Composition, Improvisation, and the NCAS (Week 2 - Reading/Video Response)

Composing, the act of creating music, along with the complementary act of improvising music, has always been a part of the national standards for music education.  The 2014 revision of those standards, also known as the National Core Arts Standards, emphasizes creation as a key component of music instruction.  This week's lecture and reading looked at tools for supporting student composition and improvisation, as well as processes to put into place to help students reach these goals.  These align with the new standards mentioned above, but can standards alone ensure that students are adequately supported and encouraged in developing creativity and compositional skills?

The National Core Arts Standards explains the Creating pillar as '[c]onceiving and developing new artistic ideas and work,' with the following anchor standards (NCAS):

• Anchor Standard #1. Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work.
• Anchor Standard #2. Organize and develop artistic ideas and work.
• Anchor Standard #3. Refine and complete artistic work.

Composition and improvisation do fit into these standards, but I hesitate to commit to the idea that creativity must be taught through composition (and notation by extension) and improvisation.  I think in many cases, introducing notation software and composition tasks may be overwhelming and turn students away from music!  At the same time, watering down composition instruction to include it without actually working on it doesn't actually help students grow and develop creatively. That's not to say that I'm opposed to the inclusion of composition and improvisation in any music classroom, just that I think that it requires specific and sequential preparation and support from the entire curriculum.

Thinking back to my undergrad experiences, I had limited opportunities to compose in any of my classes.  Notation in undergrad classes seemed to primarily center on the class that focused on arranging and orchestrating, followed by classes requiring specific warm-up exercises or companion exercises to literature being taught in the class.  These tasks were viewed with trepidation and anxiety.  Few to none of my classmates in either of my undergraduate programs had much experience composing or working with notation software -- especially my classmates in my first undergrad program, as most of us graduated in 1997!  The inclusion of composition standards in the NCAS certainly seems like one way to ensure students are exposed to and supported in composition experiences before they reach high school or even collegiate level classes.  But does including the material or giving the students the assessment really teach them creativity?

I think that composition instruction and support needs to be integrated into music instruction at all stages.  Even in kindergarten and first grade, students are capable of improvising and creating rhythms and simple melodies given support -- or, in another way of thinking about it, restrictions.  While restrictions might sound limiting, in composition they can be freeing: either freeing younger and less experienced students to be able to compose based on their abilities.  But restrictions are also good because they make the project feel safe - rather than thrusting themselves out there with no support structures, providing a structure, rules, limited ranges or rhythms or options of some kind makes composition seem much more accessible to young musicians.  The use of music notation software can make those rules and restrictions more convenient to put into place and teach with. Similarly, I think that composition assignments could benefit from sequencing and positioning within the curriculum similar to how other creative tasks are presented and supported, specifically ELA composition tasks.  While I haven't had the time to sit down and review the common core standards for ELA writing, I have a hunch that many if not most of the standards relating to creating, revising, and presenting written work would align with the composition standards in the NCAS.

Over time, and with repeated exposure and opportunities to experience composition-related tasks, I think that creativity in music can be more than just something that the highest-achieving students in K-12 programs excel in.  I also think that success in music composition can help students with developing that key self esteem that figures so highly into performance in other academic areas.


Resources and further reading:
NAfME (n.d.) Student Assessment using Model Cornerstone Assessments. Retrieved from http://www.nafme.org/my-classroom/standards/mcas-information-on-taking-part-in-the-field-testing/
NCAS (n.d.). National Core Arts Standards Anchor Standards. Retrieved from http://www.nationalartsstandards.org/content/national-core-arts-standards-anchor-standards#creating