The Art of Becoming

Raymond MacDonald is Professor of Music Psychology and Improvisation at Edinburgh University. His ongoing research focuses on issues relating to improvisation, musical communication, music health and wellbeing, music education and musical identities. He studies the processes and outcomes of music participation and music listening and has a particular interest in collaborative creativity. His work is informed by a view of improvisation as a social, collaborative and uniquely creative process that provides opportunities to develop new ways of working musically.Graeme Wilson is a Visiting Fellow at the University of Edinburgh. He has research interests in the theory and practice of group improvisation, and in musical participation to improve wellbeing. He has published and lectured widely as a psychologist on improvisation as well as on health, identities and discourse. He leads the Concurrent network for the study of interdisciplinary improvisation, initiated through a Network Grant from the Royal Society of Edinburgh. A founding member of Scottish National Jazz Orchestra and Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra, he has toured internationally and his saxophone playing features on over 30 CDs including his own quartet releases.

• PrefaceForeword Chapter 1. Improvisation and new frontiers in creative practice Chapter 2. What's so special about Improvisation?Chapter 3. Talking about ImprovisationChapter 4. Stones, Clouds: a new model for improvisingChapter 5. Distributed creativity and the myth of shared understandingChapter 6. A new virtuosity: improvising over timeChapter 7. Improvisation and health: why improvising is good for you Chapter 8. The way forward References

The Art of Becoming is a delightful and inquisitive whirl through the many layered worlds of improvisation. It offers keen insight on the limitless possibility of improvisation as a community and social practice. Highly recommended.