Syftet med studien är att få reda på hur olika fiollärare arbetar med improvisation inom den klassiska musiken i grundskolan, kulturskolan och gymnasiet. Vilka faktorer som påverkar lärarens syn på improvisation och användningen av det i undervisningen redovisas i studien. Intervjuer av sju fiollärare som är verksamma som fiolpedagoger och musiker redovisas i studien och har analyserats genom kulturhistoriskt perspektiv. Intervjuerna behandlades med en tematisk analys som omfattar lärarnas bakgrund, utbildning, arbetsuppgifter och improvisationens användning i undervisningen. Denna studie tar upp hur lärarnas bakgrund påverkar deras syn och användning av improvisation. Vygotskijs kulturhistoriska perspektiv följs och redovisas genom redogörelse av hans böcker och artiklar. Frågor om hur civilisationen ständigt förändrar människans psykiska egenskaper och beteende tas upp och Vygotskyjs idéer redovisas. Improvisationens användning är mycket bred och används i poesi, dans, teater och musik. Olika musikgenrer som grundas på improvisation har undersökts i studien. Under 1900-talet försvann improvisation från musikutbildningarna och tonade ner i de musikaliska framträdandena. Vilka faktorer som har påverkat försvinnandet av improvisation i den klassiska musiken är något som i denna uppsats lyfts fram. Fyra av sju fiollärare använder improvisatoriska moment i undervisningen. Det framkom inte någon koppling mellan användning av improvisation i undervisningen samt fiollärarnas bakgrund och utbildning. De fiollärare som är intresserade av improvisation som fenomen, undervisningsmetod och ämne av personliga skäl eller eget intresse för ämnet använder improvisation i sin undervisning. / The purpose of the study is to find out how violin teachers work with improvisation in classical music education. What factors affect the teacher's view of improvisation and the use of improvisation are presented in the study. Interviews of seven violin teachers who are working as violin teachers and musicians are reported in the study. The interviews have been analysed through a cultural-historical perspective and were issued as a thematic analysis that includes teachers' backgrounds, education, essential tasks as teachers and use of improvisation in teaching. This study reveals how teachers' backgrounds affect their interpretations and use of improvisation in teaching. Vygotsky's cultural-historical perspective is followed and stated by the report of his books and articles. Vygotsky's ideas about how civilization constantly affects the mental characteristics and behaviour of man are reported. Improvisation's use is very wide and used in poetry, dance, theatre and music. Different music genres based on improvisation have been investigated in the study. During the 20th century improvisation disappeared from music education and tinted down in the musical performances. The elements, which have influenced the disappearance of improvisation in classical music and theories about these facts, are highlighted in this study. Four out of seven violin teachers use improvisational moments in the classroom, but there was no connection between the use of improvisation in teaching as well as performance and the background of the teachers. The violin teachers who are interested in improvisation as phenomena and subjects for personal reasons use improvisation in their teaching.

Jazz improvisation provides a case context for examining information in music; entropy provides a means for representing music for retrieval. Entropy measures are shown to distinguish between different improvisations on the same theme, thus demonstrating their potential for representing jazz information for analysis and retrieval. The calculated entropy measures are calibrated against human representation by means of a case study of an advanced jazz improvisation course, in which synonyms for "entropy" are frequently used by the instructor. The data sets are examined for insights in music information retrieval, music information behavior, and music representation.

Under 2018–20 har jag under min masterutbildning i komposition inkluderat mina egna erfarenheter av synestesi och associerad synestesi i komponerandet och här även försökt att beskriva mina metoder för detta. Jag har försökt överföra upplevelser av text, färg, form och rörelse till musik. Detta är delvis inspirerat av pedagogen Gertrud Grunows arbete på Bauhaus för 100 år sedan men även av mina tidigare arbeten med kollage, grafiska partitur och dans. De ensembler jag skrivit för har varit mycket varierade idiomatiskt och storleksmässigt. För mig som komponist, sångare och improvisatör, men också pedagog är de synestetiska (associativa eller konkreta) metoderna en för mig oändlig källa till inspiration och ett praktiskt sätt att närma sig det kreativa arbetet. Min roll som utövande improvisationsmusiker är också en del av det, då improvisationen aktiverar så många delar av sinnet. Visuell, auditiv, kinestetisk och taktil inlärning påverkar hur vi förnimmer världen. Om du förstår individens unika perception får du större medkänsla och dessutom ett mindre prestationsladdat förhållande till ditt eget skapande. Det bild- eller textmaterial jag skapar hjälper mej att minnas mina grundidéer. Syftet med att vandra mellan olika medium, idiom och förnimmelser är att hitta ett sätt att komma kreativiteten nära – i smyg. / During the years 2018–20 I have included my own experiences of synesthesia and associated synesthesia in my composition processes, and in this essay I am describing the methods I have been using. I have tried to transform experiences of words, color, texture, form, and movement to music. This is, to some extent, inspired by the work of the pedagogue Gertrud Grunow at the Bauhaus art school in Germany 100 years ago, but also by my own earlier works with collages, graphic scores and dance. The ensembles I have been writing for have been varied idiomatically and in size. To me, as a composer, singer and improviser, but also as a pedagogue, synesthetic methods (both associative or concrete) are an endless source of inspiration and a practical way to approach the creative work. My role as a performing, improvising musician also takes a part of it since the improvisation activates so many different sections of the sensory system. Our different ways of learning, through the visual, audiative, kinesthetic and tactile, affect how we perceive the world. If you can learn to recognize different modes of individual perception, you will get a greater respect for your fellow humans, and also diminish the performance anxiety you might have in relation to the creativity. The texts and visual material I create in my processes help me to remember the original sources of inspiration. The purpose of wandering in between different media, idioms and sensations is to find practical ways to stealthily approach creativity. / <p>"From Ash to Birch" Lina Nyberg, KMH Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Simon Bång</p><p></p>

