a spiritual event, as a means of verbal combat in battle rap, and, simply, for fun. It often incorporates insults similar to those in the African-American game The Dozens, and complex rhythmic and sometimes melodic forms comparable to those heard in jazz improvisation.
In the realm of silent film music, there are also a small number of musicians whose work has been recognized as exceptional by critics, scholars and audiences alike; these include Neil Brand and John Sweeney, among others who are all performers at "Le Giornate del Cinema Muto", the annual conference on silent film inPordenone , Italy
Improvisational comedy is a theatre art performed throughout the world and has had on-again, off-again status throughout history.
Some of the more famous improv theatres and training centers in the world include: i.O. (formerly ImprovOlympic) in Chicago and Los Angeles, The Second City in Chicago and Toronto, The Players Workshop in Chicago, National Comedy Theatre in San Diego, New York and Phoenix, Upright Citizens Brigade, the Peoples Improv Theater, the Groundlings, BATS Improv (Bay Area Theatre Sports) in San Francisco, Wing-It Productions in Seattle, Philly Improv Theater in Philadelphia, Brave New Workshop in Minneapolis, ComedySportz in Milwaukee, and Theatresports in Calgary, Canada.
There are also many well known university improv teams, including Theatre Strike Force at theUniversity of Florida ,
Gigglepants at the University of Texas at Austin , and Erasable
Inc. at the University
of Maryland Second City
was the Compass Players, an offshoot of theatre programs at the University of Chicago
Notable pioneers in the field of improvisation, comedic or otherwise, include Mike Myers, Neil Mullarkey, Paul Merton, Stephen Fry, John Sessions, Josie Lawrence, Viola Spolin, Paul Sills, David Shepherd, Del Close, Josephine Forsberg, Gary Austin, Martin de Maat, and Keith Johnstone. Notable performers include: Paul Merton, Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Robert Townsend, Colin Mochrie, Ryan Stiles, Ross Noble, Eddie Izzard, Tony Slattery, Mike McShane, Sandi Toksvig, Wayne Brady, Jonathan Winters, T. J. Jagodowski, Robin Williams, and David Pasquesi.
Musical improvisation is usually defined as the composition of music while simultaneously singing or playing an instrument. Improvisational comedy is a theatre art performed throughout the world and has had on-again, off-again status throughout history. Dance improvisation as a choreographic tool. Improvisation was originally rarely used on dramatic television. A major exception was the situation comedy Mork & Mindy where star Robin Williams, famed for this kind of performing, was allotted specific sections in each episode where he was allowed to perform freely.
Improvisation also exists outside the arts. Improvisation in engineering is to solve a problem with the tools and materials immediately at hand. Improvised weapons are often used by guerrillas, insurgents and criminals.
Engineering
Improvisation in engineering is to solve a problem with the tools and materials immediately at hand. Examples of such improvisation was the re-engineering of carbon dioxide scrubbers with the materials on hand during the Apollo 13 space mission, or the use of a knife in place of a screwdriver to turn a screw.
Engineering improvisations may be needed because of emergencies, embargo, obsolescence of a product and the loss of manufacturer support, or just a lack of funding appropriate for a better solution. Users of motor vehicles in parts of
The popular television program MacGyver used as its gimmick a hero who could solve almost any problem with jury rigged devices from everyday materials, a Swiss Army knife and some duct tape.
Performing Arts
Improvisation can
be thought of as an "on the spot" or "off the cuff"
spontaneous moment of sudden inventiveness that can just come to mind, body and
spirit as an inspiration. No preparation or training is needed. However,
improvisation in any life or art form, can occur more often if it is practiced
as a way of encouraging creative behavior. That practice includes learning to
use one's intuition, as well as learning a technical understanding of the
necessary skills and concerns within the domain in which one is improvising.
This can be when an individual or group is acting, dancing, singing, playing musical
instruments, talking, creating artworks, problem solving, or reacting in the
moment and in response to the stimulus of one's immediate environment and inner
feelings. This can result in the invention of new thought patterns, new
practices, new structures or symbols, and/or new ways to act.
Skills and Techniques
The skills of improvisation can apply to many different abilities or forms of communication and expression across all artistic, scientific, physical, cognitive, academic, and non-academic disciplines. For example, improvisation can make a significant contribution in music, dance, cooking, presenting a speech, sales, personal or romantic relationships, sports, flower arranging, martial arts, psychotherapy, and much more.
