by Hyesoo Yoo

Using Baroque
Techniques to Teach
Improvisation in Your
Classroom
Abstract: Before our current notation system was widely adopted by musicians, improvisation
was a key component of music throughout the Western world. One of the fundamental ele-
ments of the baroque style, namely, using improvised embellishment, offered musicians great
artist liberty. During the baroque period, improvisation spread across Europe and beyond.
To achieve a thorough understanding of the art of improvisation, it is important to be familiar
with several improvisation techniques commonly used in the baroque period. This article
focuses on some of these characteristic techniques, such as harmonic improvisation from
figured-bass symbols, expressive ornamentation on an existing melodic line, and variation Discover how
forms. The article also offers educators ways to apply these improvisation techniques to teach-
ing improvisation in elementary music classrooms.
elements of baroque-
Keywords: baroque, elementary general music, figured bass, improvisation, music history,
era music can
ornamentation, variations inspire your students
to become more

W
hen most people hear the word
improvisation, jazz is likely the
first thing that comes to mind. This
assumption stems from the fact that most
people associate improvisation solely with
jazz, a genre that is understood to rely often
on improvisational virtuosity. However,
improvisation was commonly used in both
Western art music and non-Western music
long before jazz improvisation existed. From
the perspective of Western art music, impro-
visation can be traced back to the medieval
period where singers would add melodies
to preexisting melodies (e.g., organum, dis-
cant, and motet).1 Even though it is unclear
when improvisation first developed, the
Hyesoo Yoo is a doctoral candidate in music education at the University of Florida in Gainesville and an active general and choral
music specialist. She can be contacted at HaeS2000@gmail.com. The author would like to thank Keith P. Thompson, professor
emeritus in music education, for his guidance and help.
well-organized improvisation on a plainsong
can be found in the Johannes Tinctoris trea-
creative improvisers.
tise Liber de arte contrapuncti published in
1477,2 suggesting the practice had already
well been established by that time. In the fif-
teenth century, faburden allowed singers to
improvise over a preexisting melody, adding
a new part above or below the melody. In
faburden style, the thirds and sixths above
the bass were the preferred intervals excerpt
at the beginnings and endings of phrases,
where octaves and fifths were preferred.3
The baroque period was well known for
its improvisatory performance practices that
developed from three sources: the devel-
opment of the basso continuo style that
Copyright © 2015 National Association
for Music Education
DOI: 10.1177/0027432115590859
http://mej.sagepub.com

