I hate improvised music

[citizenchris099]

The modal works of Miles Davis certainly had a structure in the frame work of the overall arrangement though the solos were allowed a great deal of freedom. Coltrane's later period free jazz work by comparison was much more free form. My point being..both are considered "improvisational" though each has a different approach.
Those trying to pigeon hole this or that as being what improv truly is are a bit myopic in their view if you ask me.

[starving student]

SS - we usually disagree on what's a good video and you don't label yours so I gave up watching them. for example, I did watch the other one you posted with the guy wanking out on guitar, fucking awful, unlistenable crap. YMMV but I kept my opinion to myself on that one. I'm done with clicking on youtubes and wasting my time with crap or stuff I've seen before.


quality recordings, glad someone caught these. very cool play between the natural sounds and the bleepity bloopy stuff. oh man, that main riff in 'Alabama' is FUNKY! the atmosphere is very Tom Waits, creepy vaudevillian dirges.

well to be fair that one wasn't about the music but about how engaging steve is although I have nothing against his music either, i appreciate those artist who have an infectious quality about them and aren't afraid to open up and feel what they're doing.

as far as chap goes he's got those provocative melodies, always makes me want to flow or move and very importantly I'm not talking about dance music makin you want to move type but just provoking melodies that make you feel like moving, you know you don't want to be still

[3dot...]

to each his own I say... but I would never go as far as saying 'I don't like improv' across all geners...
there is a fine line where improvisation loses it's connection to the 'higher' context...
this is one of the marks of a great player/musician ... knowing when and how to end your babble...
without giving your crowd a headache...
and then it becomes annoying... I do agree...

also... I'm glad the era where there's a 'solo' part in EVERY damn song is over...
I have had enough electric guitar solos to last me 7 lifetimes...
I also HATE improvises that seem to show only mastery of an instrument/technique (ungodly masturabtion)...
a dude running back and forth on some scale at ludicrous speed...
for more info see 98% of guitar players worldwide...

it's a a hard job getting to be a good(not boring) improviser...
understanding structure...and your place in the piece....very important
I LOVE IMPROV !!!! it just has to have some soul in it...
if you don't like it ... then there must be something you're missing... or not understanding..

now take it away...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrPQKH9n ... re=related

[3dot...]

one of the beautiful things about jazz ... is when one is playing the rest of the band are listening... and reacting accordingly...
there's a structure ... but it's loose...

[Hermanus]

impro can lead to interesting moods... then I can rework the good parts.

I agree about pure impro, public sessions, it's often funnier for the players than for the audience

[Machinesworking]

avoid Berlin minimal techno !!!!!

WHAT? you are so not a cool scene guy. pffffft.

OK Minimal Techno sucks, but I like Minimal if it's done right, IE either fun, or just nicely arranged.

Or freaky as fuck!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVgjC5Gw ... re=related

Oliver Chesler is his own special case though.

[slow riot]

life itself is improvised.


but yes. I too have seen some boring performances that had more talking about the fact that it was improvised than enjoyable musical content. but hey, maybe they just had a bad night.

[hurlingdervish]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVgjC5Gw ... re=related

was not expecting this

[jbone1313]

Start your linear sequencer and bring something to perfection. Music isn't interesting just because you do something live.

What a great post. Its stuff like this that makes this forum so great.

(I haven't read the rest of the thread yet, but I will.)

[starving student]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVgjC5Gw ... re=related

was not expecting this

damn now I gotta turn on some more lights in my apt

[LoopStationZebra]

The most exciting and rewarding shows I've seen are where the musicians get on stage with no game plan whatsoever. It can go magically right, or horribly wrong; often both within the same performance.

There's solo improve and ensemble improve. Two very different animals, of course. Ensemble is only going to work if the musicians have 2 qualities:

1. Sensitivity and respect for the piece and other musicians
2. A high degree of humility

Whether your are a trained musician or not doesn't really matter. Grandstanding is what ruins most ensemble improve performances.

For solo improve, more often than not anything goes. With many ensemble shows you usually get a more 'formal' song structure that the musicians are working within. Solo improve performances are where you are more likely find more abstract musical experiences. Certainly not always, but usually.

