Because music functions as a language, in the same way that text can be written down and read back word for word, music can be written down and played back note for note. However, the more familiar one is with a language, the more one is able to speak it without planning or rehearsal. Those who are fluent in a language can speak their thoughts in the moment, forming sentences and ideas as they go. It is the same way with music. The better one understands the principles and functional relationships of music, the more one is able to express something meaningful without preparation. This is improvisation. Improvisation is not a special musical skill that needs to be developed on its own. It is a product of understanding how music works and being so familiar with the language of music that creating it becomes effortless.

 

Just as we do not listen to someone speak simply to hear the unique syllables their mouth produces, we do not listen to music to simply hear a succession of notes. In both cases, we listen to hear an idea communicated. In the same way that individual words combine to express much more than any of the words mean by themselves, musical elements combine to convey exponentially more than the sum of the parts. In the same way that it’s possible to read the words of a sentence without understanding what it means, it is possible to play through the notes of the song without understanding what the music is expressing. However, by growing familiar with how the elements of music relate to each other, one will start to understand how these elements combine to communicate larger ideas.

 

In order to learn a new language, studying vocabulary, parts and speech, and grammatical rules can be helpful; however, no amount of study can take the place of simply speaking the language. In fact, it’s possible to learn a language without any formal study. This is how all of us learned our native language–by simply speaking it. In the same way, many musicians become extremely proficient without any formal knowledge.

 

While it’s possible to get far through simply reading and reciting material; one will not become truly fluent either in a language or in music without ever struggling through the process of expressing oneself in the moment. Becoming fluent can be a long process, and many wrong words, grammatical errors, and mispronunciations are inevitable. However, the freedom of self-expression that develops with the skill of improvisation is invaluable.