www.nafme.org 91
Downloaded from mej.sagepub.com at INDIAN INST TECH KANPUR on March 7, 2016
required harmonic improvisation from
figured-bass symbols, the interest of
performers in conveying certain emo-
tions in expressive ways using ornamen-
tations, and the increase of variations on
popular or folk songs.4 The composers
in this era often only roughly sketched
(“outlined”) the musical score, expecting
the performer to improvise the music
“in accordance with certain rules (e.g.,
cadential trills, appoggiaturas, passing
tones, etc.) and the performer’s own
interpretation.” 5 Consequently, in the
baroque period, performers’ virtuosity
became the prevailing characteristics of
music, and improvisation became a vital
skill for proficient musicians. 6 These
improvisations in the baroque period
are now written out (e.g., cadenzas in
published songs). Later on, during the
classical period, improvised cadenzas
by the solo performance of concertos
were frequently performed. Nonethe-
less, compared to the previous periods,
improvisation declined in the late nine-
teenth and early twentieth centuries as
musicians began to adhere to literal per-
formances of the written notation.7
Fortunately, the value of improvisa-
tion has been reemphasized in all of the
well-known music education method-
ologies developed by twentieth-­century
music educators such as Dalcroze,
Kodály, Orff, and Gordon. Each method
encourages children to be engaged in
improvisational activities as a means
to “express their own musical ideas in
aural patterns and in creative ways.”8 In
addition, improvisation has been sup-
ported by the National Standards for
Music Education (1994) in order to help
students develop skills in creative and
critical thinking in music. Standard 3,
“Improvising melodies, variations, and
accompaniments,” provides music edu-
cators with some specific and practical
suggestions for including improvisa-
tion activities. In the revised standards
(nafme.org/standards), which were
implemented in 2014, improvisation is
presented in Common Anchor Standards
1 and 2 (generate, conceptualize, organ-
ize, and develop artistic ideas and work)
under the banner of the Artistic Process
of “Creating” (the first of three Artistic
92
Downloaded from mej.sagepub.com at INDIAN INST TECH KANPUR on March 7, 2016
Processes that also include “Perform-
ing” and “Responding”). The suggested
activities include improvising ideas and
patterns as well as rhythmic, melodic,
and harmonic improvisation. Students
are asked to describe the relevance of
these activities to their personal experi-
ence, specific interests, or purpose. It is
interesting to note that these suggested
activities (e.g., rhythmic, melodic, and
harmonic improvisations) were widely
used as improvisation techniques dur-
ing the baroque period. Although some
improvisation techniques of the baroque
era have already been adopted in con-
temporary music classrooms, it would
be valuable to dig into the even richer
sources of the improvisation practices
that were predominant during the
baroque period. This in-depth explo-
ration would lead to a better under-
standing of the art of improvisation and
appropriately allow instructors to uti-
lize these techniques to today’s music
classes.
This article presents improvisation
techniques prevalent among baroque
musicians and suggests ways these tech-
niques can be used in today’s elemen-
tary music classrooms. Focus is on three
primary improvisational techniques: (1)
harmonic improvisation from figured-
bass symbols, (2) ornamentation on an
existing melodic line, and (3) variation
forms.
Figured Bass
One of the most important features of
baroque music is the art of the basso
continuo (also called “thoroughbass” or
“figured bass”).9 Its onset corresponds
with the expressive ideals of the Flo-
rentine Camerata at the end of the six-
teenth century. Gradually, providing
the rhythmic and harmonic support for
voices and ensembles became a crucial
feature.10 Composers of this period used
a shortened system with figures (num-
bers) written below or above the bass
line to indicate which additional notes
might be appropriately added in the har-
mony.11 With this base line, the players
of “chordal instruments improvised an
accompaniment, called a realization, in
Music Educators Journal  September 2015
accordance with certain rules and the
performer’s own interpretation.” 12 In
the same way that modern musicians
are expected to sight-read, during the
baroque period, the ability to improvise
accompaniments and read figured bass
were expected of a competent musician.
The choice of continuo instruments and
the practices of continuo realization in
this period depended largely on period,
national style, performers, and size of
the ensemble.13
Ornamentation
Applying ornamentation was a conspic-
uous skill of improvisation for baroque
musicians. 14 These ornamentations
were often not notated in the music;
“baroque artists valued the affections
and promoted their free expression,”15
and performers simply adopted orna-
mentations as an expressive vehicle. 16
The “appoggiatura” and the “trill” are
essential ornaments in baroque music.17
The word appoggiatura is derived from
the Italian verb appoggiare, meaning “to
lean.”18 Appoggiatura must come on the
beat by moving up or down either by
step or leap. Even though the length of
appoggiaturas (long and short) varies
with the date and context, the standard
eighteenth-century rule of long appog-
giatura is that the appoggiatura receives
half the length of the main note and
two-thirds of the value of a dotted main
note.
The trill is defined as “a rapid alterna-
tion between two adjacent tones,” and
the symbol t, +, or tr is placed over a
note to indicate the trill at that point.
With a few exceptions, the standard
style of executing a baroque trill is to
