In this theses Oskar Nöbbelin explores new ways of finding inspiration for writing modern jazz using recordings of vocal improvisations made by non-musicians and finding ways to incorporate their outsider perspective into his own music. The text follows the process and difficulties collecting these recordings. Initially failing at street interviews and later finding success with friends and acquaintances, and even recordings of himself as a child. It then moves on to the compositional work of processing the recordings into a finished product using an array of compositional tools, some of which acquired through an interview with saxophonist and composer Nils Berg, going through each song one by one. Lastly, he reflects on how working with the non-musicians’ improvisations and the compositional tools affected the music that was written and concludes that inspiration might not be as important as he first thought going into the project. / <p><strong>Musik:</strong></p><p>”Riffraff”</p><p>”En Vals”</p><p>”P.S puss”</p><p>”Fler än jag”</p><p>”Godnattvisa till mina vänner”</p><p>”Allt kommer bli bra” </p><p>All musik är skriven och arrangerad av Oskar Nöbbelin</p><p></p><p><strong>Medverkande musiker:</strong></p><p>Oskar Nöbbelin - Klaviatur</p><p>Sabina Levin - Sång</p><p>Hannes Arason - Trumpet och flygelhorn</p><p>Johannes Bäckström - Kontrabas</p><p>Ture Lewin - Trummor</p>

This project focused on exploring the different ways contrasts can be created in music, both in composition and improvisation. Two elements were explored specifically: transitions and “structural units”, a compositional method by Cecil Taylor where short musical fragments, or units, are used as a basis for improvisation. Three compositions were written, rehearsed, and performed with a quartet on a degree concert program at KMH. Different contrasting elements were used in the compositions, as well as different types of transitions, and structural units were used in two ways. The project was an important milestone in the author’s artistic development, and he succeeded in his goal of using contrasts to make music that was exciting to him. / <p>Setlist:</p><p>Units 2 - composed by Hannes Arason</p><p>Vesturheiði - composed by Hannes Arason</p><p>Musica Ricercata VII / Bls. 127 - composed by Hannes Arason</p><p></p><p>Musicians: </p><p>Hannes Arason - trumpet, flügelhorn, piccolo trumpet</p><p>Oskar Nöbbelin - piano</p><p>Amanda Karström - upright bass</p><p>Filip Öhman - drums</p><p></p><p>Audio mixed and mastered by Jóhann Vignir Vilbergsson</p><p>Video recording by Hannes Arason</p><p></p><p>Other:</p><p>Units 1 - composed by Hannes Arason, performed by Hannes Arason and Fredrik Ljungkvist, recorded 07.12.23 by Fredrik Ljungkvist at KMH</p>

This study has explored the role of presence and the power of intuition in musical improvisation, drawing inspiration from Eckhart Tolle's concept of the present moment, Kenny Werner's book "Effortless Mastery," and jazz guitarist Peter Bernstein’s way of improvising. This has been presented with a combination of musical exercises that include awareness of internal thought processes. The exercises aim to cultivate a more intuitive improvisational style among musicians.   This study investigated the impact of analyzing musical phrases, engaging in active listening, and ear training, alongside cultivating presence in the moment, on enhancing musical experiences. The findings underscored the critical role of present-moment awareness in nurturing spontaneity, creativity, and emotional engagement in musical interactions for both performers and audiences. It sought to deepen our understanding of how mindful presence enriches musical expression and interaction.   Through analyzing intuition, thoughts, and awareness of ego, the study illuminated the transformative potential of present-moment awareness in fostering a deeper connection between musician and instrument, thereby elevating the authenticity and quality of musical output.

Immigration has continuously been an evident part of the human history. Throughout time, for one reason or another people have left the place they call home. Whether voluntarily seeking better opportunities in other cities/countries/continents, or forcefully being asked to leave due to political, social, or natural issues, resettlement continues to be a difficult challenge for those who are displaced. The issue, human displacement, whether caused by natural disasters or political/social issues, is rather serious, especially in our world today. Whether the wildfires of California, the hurricanes of Louisiana, or political issues of Syria, there is a massive population who choose to or have to leave the place they call him. Despite many psychological and physical challenges, trauma, and difficulties that these individuals have to face, where they go next does not have to be a tough adjustment. Restorative environments, namely landscapes, allow for recovery of these individuals through its components of mystery, coherence, complexity, and texture. In the case of immigrants and refugees, the time of adjustment and adaptation heightens the absence of sense of belonging and potential social injustice; however, design and very particularly throughout this thesis, landscape architecture can help. Improvisation has one rule, "yes, and...". The notion of acceptance and addition allows for the involved individuals to not only be creative regarding their surroundings, but encourages them to become a part of evolving of the space. This, increases the sense of belonging, and therefore, makes for a more positive experience in a given space. This becomes specifically important for a displaced/detached group of individuals. / Master of Landscape Architecture

Denna studie undersöker möjligheten av att överföra retoriska verktyg från tal till musikalisk improvisation, och huruvida de retoriska verktygen bibehåller sin funktion inom musiken såväl som talet. De analyser som jag gjort ger en tydligare bild av hur jag som improvisatör kan överföra detta verktyg och hur jag kan uppnå nya sätt att uttrycka mig vid mitt instrument. Under undersökningens gång har jag fått flera nya insikter om hur strukturer inom retorik kan hjälpa mig att påverka lyssnaren samt hur en kan vidga sitt spel genom att tänka utanför musikaliska ramar.

