For this improvisation I took a theme from one of my compositions which I wrote in 2019, and expanded, developed and varied it, as well as adding completely new things; like a bridge between past and present. This particular motif was actually buried in the middle of the original composition and was not the main theme, but in this piece it became the main theme. I improvised around this theme, changing the texture and timing, adding new melodic ideas and harmonies, and using the same mode throughout (which was the same mode as my original composition) — C Aeolian. It felt a bit like revisiting an old friend who is fundamentally the same person they always were, but the experience of the passing years has changed them in some way. And because they were previously hidden (as with the buried theme), previously unseen facets of their character come to light. This improvisation was unusual for me in that I stayed within a single mode instead of modulating: staying the course and holding that space without fleeing. Here it is:
Throughout this improvisation, I made frequent use of minor 7th chords (e.g. Cm7 or Fm7), 11th chords, sus 4 and add 9 chords (e.g. E♭11, A♭add9), along with more basic chords, all of which were diatonic to C Aeolian.
For the introduction I played my signature fast arpeggios (something I didn’t do in my original composition, this is something I tend to do in my improvisations as opposed to written compositions), using a chord sequence that recurs throughout the piece in a varied form, including the aforementioned minor 7th chords, add 9 chords and 11th chords.
Then came the texture that dominated the piece — large chords and octaves, often with big left hand jumps, with parallel harmonised inner voices forming a broken chord pattern in both hands. This texture tended to include a melodic voice in the uppermost part of the right hand. The melodic voice frequently featured a C minor pentatonic based melody.
Although this full texture dominated the piece, there was a section near the middle where I switched to a simpler texture consisting of a broken triadic accompaniment in the left hand with a single-line pentatonic melody in the right hand (after an initial exploration beyond the pentatonic scale).
C Aeolian mode
C Aeolian is the 6th mode of the E♭ major scale, and it is also known as C natural minor. The notes are: C – D – E♭ – F – G – A♭ – B♭
Scale Formula:
Tone – Semitone – Tone – Tone – Semitone – Tone – Tone
(T–S–T–T–S–T–T)
Scale Degrees:
1 2 ♭3 4 5 ♭6 ♭7
C minor pentatonic scale
The C minor pentatonic scale is a subset of the C Aeolian mode, and it’s notes are: C – E♭ – F – G – B♭
The scale degree formula for a minor pentatonic scale is:
1 ♭3 4 5 ♭7
The theme upon which this variation is based
In case you are interested, here is the composition I mentioned earlier: a piece of music I wrote in 2019 called “Erin”. It is the piece of music from which I pulled a theme and improvised around it, producing “Air: Variation on a Theme.”
Apologies for the wobbly camera partway through the Erin video — one of my cats decided to settle down on the feet of the tripod that was holding the camera, perhaps she wanted to listen to Erin!
Learn more about modes: Complete Guide to Modes of the Major, Melodic Minor, and Harmonic Minor Scales
You might also like Doloroso e Inquieto — Improvisation in F♯ Aeolian & A Lydian Dominant
Listen to more of my improvisations
