Building improvisation curriculum for middle and high school ensembles
Improvisation is often the elephant in the room for many middle and high school Jazz programs. While this element is essential for authentically performing Jazz and its associated styles, teaching this aspect of musicianship can feel like a daunting task. Do I teach my students scales? Are arpeggios better? Do we learn licks? How do we get past the blues scale? These are all common challenges faced by both novice and more experienced Jazz educators.
In this session led by Omaha Performing Arts teaching artist Shawn Bell, attendees will unpack some of these questions with a focus on selecting what concepts to teach given the ability level of their students and the material which they are performing. Directors are strongly encouraged to bring their instruments and a score they would like to workshop approaches for during the session.
In addition, participants will receive FREE digital access to a full class curriculum for teaching the 12 bar blues song form, including handouts, play along recordings, and example solos for beginning and intermediate improvisers in the keys of Bb and F.
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