Improvising is a term frequently used in discourses on music study today. The message is that the students must be “given wings,” freeing them to chart their own musical directions. When traditional methods of instruction are used, students find themselves enmeshed in a labyrinth of ”Do’s,” Don’t’s,” and “No-No’s” as they plow through the dead sea of standard procedure.
Improvisation is now as vital as any other aspect of musical study. When, where, and how does such training begin? What are the ground rules?
Training should begin with the student’s first introduction to the keyboard. To insure success, we must radically overhaul the sequential presentation of harmony and theory. The highest priority must be given to maintaining student enthusiasm and early sense of accomplishment. This is the objective of the Rhodes method.