start a note a half step above the writ-
ten note. Trills are commonly used at
half cadences or ending cadences, and
the performers should recognize these
cadential trills regardless of whether
these are indicated in the score. 19 In
Italy after 1660, performers were also
allowed to add free ornamentation, par-
ticularly to a returning melody in a da
capo aria.20
Ornaments were indicated to differ-
ent degrees with a variety of symbols
depending on where the baroque com-
posers were from. For example, Italian
composers rarely used symbols of orna-
mentation except for a few trills with
the indication of the signs or appoggia-
turas written with a small note slurred
to the main note. Unlike the Italians,
French composers highly relied on
symbols; for example, they used the
symbol + to indicate numerous kinds
of ornamentation. The Germans devel-
oped an extremely organized system of
ornamental notation that remains the
most widely known of these systems
today.21
Variations
The principal types of variation forms
developed during the baroque period
were strophic variations, couple
dances, and grounded bass forms. 22
First, strophic variation commonly
appeared in vocal music, especially in
the leading aria form (da capo aria) of
early baroque opera. In the da capo aria,
a returning melody is varied (e.g., orna-
mentations, adding passing tones, alter-
ing intervallic relationships, changing
rhythms, etc.) while the bass retains the
same harmonic patterns. Second, var-
ied couple dances such as passamezzo,
pavane, and galliard were prevalent,
and these dances had the same melody
line in duple and triple, respectfully; the
rhythm of the melody was varied in the
second of the two dances according to
the conventions of its meter and pattern.
Another type of the baroque variation
form was ground bass (basso ostinato in
Italian). Ground bass had a short motif
in bass that repeated continually with
variation of the upper parts (listen to
Johann Pachelbel’s “Canon in D” for an
example of this).
Teaching Improvisation with
Baroque Techniques
Contemporary music educators can
incorporate the teaching of improvisa-
tion from figured-bass symbols, orna-
mentations, and variation forms into
their lesson plans as a way to teach
improvisation skills. As part of this
www.nafme.org
Downloaded from mej.sagepub.com at INDIAN INST TECH KANPUR on March 7, 2016
FIGURE 1
Consonant and Dissonant Sounds
FIGURE 2
Improvising Using the Third and Sixth Intervals
exercise, the teacher can use teacher-
guided listening activities to engage
students by having them listen to exam-
ples of music from the baroque era as
they learn to improvise these harmonic
styles. The following exercises serve as
a starting point for music teachers who
would like to teach some improvisa-
tional skills in upper-elementary music
classes (fourth and fifth grades). These
exercises are designed to be imple-
mented over several class periods. In
addition, the exercises suggested in the
following could be sung or played using
classroom instruments (e.g., recorders,
xylophones, iPads, etc.).
Exercises with Figured Bass
Step 1: One Note against One
Note Exercise
In this exercise (see Figure 1), students
first learn to distinguish consonant from
dissonant sounds by playing one note
in the bass against one note in the tre-
ble on available classroom instruments
(e.g., recorder, xylophones, iPad, etc.)
with a teacher. The teacher plays the
notes in the bass clef, and students find
their notes by counting the intervallic
distance of notes indicated by numbers
underneath the bass. For instance, when
the number 2 appears below the note C
in the bass clef, students should play a
D. The number 2 indicates the interval
from the bass note marked. From C to
D  = an interval of a second; 3 means
up to the third interval, and so on.
After playing the notes, the teacher asks
students to discuss their feelings and
responses when hearing consonances
and dissonances (How does this inter-
val sound to you? Does it seem pleasant,
angry, etc.?).
Second, students learn to improvise
by using only the third and sixth inter-
vals from the bass notes (see Figure 2).
While the teacher is playing a C-major
descending scale, students should impro-
vise by fitting either a third or a sixth.
Afterward, in pairs, students should
write figures (third or sixth) under the
bass note before improvising. One per-
son should play the C-major descending
scale, and the other improvises by fitting
either a third or a sixth intervallic dis-
tance from the bass notes. In fact, even
though the intervals between a third and
a tenth are different, a tenth in this exer-
cise is considered a third for a novice to
learn the concept of figures.
93
Step 2: Improvisation from
Figured-Bass Symbols FIGURE 3
This exercise (see Figure 3) is a sim- Melodic Improvisation with Figured Bass
plified version of a figured bass, but
instead of asking students to fill in the
notes in harmony, students improvise
the melody based on given figures. For
example, the bass note C in C major
with the number 2 represents maximum
intervallic distance of two notes (e.g.,
with 2, students can choose from either
C or D). When 3 is indicated below
the note C, students can use up to the
major third interval from C, which is
E, and improvise by using three notes
(C, D, and E). The teacher provides
students with a limited number of
rhythms, such as quarter notes, rests, FIGURE 4.
and pairs of eighth notes, in order to
Harmonic Improvisation with Figured Bass
have students focus on melodic impro-
visation. While the teacher plays the
notes in bass, the students simultane-
ously play their improvised notes on
the classroom instruments. In addition,
students can play in pairs: One person
plays the bottom note, and the other
plays the improvised notes.