This study documents and analyzes cyclic patterns used as melodic vocabulary in John Coltrane's improvisations from compositions of 1965 to 1967. The analysis is categorized in two distinct sections. The first section analyzes melodic vocabulary that is derived from the cycle of descending major thirds progressions found in the compositions of 1959 to 1960. The second section analyzes melodic vocabulary that is derived from Nicolas Slonimsky's Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns using the theoretical terminology incorporated in the treatise. Musical examples consist of patterns from the Thesaurus and excerpts from selected improvisations of John Coltrane as transcribed by Andrew White. Important scholarly contributions relevant to the subject by Carl Woideck, Lewis Porter, David Demsey, and Walt Weiskopf are included. Every effort has been made to cite interviews with musicians and commentaries by writers contemporary to that period of time with special emphasis on the important influence of Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, and Ornette Coleman. Chapter headings include: Literature Review and Methodology; Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, and Ornette Coleman: Converging Influences; Analysis: Coltrane's Major Thirds Harmonic Cycles Used as Melodic Vocabulary; Interval Cycles in Coltrane's Melodic Vocabulary Based on Patterns from Slonimsky's Thesaurus; Summary and Conclusion.

Ämnet för studien var improvisation och improvisationsundervisning i relation till begreppet Music Performance Anxiety (MPA) samt tänkbara kopplingar däremellan. MPA beskrivs enklast som ångestkänslor i samband med musikutövande. Syftet med studien var att utforska Music Performance Anxiety utifrån en jazzmusikers perspektiv. Är det möjligt att känna prestationsångest i en kontext där det egentligen inte går att ”spela fel”? Jämförelser med konstmusiken blir därför relevant. Ett vidare syfte var att finna verktyg för att kunna uppmärksamma och hjälpa elever med MPA inom ensembleundervisning med fokus på improvisation. Vilka metoder och material använder pedagogerna? I studien valdes en kvalitativ metod, baserat på forskningsintervjuer med tre olika musiker och pedagoger inom improvisation. Det kompletterades genom att utforska befintlig litteratur inom improvisation och MPA. Studiens resultat påvisar att samtliga informanter hade stora erfarenheter och personliga upplevelser av både improvisation och MPA samt kopplingar däremellan och att MPA är ett förekommande fenomen inte bara inom konstmusik utan även bland jazzmusiker. Resultaten påvisar även att MPA framställs som något mindre vanligt bland jazzmusiker än hos klassiska musiker. Det finns inom jazzkulturen en reservation mot att visa tecken på svagheter som nervositet och prestationsångest. Förhoppningvis kan studien bidra till att lyfta ämnet MPA inom jazz och populärmusik, då det tidigare inte varit så beforskat inom dessa genrer. En vidare aspiration är att uppmärksamma musikpedagoger på hur de kan hjälpa elever som upplever svårigheter i improvisationsundervisning. / The subject of the study was improvisation and improvisational teaching in relation to the concept of Music Performance Anxiety (MPA) and possible connections between them. MPA is most easily described as feelings of anxiety in connection with playing music. The purpose of the study was to explore Music Performance Anxiety from a jazz musician's perspective. Is it possible to feel performance anxiety in a context where it is not really possible to "play wrong"? Comparisons with classical music therefore become relevant. A further purpose was to find tools to be able to draw attention to and help students with MPA in ensemble teaching with a focus on improvisation. What methods and materials do the educators use? In the study, a qualitative method was chosen, based on research interviews with three different musicians and educators in improvisation. It was supplemented by exploring existing literature in improvisation and MPA. The results of the study show that all informants had great experiences and personal experiences of both improvisation and MPA as well as connections between them and that MPA is a common phenomenon not only in art music but also among jazz musicians. The results also show that MPA is presented as somewhat less common among jazz musicians than among classical musicians. There is a reservation in jazz culture against showing signs of weaknesses such as nervousness and performance anxiety. Hopefully, the study can help to raise the topic of MPA in jazz and popular music, as it has not previously been so researched in these genres. A further aspiration is to draw the attention of music educators to how they can help students who experience difficulties in improvisational teaching.