The challenge of any improve performance are the preconceived notions that the audience brings with them. What are you there to see? What baggage as a listener are you bringing to the experience? Are you wanting something very familiar and tight and composed? Are you looking for something with a 4/4 time signature? Are you wanting a performance in which the sounds created are treated as art?

In terms of ensemble improve work within a formal song structure, The Bays are where it's at. They have exciting fucking shows in which nothing is rehearsed. It's performance at it's finest.

http://www.thebays.com/

All of you who don't understand improve music - and there are quite a few of you - should watch this clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=posuULAK ... re=related

More bays live
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avlerYbS ... re=related

Johnny Vegas HATES The Bays, lol "They are universally hated and they're fuckin shite." lol.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRvSCW4S ... re=related

the bays is a pretty bad example, watch the second clip you posted where there explaining what they do and then start playing, first of all i don't know how many times one must say it but that's not what dude is talkin about, the bays are a jam band, they find grooves and stick to them and then move to the next groove and even their own definition of improvising is incorrect, look at how one of them says they are "like a dj cause a dj just has a crate of records and he doesn't know what he's going to play" wtf if you call that improvising then apparently we are REALLY talking about many different things in this thread.

Making it up on the fly is improvisation. Period. It's exactly what The Bays do.

[LoopStationZebra]

And, someone reffered to Fennesz, I've seen him on stage, and I was very disapointed (I'm a fan though). He his probably really improvising, but who cares since he has got no live approach. By this I mean any "spectacular", or "risky" way of performing.
Just an example, and a personnal one, I admit.

Gotta disagree with you there. I've seen him live a few times and loved it. Building a wall of pure sound while slowly adding structure. Definitely in the more 'abstract' catagory, lol.

[Machinesworking]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVgjC5Gw ... re=related

was not expecting this

damn now I gotta turn on some more lights in my apt

Hey he uses Live! It's all good right?
I guess creepy would have been a better adjective for that song.

[starving student]

The most exciting and rewarding shows I've seen are where the musicians get on stage with no game plan whatsoever. It can go magically right, or horribly wrong; often both within the same performance.

There's solo improve and ensemble improve. Two very different animals, of course. Ensemble is only going to work if the musicians have 2 qualities:

1. Sensitivity and respect for the piece and other musicians
2. A high degree of humility

Whether your are a trained musician or not doesn't really matter. Grandstanding is what ruins most ensemble improve performances.

For solo improve, more often than not anything goes. With many ensemble shows you usually get a more 'formal' song structure that the musicians are working within. Solo improve performances are where you are more likely find more abstract musical experiences. Certainly not always, but usually.

The challenge of any improve performance are the preconceived notions that the audience brings with them. What are you there to see? What baggage as a listener are you bringing to the experience? Are you wanting something very familiar and tight and composed? Are you looking for something with a 4/4 time signature? Are you wanting a performance in which the sounds created are treated as art?

In terms of ensemble improve work within a formal song structure, The Bays are where it's at. They have exciting fucking shows in which nothing is rehearsed. It's performance at it's finest.

http://www.thebays.com/

All of you who don't understand improve music - and there are quite a few of you - should watch this clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=posuULAK ... re=related

More bays live
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avlerYbS ... re=related

Johnny Vegas HATES The Bays, lol "They are universally hated and they're fuckin shite." lol.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRvSCW4S ... re=related

the bays is a pretty bad example, watch the second clip you posted where there explaining what they do and then start playing, first of all i don't know how many times one must say it but that's not what dude is talkin about, the bays are a jam band, they find grooves and stick to them and then move to the next groove and even their own definition of improvising is incorrect, look at how one of them says they are "like a dj cause a dj just has a crate of records and he doesn't know what he's going to play" wtf if you call that improvising then apparently we are REALLY talking about many different things in this thread.

Making it up on the fly is improvisation. Period. It's exactly what The Bays do.

but it's not what the op is talking about, is that about 8/10 times it's been said now, and not only by me

[leisuremuffin]

maybe the op should learn to articulate himself better. If you post a thread with the title "i hate improvised music," with 5 sentences of content, this is what you get.


what kind of music is the OP talking about? What kind of music you talking about? how much do i actually care?





.lm.