The purpose of this case study was to explore learner experiences of collective free musical improvisation. Specifically, the research examined how participants perceived that they developed and expressed musical voice when they improvised with others. To that end, the researcher tried out a Bakhtinian approach to the pedagogy of collective free improvisation in four workshops with six secondary school chamber musicians—musicians trained in Western classical music who had little or no previous collective free improvisation experience. Workshops were designed to support participants in learning by improvising with the researcher becoming one of the improvisers. Bakhtinian dialogism provided a lens through which to focus the investigation, and tools, tones, and concepts to inspire participants as they improvised together for the first time. In addition to the perception of expressing musical voice, the study explored how participants perceived that they invented utterances as they created music with others. Further, the research considered participant descriptions of the experience of addressivity—turning and responding to communicate—during collective free improvisation. Data were collected in the following ways: pre-workshop interviews, video and audio recording of the four improvisation workshops, journals and discussions during the workshops, post-workshop interviews, and researcher notes and reflections. In addition to spoken and written words, improvisations played during the workshops were analyzed as discourse using a method—Musical Utterance Analysis—developed by the researcher for this study. Data were initially coded using concepts from Bakhtin (1981, 1986): voice, utterance, addressivity, heteroglossia, polyphony, and carnival. Analysis was completed by reviewing and reassembling the words and actions of participants during the workshops and interviews to create a novella with dialogue. This final phase of analysis revealed a holistic perspective of musical dialogue in collective free improvisation that emphasizes the importance and impact of listening. In this study, musical dialogue is explained as synergies of listening. Participants perceptions and experiences of voice, utterance, and addressivity are explained as synergies: creative empowerment, knowing and being known, emergence of a collective voice, catharsis, and freedom. Notably, participants reported that by listening and responding to one other improviser, they could connect better with the group of improvisers. Overall, for the participants of the study, the implementation of and the experimentation with a Bakhtinian approach to the pedagogy of collective free improvisation was effective. / 2026-05-15T00:00:00Z

This study explores the evolution of jazz string education, integrating both theoretical and practical perspectives to underscore the crucial role of improvisation-focused curricula in enhancing music education quality. Through a comprehensive review of improvisation education, traditional jazz teaching methods, and jazz string programs in public universities, the study provides a nuanced understanding of these components' intersection. Special attention is given to the challenges faced by classical string students transitioning to jazz improvisation and the need for a shift away from generic teaching methodologies. The paper proposes the introduction of specialized improvisation classes for string students to bridge this gap. Practical case studies, including exploration of the University of North Texas's Jazz String program and insights from teaching fellow experiences, foster a deeper comprehension of the impact of such programs on students from diverse backgrounds. The research also delves into cognitive aspects of music, highlighting the significance of material selection, bowing techniques, automation, and structure planning in fostering musical creativity and communication skills. This study serves as a guide for educators, research bodies, and academic institutions striving to enrich music curricula, bridging the gap between classical tradition and jazz improvisation, and addressing the unique needs of string students transitioning between these styles.

