Expanding horizons – Improvisational explorations of 20th-century classical music by Peter Knudsen

"Expanding horizons" is an Artistic research project carried out between 2021 (August) and 2024 (November) at NTNU, Trondheim. The objectives were to contribute to knowledge on how different kinds of departure points can be useful for musicians when approaching 20th-century Western classical music through improvisation, an understanding of how one can navigate and negotiate the musical language of this repertoire, and insights into how the tension between different performance values can be navigated in this process. The research questions were: When applying improvisation to works of 20th-century classical music, 1. What role does the choice and preparation of musical representations play? 2. How can we navigate and negotiate musical structures such as melody, harmony and form? 3. How can we navigate the tension between fidelity to the work and creative expression? Based on selected pieces from this repertoire and practical explorations together with participating musicians, various approaches to creating improvisational frameworks were then explored. These included a wide range of scores, including lead sheets and indeterminate notation, as well as ear-based methods. From the perspective of integrating improvisation into the performances, approaches such as repeating elements, working with layers, creating transitions, and introducing open sections were examined. A key point was to use melodic material as a way of building strong connections with the source material, rather than relying on harmonic representations of the music. In terms of balancing respect for the original work with creative freedom, a “healthy dose of disrespect” pervaded much of the explorations, allowing deviations from the originals when they were musically justified. Throughout the work processes, an idea of focal points emerged, as aspects to focus on when reworking a classical work into an improvisational version. These focal points included the score, historical and performative contexts, expressive qualities, and the improviser’s personal voice.

Statement of Purpose

The project aims to contribute to knowledge on how different kinds of departure points can be useful for musicians when approaching 20th-century Western classical music through improvisation, an understanding of how one can navigate and negotiate the musical language of this repertoire, and insights into how the tension between different performance values can be navigated in this process.

Research questions

The overarching question that served as a starting point for the musical explorations was:

How can fruitful meetings be achieved between improvisational expressions and works of 20th-century Western classical music?

As a departure point, this open-ended question provided an impetus for a multitude of musical explorations, processes that led to more delimited questions focusing on different aspects:

When applying improvisation to works of 20th-century Western classical music,

1. What role does the choice and preparation of musical representations play (i.e. scores)?

2. How can we navigate and negotiate musical structures such as melody, harmony and form?

3. How can we navigate the tension between fidelity to the work and creative expression?

Delimitations

A couple of delimitations should be pointed out. First, following the emphasis on improvisation from a jazz perspective, it follows that other perspectives might be recognized but not prioritized; e.g., improvisation in classical idioms, improvisation in a liturgical context, improvisation in folk music. Also, the project does not focus on musical arrangements per se; although aspects of arranging is considered – mainly related to scores and notational devices – the emphasis is on how frameworks for improvisation are created, i.e., conditions for improvisers, and the relation between improvisation and the compositions in question. This means that details related to instrumentation and orchestration are secondary. When the term musical language is used, there is an emphasis on melody and harmony. This is important to point out, given the central role of rhythm in jazz; otherwise, as a wise man once said, it 'don’t mean a thing'. Also, the project is not about recomposing, i.e. creating an original composition with features taken from an existing musical piece. While touched upon, in relation to expanding on musical languages, such processes are secondary to the core questions.

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Peter Knudsen - Expanding horizons – Improvisational explorations of 20th-century classical music - 2025