Collective Improvisation

Main Article Content

Clare M. Cooper

Abstract

Collective improvisation as a creative practice is intensely social, trusting, unpopular, anti-hierarchical and, for these reasons, political. Cooper describes the risks and rich rewards of improvising with fellow artists and identifies the parallels between improvising ensembles of musicians in Australia with the collectively painted protest banners of the Taring Padi Collective in Indonesia after a brief visit to Jogjakarta.

Article Details

Section
Curated Works: Designing Futures in Indonesia
Author Biography

Clare M. Cooper, Macquarie University

Clare Cooper is an active member of the Australian arts community, co-founder of the NOW now festival and experimental music and Frontyard Projects. She is an improvising musician and researcher concerned with community, collaboration, futuring, context and design.  Cooper is currently undertaking PhD research at Macquarie University and has presented hundreds of solo and collaborative projects spanning sound, improvisation, film, print, dance and theatre in 14 countries over the past 16 years.