Jeremy Chapman on musical creativity

This great Ted Talk by Jeremy Chapman offers many surprising insights about musical creativity. His talk includes improvisation with the audience and guest musicians, and challenges us to examine core assumptions about how best to make, teach and learn music.

He even mentions Improvise for Real about halfway through the talk!

Jeremy Chapman has lived in the UK, Lebanon and the Czech Republic. He currently teaches vocal music at the International School of Prague. He also plays the flute and saxophone, and performs in a wide range of styles. He recently recorded an album of original jazz compositions.

This talk is about something very close to Jeremy's heart: how we teach musical instruments to young people. In Jeremy's own words:

To this day, the vast majority of instrumental teaching consists of putting a book in front of a student and presenting music as something to be read accurately (and expressively). Those of us lucky enough to have stumbled into the world of improvisation know that music is so much more than this. Music is a collection of beautiful aural architecture, yes. But it is also this incredible process you can jump into, where you can take risks, express yourself, surprise yourself, the audience and your fellow musicians. My belief is that reading music, playing by ear and improvising should be three equal pillars in 21st century instrumental teaching.