Step 3: Improvisation from

Figured-Bass Symbols
The students practice improvising based
on harmonic progressions (see Figure 4).
To begin, the teacher explains the fun-
damental triadic chords (I and V); the
Roman numerals consists of three notes
(I: C, E, and G; V: B, D, and G), each
a third apart. Then, the teacher presents
an I–V–I chord progression with a time
signature and simple rhythmic patterns
(e.g., eighth notes, quarter notes, and
rests) so the students can concentrate on
improvising on the melodies based on
the given harmonic progressions. Before
going on to improvise, students vocal-
ize the rhythmic patterns by voicing the
notes without pitch, and then the teacher
invites students to improvise based on the
given chord progression. Next, students
are asked to improvise both rhythms and
notes based on the given harmonic pat-
terns. Also, these exercises are intended to
be implemented over several class periods
(lessons).
Exercise Using Baroque
Ornamentation: Trills
The teacher uses visual presenta-
tion (rhythm cards) and vocalizes the
rhythms using ornamentation, such as a
trill (see Figure 5). The students identify
a pattern of notes that are different from
the others. After discussing the differ-
ent note, the teacher places a star on
the note that was played with trills. The
teacher shows the rhythm card marked
with a star on the note and vocalizes
the rhythmic patterns with trills. A quar-
ter note is indicated by ta, and the note
with trills is indicated by the sounds ti,
ri, ri, ri.
FIGURE 5
The Notes with Trills Using
Ti, Ri, Ri, Ri
Next, the students respond to the
same rhythmic patterns of the trills but
in different places: (a) trill on the first
beat, (b) trill on the second beat, (c)
trill on the third beat, and (d) trill on the
fourth note (see Figure 6). Even though
a trill is a variation of pitch, students

94 Music Educators Journal  September 2015

Downloaded from mej.sagepub.com at INDIAN INST TECH KANPUR on March 7, 2016

FIGURE 6
The Trills in Different Places
FIGURE 7
The Trills on Pitches
FIGURE 8
The Appoggiatura in Different Places
first exercise trills without pitches to
understand that a trill should be played
within the given note value in the meter.
For instance, if a quarter note has a trill
in 4/4, the trill should be played within
one beat. The evenness of the notes is
important. Therefore, the teacher should
have students practice trill notes slowly.
After voicing the rhythmic patterns,
students sing or play the pattern on
available classroom instruments. When
a soprano recorder is used, it is advis-
able to have students play ti to la in a
C major (see Figure 7). This exercise is
the easiest because students only need
to use the third finger of their left hand
to make trills.
After students get sufficient practice
with trill notes, the teacher selects a sim-
ple song (e.g., “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little
www.nafme.org
Downloaded from mej.sagepub.com at INDIAN INST TECH KANPUR on March 7, 2016
Star,” “Music, Music, Music,” or “All Night,
All Day” in Music Connection; Needham,
MA: Silver Burdett Ginn, 1999) composed
of three sections; the first section ends in
the tonic key, the second section contrasts
with the first in melody or mood, and the
third section is the same as the first sec-
tion. Initially, the teacher sings or plays
the entire song without trills and asks stu-
dents to find the structure of this song.
Then, the teacher runs through it again;
the first and the second sections should
be sung or played the same as the first
time, and a retuning melody (the third
section) should be sung or played with
trills. Afterward, the teacher asks students
the difference between the first and the
second performances. After discussing it,
the teacher explains da capo, in which
a returning melody should be different,
adding some ornamentations like trills.
Students should be first asked to sing or
play trills at the ending cadence during
the third section. Then, the teacher asks
students to add trills of their own on a
returning melodic line (e.g., free orna-
mentation used in Italy after 1660). Sev-
eral volunteer students will be asked to
play the song with trills on a recorder. In
addition, the teacher asks students what
they think might be the reason for using
trills in particular notes.
Exercise Using Appoggiatura
The procedures of teaching appoggia-
tura are similar to ones of teaching trills.
Initially, the teacher uses visual rhythm
cards (see Figure 8), voices the rhyth-
mic patterns using appoggiatura, then
asks the students to identify a paten of
notes that are different from the others.
After the students identify the different
note, the teacher attaches a heart to the
note that was played differently (appog-
giatura). The note with appoggiatura is
indicated by ti-ah, and the appoggiatura
is played on the beat and takes half the
length of the following note and two-
thirds of the value of a dotted main note.
Students imitate the teacher’s rhythm
several times until they become com-
fortable enough to play it themselves.
Afterward, students can either play
the designated melody on their class-
room instruments or sing them using
solfège syllables (see Figure 9).
Finally, the teacher presents a simple
song and has students perform the entire
piece without appoggiatura for the first
time; during the second time through,
the teacher asks them to apply appog-
giatura to the original melodic line. After
the students sing or play the melodies
with and without appoggiatura, they are
encouraged to discuss how different the
sounds are between the original melo-
dies and the melodies with appoggiatura.
Exercises by Using Baroque
Variations
The most frequently used improvisa-
tion exercise in elementary general
music classes are normally rhythmic
95
 allows both students and teachers to
FIGURE 9 continue to develop existing skills as
well as adding new ones in order to
Long Appoggiatura on Pitches elevate their musical understanding;
this, in turn, will improve their overall
levels of musicianship across various
styles and genres (e.g., jazz, rock, etc.).

