In this chapter we introduced the Expansive Creativity framework, for getting in touch with your musical instinct, and learning to express your own musical ideas in a way that feels good and sounds good.
We discussed the significant mindset shift required, to set aside strict “right and wrong notes” thinking in favour of a greater respect for your own musical taste and focus on learning to let that taste be your guide and teacher.
With Play-Listen/Listen-Play, Constraints and Dimensions and Playgrounds, you are equipped to gradually develop the sophistication and freedom of your own creative improvising. And with an attitude of creativity as the vehicle, not the destination, and the practice of Improvise To Learn, you can start to incorporate creative activities throughout your musical life.
This is also something you can apply through all other chapters of the book. Though we’re covering it in Part III, it is arguably a foundational skill which would fit well in Part I! So you might like to go back and revisit some exercises from previous chapters (especially those in Part II), now that you have this Expansive Creativity framework (and particularly the awareness of Constraints and Dimensions) to approach them with.
Ultimately our goal here wasn’t to make you a master improviser so that you could bust out brain-melting solos in a particular musical context. It was to unleash the creativity that you already had inside, which you can then channel into Improvisation, yes—but also Songwriting and composing, playing with Expression, enabling spellbinding Performance, and feeding into every aspect of your music-making in future.
Whatever your Musical Core and Big Picture Vision look like, I hope this has helped make sure that creativity is in there somewhere, by getting you in touch with your personal taste and natural creative instinct, and helping you to feel and be empowered to express your own wonderful musical ideas throughout everything you do.