In the opening years of the 20th century, a furor of new and experimental techniques swept the architectural field. The materials and methods of building altered so rapidly that standards of architectural representation and the acts of construction they choreographed appeared for a time to exist without history or precedent. In chaotic times chaos seems all consuming; yet standards are soon established and modes of practice formalized. So it was with the advent of architectural modernity. The beginning of the century was a time of great experimentation and innovation, not only in architectural materials but in the tools and representations of architects, and the methods of building they described. In this exploration of the relationship between material innovation and architectural representation, we examine the case of the Pennsylvania artisan-scholar Henry Chapman Mercer (1856-1930), and his development of a unique method for construction in reinforced concrete and ceramic tiles of his own design. In the years between 1907 and 1916, Mercer built three buildings of increasing complexity and scale, using methods of fabrication he developed over the course of these constructions. His approach was experimental, innovative, and yet quite different from the prevailing currents in engineering and industry at that time. While Mercer has been studied as a decorator of tiles, as an archaeologist, and as a curator of one the first and finest collections of early American material culture, very little work has been completed on Mercer as architect-builder. In Mercer's building projects we see a scientific mind and an artistic maker explore and experiment freely, building a bridge between his seemingly disparate worlds: from the Arts and Crafts-inspired Moravian Pottery he founded, to the archaeologically rigorous collection of pre-industrial tools. Mercer focused with great intensity on implements and evidences of traditional craft activities, and it is his particular sensitivity to the traditions and forms of craft activity that renders his architectural activity unique, and pertinent to the question of innovation in method. At the center of his architectural activities, Mercer's construction notebooks, in which he worked out plans, details, and many of his most unique procedural innovations, illustrate a novel comportment of architect to architectural representation, and offer a story of how the making of architecture is, itself, made. / PHD / In the opening years of the 20th century, a furor of new and experimental techniques swept the architectural field. The materials and methods of building altered so rapidly that standards of architectural representation and the acts of construction they choreographed appeared for a time to exist without history or precedent. In chaotic times chaos seems all consuming; yet standards are soon established and modes of practice formalized. So it was with the advent of architectural modernity. The beginning of the century was a time of great experimentation and innovation, not only in architectural materials but in the tools and representations of architects, and the methods of building they described. In this exploration of the relationship between drawing and building, we examine the case of the Pennsylvania artisan-scholar Henry Chapman Mercer (1856-1930), and his development of a unique method for construction in reinforced concrete and ceramic tile of his own design. Mercer has been studied as a decorator of tiles, as an archaeologist, and as a curator of one the first and finest collections of early American tools. Yet very little work has been completed on Mercer as architect-builder. In Mercer’s building projects we see a scientific mind and an artistic maker explore and experiment freely, building a bridge between his seemingly disparate loves: from the Arts and Crafts-inspired Moravian Pottery he founded, to the archaeologically rigorous collection of pre-industrial tools. Mercer focused with great intensity on implements and evidences of traditional craft activities, and it is his particular sensitivity to the traditions and forms of making that renders his architectural activity unique, and pertinent to the question of innovation in method. At the center of his architectural activities, Mercer’s construction notebooks, in which he drew plans and worked out many of his most unique procedural innovations, illustrate a novel comportment of architect to drawing, and offer a story of how the making of architecture is, itself, made.

Syftet med studien är att tillföra kunskap till det undervisningsfält som inbegriper musikalisk improvisation genom att undersöka hur improvisationsteaterträning kan gagna en musiker som vill utvecklas inom improvisation. Studien genomfördes som en aktionsforskningsstudie med en kvalitativ ansats och det sociokulturella perspektivet som utblickspost. Aktionsprocessen bestod av en förberedande intervju med en erfaren improvisationsteaterlärare, och därefter två aktioner där musikhögskolestudenter deltagit i improvisationsteaterträning, och därefter medverkat i en fokusgruppintervju. Målet var att ta reda på vilka kvalitéer musikhögskolestudenter identifierar ur teaterimprovisation och på vilket sätt de upplever sig influeras och berikas av dessa kvalitéer. Resultaten pekar på att deltagarna upplever improvisationsteaterträning som en bra metod för att utveckla sin koppling mellan musikimprovisation och lek. Förmågan att leka poängteras som en tillgång vid improvisationsutövande. De inspirerades att öva mer tillsammans och att använda kroppen mer i sin musikaliska kommunikation. Resultaten visar också att de upplever att improvisationsteaterträningen kan hjälpa dem utveckla sitt personliga uttryck samt utveckla tillvägagångssätt att improvisera och komponera med hjälp av att fokusera på förmågan att associera och bejaka impulser och idéer. Uppsatsens diskussionsdel tar upp aspekter av ovan nämnda resultat i ljuset av tidigare forskning inom improvisation och undervisning med sociokulturell teori som filosofiskt och pedagogiskt ramverk. / The aim of this study is to add knowledge to the teaching field including musical improvisation by examining what improvisational theatre training can offer a musician who wants to develop skills in improvisation. The study was conducted with a qualitative action research approach based on a sociocultural perspective. The action process consisted of a preparatory interview with an experienced improvisational theatre teacher followed by two group actions, in which participants consisting of music college students exerted improvisational theatre training, and then participated in a focus group interview. The goal was to find out what kind of qualities these music college students identify in improvisational theatre and in what way they feel influenced and enriched by these qualities. The results indicate that participants recognize improvisational theatre training as a good method for developing their connection between musical improvisation and playfulness. Playfulness is pointed out as an asset when improvising. They were inspired to practice more together and to use the body more in their musical communication. Results also show that these students felt improvisational theatre training could help them develop their personal expression and also help them develop techniques for improvising and composing music by focusing on their ability to associate as well as affirming impulses and ideas that come to mind to a greater extent. The results are discussed in the light of previous research regarding improvisation and teaching with sociocultural theory as a philosophical and pedagogical framework.

The problem with which this study is concerned is that of developing a recommended sequential format for jazz improvisation instruction. The method of content analysis is used. Seventeen subject matter categories (instructional areas) are established upon which the data is analyzed. Coding instructions are constructed with adjustments for additional emphasis placed on the instruction areas by the respective authors. By selecting instructional areas recorded above the median per cent of emphasis, and co-ordinating these areas with the mean sequential introduction of each instructional area, a recommended format of instruction is developed.