How do YOU improvise?

[eupher61]

Really anything, I suppose.

OK, then, here's a couple of thoughts from me. Well worth what you pay for them.

I'm talking tuba, in the older style that I prefer, vs whatever in the newer style.

Early jazz forms are vertically oriented--MELODY is the thing. Improvised solos need to be melodic, linear, while heeding the changes. More contemporary (read: bop and beyond, even to some extent the hard swing from pre-WW II) jazz forms are horizontal, the harmony is more important than the melodic characteristics. Play the changes, don't worry so much about making a pretty tune. Or any tune.

Improvising bass lines: Again, somewhat different, but more similar than solo. Earlier jazz--learn the changes AND the tunes. Especially with "dixie" styles, think Sousa, and let the formality relax a bit. I-V gets really boring to play and to listen to, so learning the melody will help you fill in with other chord or non-chord elements.

For newer styles, take a look at this tutorial by Rob Reck He plays euphonium and bass, and it's a great introduction.

[Donn]

I-V gets really boring to play and to listen to, so learning the melody will help you fill in with other chord or non-chord elements.

The bass line can be another way of looking at the structure - related to the chords, but with a linear movement that isn't expressed in the chord notation. From the bass line (or trombone), you can sometimes hear the next chord coming, for example. Given a sequence of chords, they might carry a very different impression if played with an ascending vs. descending line. Etc. Maybe the bass is really the core of a tune's structure, and the chords are just there to flesh it out.

[TubaCoopa]

"To improvise properly, clench the fist and bang it up and down on the valves, or just wiggle the first valve, preferably in time with the music."

--from 'Marching Band Improvisation (I did it, and you can too!)'

[PWtuba]

How do YOU improvise?

Not at all.

[SplatterTone]

I learned to improvise from the best -- Red Green.
Lots of duct tape.

[tubatooter1940]

I usually play a duo with rhythm guitar or with a trio with a harmonica. The harmonica isn't that much help if the tune has more than four or so chord changes.
The guitarist makes a recording when he is gigging alone for me. I can then play along with him lots-o-times at home without taxing his fingers or his voice.
I may not play a solo the same way everytime - I do have a tad of spontenaety - but I need to be sure of where I am and where I'm going on a solo so others can know when to come back in. I get to try any lick I can come up with along with the recording to see what works best.
It's great to have the freedom to compose bass lines and solos but I never forget to ask for suggested changes form other group members. Their input adds much to my final version.
The problem is that John records himself on a quiet weekday evening with a small crowd in the joint. Often the first time we play a new tune together, is on a weekend night when the bar is packed. Tempos are up, the energy level is mucho higher, and I need to be ready for things to happen more quickly and with lots more intensity.

[eupher61]

Completely free improvisation, say a tuba player sittin' on the stage by her/his self, playing what comes to mind, is MUCH more difficult than playing to changes.

If the intention is to be totally free, avoiding a structure is important. That means playing random sounds, lines, whatever comes to mind. But, is that interesting? I dunno, it depends on the listener and the performer.

I've done an improvised bit where I use 2 or 3 different tunes thrown together as the basis of the improvisation, but I don't play those tunes. F'rinstance, 8 bars of "Bill Bailey", 8 bars of "Do You Know What It Means" (the bridge works well as a change of pace to another tune) and 8 bars of "Baby Face". Or anything else.
Changing the tunes frequently within the improvisation adds to the perception of pure improvisation.

It's tough to do, though, and I haven't done it in lotsa years. There's little reason to do it except to show off. Range, technique, lyricism, you have to have control of the horn to make a free improv work.

[tclements]

I look at the trombone player and say, "TAKE IT!!"

[windshieldbug]

You know what they say when drums stop...



"Bass solo!"

[rocksanddirt]

bass solo....heh.

I'm of the less is more improvisational school. stick to the melody, unless really feel'n something extra. especially when there are vocals. I enjoy hearing the phrasing that instrumentalists put into what starts as a vocal melody.

just my 0.02.