Techniques of improvisation are widely used in training for performing arts or entertainment; for example, music, theatre and dance. To "extemporize" or "ad lib" is basically the same as improvising. Colloquial terms such as "let's play it by the ear", "take it as it comes", and "make it up as we go along" are all used to describe "improvisation".
The simple act of speaking requires a good deal of improvisation because the mind is addressing its own thought and creating its unrehearsed delivery in words, sounds and gestures, forming unpredictable statements that feed back into the thought process (the performer as listener), creating an enriched process that is not unlike instantaneous composition [with a given set or repertoire of elements].
Where the improvisation is intended to solve a problem on a temporary basis, the "proper" solution being unavailable at the time, it may be known as a "stop-gap". This applies to the field of engineering. Another improvisational, group problem-solving technique being used in organizations of all kinds is brainstorming, in which any and all ideas that a group member may have are permitted and encouraged to be expressed, regardless of actual practicality. As in all improvisation, the process of brainstorming opens up the minds of the people involved to new, unexpected and possibly useful ideas. The colloquial term for this is "thinking outside the box."
Music
Improvisation is usually defined as the composition of music while simultaneously singing or playing an instrument. In other words, the art of improvisation can be understood as composing music "on the fly". Improvisation can take place as a solo performance, or interdependently in ensemble with other players. When done well, it often elicits gratifying emotional responses from the audience. One notable improvisational pianist is Franz Liszt. The origins of Liszt's improvisation in an earlier tradition of playing variations on a theme were mastered and epitomized by Johann Sebastian Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Ludwig van Beethoven.
Notable improvisational musicians from the modern era include: Keith Jarrett, an improvisational jazz pianist and multi-instrumentalist who has performed many completely improvised concerts all over the world; W. A. Mathieu aka William Allaudin Mathieu, was the musical director for the Second City in Chicago, the first on-going improvisational theatre troupe in the United States, and later was musical director for another improv theatre, the Committee (improv group), an offshoot of the Second City in San Francisco. Derek Bailey, an improvisational guitarist, Stephen Nachmanovitch, an improvisational violinist, and Eugene Friesen, an improvisational cellist.
Improvised freestyle rap is commonly practiced as a part of rappers' creative processes, as a "finished product" for release on recordings (when the improvisation is judged good enough), as a spiritual event, as a means of verbal combat in battle rap, and, simply, for fun. It often incorporates insults similar to those in the African-American game The Dozens, and complex rhythmic and sometimes melodic forms comparable to those heard in jazz improvisation.
In the realm of silent film music, there are also a small number of musicians whose work has been recognized as exceptional by critics, scholars and audiences alike; these include Neil Brand and John Sweeney, among others who are all performers at "Le Giornate del Cinema Muto", the annual conference on silent film in
Comedy
Improvisational comedy is a theatre art performed throughout the world and has had on-again, off-again status throughout history.
Some of the more famous improv theatres and training centers in the world include: i.O. (formerly ImprovOlympic) in Chicago and Los Angeles, The Second City in Chicago and Toronto, The Players Workshop in Chicago, National Comedy Theatre in San Diego, New York and Phoenix, Upright Citizens Brigade, the Peoples Improv Theater, the Groundlings, BATS Improv (Bay Area Theatre Sports) in San Francisco, Wing-It Productions in Seattle, Philly Improv Theater in Philadelphia, Brave New Workshop in Minneapolis, ComedySportz in Milwaukee, and Theatresports in Calgary, Canada.
There are also many well known university improv teams, including Theatre Strike Force at the
Notable pioneers in the field of improvisation, comedic or otherwise, include Mike Myers, Neil Mullarkey, Paul Merton, Stephen Fry, John Sessions, Josie Lawrence, Viola Spolin, Paul Sills, David Shepherd, Del Close, Josephine Forsberg, Gary Austin, Martin de Maat, and Keith Johnstone. Notable performers include: Paul Merton, Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Robert Townsend, Colin Mochrie, Ryan Stiles, Ross Noble, Eddie Izzard, Tony Slattery, Mike McShane, Sandi Toksvig, Wayne Brady, Jonathan Winters, T. J. Jagodowski, Robin Williams, and David Pasquesi.
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