The stream of inspiration.(Creativity for All)

In our previous column, we quoted Franz Liszt and suggested that music, to be an art, must flow from inspiration--not mechanism. How can teachers invite inspiration and creativity into their lessons?

We encourage our students' natural desire to create and be expressive by giving them simple, imaginative musical patterns from which they can spontaneously create melodies. Soon, melodies begin flowing from their hands like sentences from their mouths.

Most of us learned to make music by reading notes, so the idea that melodies can flow like sentences may sound rather far-fetched. But given the opportunity and a reliable approach, many of our students quickly develop speech-like fluidity in their playing. It is natural to make music via feeling and exploring, so students who have not yet learned otherwise will often do so with surprising ease.

Here is a pattern we use often with our students. We call this "Reflecting" in our Pattern Play book.

[ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED]

Press the damper pedal and play this softly. The repeat signs mean to repeat each measure as many times as you like. Move back and forth between these two measures many times. Say to your student, "Feel the mood, then create sounds using only black keys." (We avoid saying "create melodies" because this can be intimidating.) Ask your student to close her eyes, listen, feel and explore. Vary the way you play your part in response to what she plays.

Next, ask your student to play the pattern as you create sounds and melodies. If the student is a beginner, she can play just the first two notes in each measure (a fifth).