We’ve made it to week 4 of our improvisation challenge! This week we invite you to imagine and reimagine how the concept of call-and-response can sound. Whether you’re improvising alone or in a group, we’ve got several options for you to explore as you improvise this week.
Adult non-musicians: Check out Anna’s video posted above. Listen to ‘calls’ (the louder notes she plays). Then pause the video and try to make your own ‘responses’ by singing, whistling, humming, or even just tapping on your table. What did you notice about the process of creating this way? What was challenging about this practice?
K–8: Using the notes from an arpeggio, have one player play a short improvisational call. Another player should respond by playing notes from the same arpeggio in a similar character. The notes and rhythm don’t have to be exactly the same as the call, but the responder should do their best to make sure their improvisation complements the call. For example, if the call is slow and quiet, the response should also be slow and quiet. After repeating this process a few times, discuss what factors made the most effective calls and responses.
Musicians: By yourself, practice being both the caller and responder by portraying a different character in each role. You could experiment using dynamics and timbre to make the responses sound like an echo. Or you could create distinct yet complementary characters for the calls and responses. Record yourself and listen back. Do you sound more like one player or like two? What can you learn about yourself as a musician from this experience?