Improvisation Prompt: Manipulate a Scale Using Rhythm

This week we invite you to take a musical line that already exists and give it your own twist. While this week’s prompt may appear to be straightforward, it actually serves as a springboard for many creative ideas! What can you come up with?

Adult non-musicians: Sing or hum the pattern: do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti-do (if you’re unsure how to sing this pattern, watch this video.) After performing it normally. try it again with a different rhythm. Maybe you sing it like this: do do do, re re re, mi mi mi, etc.; or more like this: do, re re re re, mi mi, etc. What did you think of the process of creating this way?

K–8: It’s game time! First practice playing a scale. Then practice playing the scale using a rhythm from another piece of music, such as the theme from Beethoven’s 5th Symphony or Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up.” If in a group setting, have students play their version of the scale while others try to guess what song they’re using. If alone, see how many songs you can incorporate in your scale in 10 minutes. Did you have more fun with the scale this way? What was challenging about it?

Musicians: How can you turn a scale into a creative improvisation? First, just play a scale normally. Then listen and follow your intuition as you play. Maybe play a different rhythm on each pitch, or maybe use a rhythmic theme throughout. Whatever method you choose, commit yourself to making an ordinary scale sound imaginative.