Josephine Vains

Demystifying Improvisation

This presentation seeks to demystify the use (and abuse) of improvisation by the modern string player, and to explore how we as teachers can inspire using improvisational ideas in our teaching. Suited to intermediate and advanced students, this presentation gives practical advice and examples of how to free oneself from the dots, approaching music-making with playfulness, stylistic integrity and courage. Specifically looking at improvisation as interpretative tool for music from the baroque through to the 19th century, this presentation will comprise three parts:

A broad overview of historical approaches to improvisation from the baroque period through the 19th century, to illuminate how performers used both ornamentation and expressive devices such as tempo rubato, vibrato and portamento as a form of improvisation.

A selection of audio recordings from the late 19th century/early 20th century, in order to demonstrate how performers used these expressive devices in improvisational ways.

Josephine will give real-time demonstrations (on the cello) of improvisational possibilities in Bach Cello Suites, referencing the underlying harmony to pick the ideal moment to employ ornamentation, and vary repeats. There will also (hopefully) be time to explore writing your own cadenza for Classical concerti, with her own demonstrations from Haydn Cello Concerti.

About Josephine Vains

Josephine Vains is an Australian cellist, chamber musician and educator, with a performance career encompassing modern and historical cello. An adventurous spirit has taken her to some far-flung concert venues – from a 1000-year-old cave in the heart of China to mountain-top Bach in the French Alps. These days she performs in Australia and beyond with Firebird Trio, Accademia Arcadia, Elysium Ensemble, Ensemble Old & New, Gryphon Baryton Trio, Melbourne Baroque Orchestra and CellOZ. A regular collaborator with living composers, she has recorded on modern and period instruments for Resonus Classics, ABC Classics, Tall Poppies and HUSH. Josephine relishes working with the cello and chamber music students at Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School and the University of Melbourne. Josephine appears regularly as a cello and chamber music coach for Australian and Melbourne Youth Orchestras, Akaroa International Music Festival (NZ), Adelaide Cello Festival, iartschool (China), Mt. Buller Chamber Music and more. Her students are a fantastic bunch of engaging and curious humans, featuring regularly in Australian solo and chamber music competitions including the Melbourne Recital Centre’s Baroque Competition, National Concerto Competition and Musica Viva’s Strike A Chord to name a few.