3) Play the scale through the whole range using broken thirds, fourths, fifths, sixths and sevenths of the instrument. End this exercise by playing an improvised solo consciously using different intervals in different sections of the improvisation.
This exercise is in D minor, fourths and sixths are demonstrated:
9) Write down a skeleton with bass notes and their harmonical functions. Improvise ornamentations. This exercise is inspired by an instruction video by violinist Henning Kraggerud.
Here a repetitive bass line is used in D minor: D - C - Bb - A
2) Play the most common arpeggios of the chosen key through the whole range of the instrument. I suggest starting with the following chords: I, II, IV, V and V/V, since they define the tonality most clearly. Ideally the arpeggio's should be practiced starting from the root, third, fifth and seventh. End this exercise playing an improvised solo only using arpeggio's.
This exercise is in D minor with arpeggio I, II, V and V/V:
5) After exploring the tonalities separately, try improvising a solo similar to exercise 4 whilst incorporating a modulation by using the pivot chord.
Modulate a fifth up using V/V.
Modulate a fifth down using I7
Modulate to the relative major using VII7
Modulate to the relative minor using III
6) Combine multiple modulations in one solo. Writing down a modulation beforehand and setting an intention, can make this practice more efficient.
For example: d- => a- (=> C) => F => d-
8) Exploring secondary dominants and their resolution through the circle of fifths: This exercise helps to be able to resolve leading tones in a correct way. Choose your starting tonality. Play the triad of the tonic. Add the seventh to it. Transform the chord into a dominant seventh chord. Resolve into the triad of the subdominant chord. Now the subdominant becomes the new tonic and it all starts again.
This example starts and ends in C major:
4) Play an improvised solo in the chosen tonality using scales, different jumps and arpeggios. I liked to play in a more intuitive way and release one’s inhibitions in this phase.
This exercise is in D minor:
General harmony skills
7) Navigating through the diatonic circle of fifths: This exercise is a slightly different approach to the material presented in exercise 2. Choose your tonality. Start with playing diatonic triads through the circle of fifths. Next play diatonic seventh chords.
This example is in C major:
All exercises below are useful when one decides to improvise tonally. It would be logical to start such a tonal improvisation in the key of the inspired piece(s) or in a neighboring key. What this decision process can look like, is discussed further in Chapter III.
When improvising inspired by a tonal piece, it is always useful to explore the tonality of this piece first. Also, practicing exercises 1 through 4 in neighboring keys, will help to modulate later on. Below, there are ideas to explore a tonality and simple modulations from that tonality. As one can see in the pedagogic jazz literature the possibilities to practice scales and arpeggios are endless. However, the importance of scale and arpeggio practicing for classical improvisation is also confirmed in sources.
The last three exercises develop the active harmonical knowledge in general. Exercises 6 through 8 explore navigating the circle of fifths and improvising from a written bass line. These skills are useful in understanding the harmonic context.
A general harmonic skill that is not included in the exercises is the art of Partimento. This was an orally based tradition between teachers and novices in eighteenth century Italy that could be more or less defined as exercises on a figured or unfigured bass for the study of harmony.
A good source for examples of such basslines and ornamentations is Sanguinetti's The Art of Partimento. This book also provides detailed information on the history of partimento and is a good practical guide to partimento. This is a very vast topic and to translate it entirely on the violin could be a research project by itself. While this study doesn’t explore Partimento in depth, I do believe that it could be a useful tool to expand one’s improvisational language.
The goal of this pool is not to learn how to use skills like partimento historical and stylistic correctly, but to explore harmonic patterns and logic in a basic way and apply it on the tonal improvisation in the needed style. Studying partimento is a very good and logical addition to the exercises described below, when one wants to focus on improvising tonally.
These general harmonical skills and the notion of Partimento were added after feedback given on a recording by Karst De Jong. The study of practical harmony could be taken a lot further than what's described below, but this would take me too far from the topic of interluding. Again practice them in a creative way by varying dynamics, color and rhythm. This way the improvisational mindset is already turned on.
Exercises based on the tonality and atmosphere of a certain composition
1) Play the scale through the whole range of the instrument. The start and end is on the root of the key, but before returning to the root the extremities of the instrument are reached. End this exercise by playing an improvised solo consciously using a lot of scale material.
In this example the exercise is in D minor, as the ending of Hungarian Rock by Gyorgy Ligeti.