Notes
FIGURE 10   1. Douglass Seaton, Ideas and Styles in
the Western Musical Tradition (New
Links to Resources for Improvised Music York: McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social
Sciences/L, 1991), 35.
Examples of “Lasciach’iopianga” from the opera Rinaldo by George Frideric Handel performed
  2. Kyle Schick, “Improvisation: Performer
by different singers:
as Co-Composer,” Musical Offerings 3,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpP-U9dXSVA no. 1 (2012): 169.
  3. Rudolf E. Radocy and David Boyle,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJJnhp2CYnk
Psychological Foundations of Musical
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhNRWduBPmY Behavior (Springfield, IL: Charles C
Thomas, 2003), 285–86.
  4. Patricia S. Campbell, Lessons from the
Examples of the Johann Pachelbel “Canon in D” performed by different players: Based on these World: A Cross-Cultural Guide to Music
harmonic progressions (D–A–Bm–F#m–G–D–G–A), players improvised the music.
Teaching and Learning (New York:
Schirmer Books, 1991), 41
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Af372EQLck   5. Mary Cyr, Performing Baroque Music
(Portland, OR: Amadeus Press, 1992), 71
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvNQLJ1_HQ0
  6. Charles Hoffer, Music Listening Today
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3RRQypEf4I (Boston: Schirmer Cengage Learning,
2010), 91.
  7. Moore Robin, “The Decline of
Improvisation in Western Art Music: An
and melodic variations. In the rhythmic knowledge of improvisation, and lack Interpretation of Change,” International
variation exercise, only the rhythm of of necessary resources to help imple- Review of the Aesthetics and Sociology
the song can be varied on the existing ment improvisation in music programs. of Music 23, no. 1 (June 1992): 61–84.
song while the students are maintain- Considering these challenges, this article  8. Campbell, Lessons from the World, 89.
ing the same pitches. In the melodic provides commonly used improvisation  9. Cyr, Performing Baroque Music, 81.
variation exercise, the teacher selects a techniques from the baroque period as 10. Ibid., 71
simple and short song in ABA form (i.e., well as some practical teaching proce- 11. Ibid.
“Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”). Then, dures and helps to apply these tech- 12. Ibid.
the students are asked to sing or play niques to today’s elementary music
13. Ibid., 81–82.
the song as written the first time and to classroom. It is especially important to
14. Robert Donington, A Performer’s Guide
vary a returning melody that is different provide students with the opportunity to
to Baroque Music (New York: Charles
from the initial melodies. This variation listen to and discuss several examples of Scribner’s Sons, 1974), 160.
exercise is modeled on the variation baroque music, including these impro-
15. Schick, “Improvisation,” 172.
technique used in da capo aria. visation techniques (see the YouTube
16. Cyr, Performing Baroque Music, 140.
links in Figure 10) so that students can
17. Schick, “Improvisation,” 128.
Get outside Your Comfort Zone! hear the actual sound of baroque impro-
visation. A close look at baroque impro- 18. Donington, Performer’s Guide, 160.
In spite of the importance of the inclu- visation techniques allows instructors to 19. Cyr, Performing Baroque Music, 128–39.
sion of improvisation instruction in examine the source of improvisation 20. Ibid., 129.
class, teachers often fear teaching techniques; furthermore, such an exami- 21. Donington, Performer’s Guide, 128–41
improvisation because of their own nation creates a space for music teach- 22. Leon Stein, Structure and Style: The
lack of practical experience improvis- ers to either emphasize or incorporate Study and Analysis of Musical Forms
ing as a musician, lack of training to methods to teach improvisation to their (Van Nuys, CA: Alfred Music Publishing,
teach improvisation, lack of theoretical students. Thus, this type of instruction 1979), 92.

96 Music Educators Journal  September 2015

Downloaded from mej.sagepub.com at INDIAN INST TECH KANPUR on March 7, 2016