Saxophonist Chris Cheek has been a reference for his work as a sideman with some of the most established jazz artists in the international jazz scene of the last twenty-five years. Despite his importance, there is lack of detail in the available publications about Cheek. The short length and journalistic character of the publications only produce surface descriptions of Cheek's style. There is a need to further describe the melodic elements present in Chris Cheek's style in order to have a better understanding of the implications and importance of these elements across the history of jazz saxophone and jazz pedagogy. In the past, several scholarly works have described the improvisational styles of jazz musicians using a multitude of analytical tools. The design of those studies often fails to provide a comprehensive view of the improviser's style because of the limited scope of the analyzed sources or the specific focus of the analysis. This analytical study presents a comprehensive view of Chris Cheek's style through the motivic and voice-leading analyses of six improvisations by the saxophonist. This design allows the study to discern between motivic development processes, melodic structures, formulaic material, and harmonic structures that belong to the saxophonist's idiom. By presenting the elements in Cheek's style, this study is able to show the importance of motivic and voice-leading coherence in jazz pedagogy as well as the importance of Cheek's style as a reference for lyricism.

During my studies at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm I have been exploring how I can develop as an improviser and as an ensemble musician. The main focus has been to use more arco playing, but also to sing unison and in harmony with the bass in order to broaden my expression. Another aim has been to compose music for my trio to implement my expanded way of performing. When I began the master’s program, I wanted to return to my roots as a classical cellist. With the help from classical teachers I was able to improve my bass technique, especially with the bow, and use that as a way to further widen my improvisation and accompany- ment skills. As a bonus, my cello playing got a boost from this work and it eventually became another important part of my artistic voice. The methods of my project have been to continuously test new ideas in my freelance work outside of KMH. I also interviewed fellow musicians to be able to reflect on whether my newly acquired knowledge and technique have had an effect on the way we make music together. In the thesis I also reflect on my inspiration from other musicians and artists and my personal philosophy not being bound to certain musical genres. Instead I want to take impressions from many different kinds of music and be open to all the different techniques in playing double bass that comes with a wide range of styles. An important result of this process is the making of the album “Arrival”, with Adam Forkelid on piano, Calle Rasmusson on drums and the Polish jazz violinist Adam Bałdych as a guest soloist. The record was released in March 2020 by the international jazz label Prophone/Naxos.

Music has been shown to positively impact people living with advanced dementia, triggering fleeting recall and recollection and impacting emotional responses. Research and practice have focused on opportunities for people to engage with music by listening to playlists of favourite songs, revisiting existing skills by playing music, or by engaging in group music sessions or music therapy. Research has primarily focused on music and melodic sound, however our day-to-day lives are filled with ambient sound, soundscapes and percussive sound. Research in this area is limited. As is research in how to promote creative engagement with sound for those who do not have any existing musical skills. This paper will discuss a project to adapt an innovative electronic musical instrument, The AirSticks, invented by a professional musical performer for use in his own practice, to suit the needs of people living with advanced dementia. It will provide insights into workshops with a group of residents at two care homes and show the impact on one person in particular as she engaged in an emotive improvisation with the musician.

