Musical improvisation is an infinite artistic well. It helps the musician to make a personal performance and lets the music reflect the inner feelings. It is a language with which the performer can adapt the formulation to the specific situation. Yet so many have fear and respect when facing the phenomenon. In this study Dan Alkenäs discusses the advantages and disadvantages of using musical improvisation as a pedagogical method in school education. During a semester Alkenäs has, together with music teacher Bitten Löfgren and a group of pupils, studied what results are to be expected when teachers let musical improvisation have a leading role in music lessons. He discusses the creative working environment and the pupils’ ability to put theory into practice. One leading theme is the discussion of the common view of musicality. Alkenäs argues that it is important for a music teacher in a democratic school, with children from different kinds of cultures and backgrounds, to be flexible and adjust the lessons according to the individuals in the group. The study shows that this pedagogy, among other things, has a positive effect on interaction between students with different interest, levels of knowledge and potentials.

<p>Musical improvisation is an infinite artistic well. It helps the musician to make a personal performance and lets the music reflect the inner feelings. It is a language with which the performer can adapt the formulation to the specific situation. Yet so many have fear and respect when facing the phenomenon. In this study Dan Alkenäs discusses the advantages and disadvantages of using musical improvisation as a pedagogical method in school education. During a semester Alkenäs has, together with music teacher Bitten Löfgren and a group of pupils, studied what results are to be expected when teachers let musical improvisation have a leading role in music lessons. He discusses the creative working environment and the pupils’ ability to put theory into practice. One leading theme is the discussion of the common view of musicality. Alkenäs argues that it is important for a music teacher in a democratic school, with children from different kinds of cultures and backgrounds, to be flexible and adjust the lessons according to the individuals in the group. The study shows that this pedagogy, among other things, has a positive effect on interaction between students with different interest, levels of knowledge and potentials.</p>

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.