Rests in Piano Improvisation – BTS Butter

Piano Improvisation and the use of Rests

It’s interesting that sometimes the effect of music is not in the sound itself, but the silence that follows. James D’Angelo in Healing with the Voice talks about the fact that the silence after a note has far more impact that the silence before the note begins. Very often when we improvise, we think about which note to play next, which chord to use, whether to change key, should we use something fast and show-off to bring attention and excitement? We are basically thinking about “filling the void”. Perhaps you could deliberately NOT fill the void.

Expression in Piano Improvisation, connect with the Soul

Next time you improvise, try to create a sound and then, as David Eby (see one of my online interviews) would say “increase resubtivity” and do it again. That is, create something or perform something and emotionally connect with it, channelling your feelings through your music. Stop at the end of a phrase, close your eyes, reflect and enhance the emotion that you feel. Repeat the phrase. Do this a couple of times and nurture your vulnerability, nurture the emotional freedom and focus less on the technique (which is still important by the way) and more on the flow from within.