Syftet med följande uppsats är att undersöka hur musiklärare uppger att de arbetar med skapande i musikundervisningen, vilka förutsättningar som behövs för att kunna arbeta med skapande i skolan samt vad de tror att skapande kan bidra med för eleverna. Metodlitteratur och tidigare forskning visar att det går att arbeta med skapande på många olika sätt i grundskolan och att skapande kan tillskrivas många olika betydelser. Skapande visar sig också ha betydelse både för elevernas kunskapsutveckling och för utveckling på ett personligt och emotionellt plan. Föreliggande studie utgår från ett sociokulturellt perspektiv, är kvalitativ och bygger på semistrukturerade intervjuer med fyra musiklärare. För att analysera intervjumaterialet har en tematisk analys tillämpats. I studiens resultat presenteras flera olika arbetssätt inom skapande i grundskolans musikundervisning däribland skapande utifrån bilder och berättelser, digitalt skapande och skapande med rytmer. Förutsättningar för att kunna arbeta med skapande är ytterligare något som presenteras. Både materiella förutsättningar som tillgången till instrument och sociala förutsättningar så som klassrumsklimat visar sig vara viktiga för att kunna arbeta med skapande. Vad skapande kan bidra med för eleverna är också något som presenteras i resultatet och aspekter som lyft är bland annat att elevernas kreativitet kan utvecklas och de får uttrycka sina tankar och idéer i det skapande arbetet. I diskussionskapitlet ställs studiens resultat i förhållande till bakgrundslitteratur och tidigare forskning. Studien går att sammanlänka med tidigare forskning och det framgår att skapande kan innebära många olika saker, utföras på många olika sätt och att det kan ha positiva konsekvenser för elevernas utveckling. / The aim of this study is to investigate how music teachers states that they work with creativity in music teaching, which requirements who are needed for working with music creation and how they believe that music creation can contribute to pupil’s development. Method literature and previous research shows that music creation can imply many different meanings and that it is possible to work with music creativity in many different ways. Creation in music also proves to be important both for students' knowledge development and for development in a personal and emotional way. This study is based on a sociocultural perspective, it is qualitative and based on semi-structured interviews with four music teachers. Thematic analysis has been applied to analyze the data from the interviews. The results of the study present different ways to teach in music creation, for example music creation based on pictures and stories, digital music making and music making with rhythms. Requirements needed for working with music creation is also something that is presented. Both material conditions such as access to instruments and social conditions such as the classroom climate prove to be important to be able to work with music creation in school. What music creation can contribute to pupil’s development is also something that is presented in the results and aspects that are presented is for example that pupil´s creativity develops, and they are able to express their thoughts and ideas. In the chapter for discussion the results are compared with previous research. The study can be linked to previous research and it is clear that music creation can mean many different things, be performed in many different ways and that it can have positive consequences for students' development.

Syftet med den här studien är att undersöka hur ett träningsprogram baserat på metoden Simultaneous Learning upplevs av lärare och elever. I bakgrundskapitlet beskrivs metoden som är skapad av Paul Harris och hur den förändrats över tid. Det finns endast lite tidigare forskning om metoden, på grund av att den är relativt ny, men den som hittats redogörs det för. Bakgrundskapitlet inkluderar också tidigare forskning om enskild musikundervisning och några viktiga problem som identifierats inom det området. Studien är en fallstudie där tre lärare, utan tidigare erfarenhet av Simultaneous Learning, fick delta i ett träningsprogram i metoden. Lärarna använde metoden i sin undervisning under 3-6 lektionstillfällen. Under datasamlingen intervjuades elever och lärare för att undersöka hur interventionen i form av träningsprogrammet upplevts. I resultatet framkommer att eleverna och lärarna upplevde skillnader, i form av till exempel nya moment i undervisningen såsom improvisation. De upplevde även att undervisningen efter träningsprogrammet påminde om den tidigare undervisningen. Det kan också lyftas fram att lärare upplevt att träningsprogrammet inom metoden gjorde det enklare att undervisa proaktivt. Ett sista relevant resultat var att elever uppskattade att momentet improvisation tillfördes i undervisningen. I diskussionen relateras studiens resultat till tidigare forskning samt till frågor kring hur olika perspektiv på lärande kan påverka synen på Simultaneous Learning som metod. Slutligen diskuteras hur Simultaneous Learning skulle kunna vidareutvecklas / The purpose of this study was to investigate how a training program based on Simultaneous Learning was perceived by teachers and students. In the background chapter the evolution of Simultaneous Learning, developed by Paul Harris, is traced. There is only little earlier research regarding the method since it is comparatively new. The research that was found is however presented. The background chapter also includes earlier research in the wider field of music-studio teaching, and the problems that have been identified within this style of teaching are presented. The study is a case-study where three teachers, with no prior experience with the method, participated in a training program and later proceeded to teach a selection of students with the method for between 3-6 lessons. To gather data semi-structured interviews with both the teachers and the students was conducted, to investigate how the intervention was perceived. Results show that both teachers and students noticed differences and similarities with their previous style of teaching. Some significant results include that teachers experienced that Simultaneous Learning was helpful in creating a pro-active teaching and students experienced the introduction of improvisation to the lesson as positive. In the discussion the results are related to earlier research and how different perspectives on the role of a teacher can affect how Simultaneous Learning is perceived as a valuable tool or not. Lastly, some suggestions on how the method could be further improved is suggested and discussed.