Chords for Stefano Bollani and Sarah Willis

_ Stefano, thank you for coming on the program.
I find it very hard as a classical musician.
Why is it that we classical musicians find it so hard to improvise?
It's just because you_ _
_ Probably, when you were a child,
somebody told you that it wasn't a good idea.
_ Somebody told you you shouldn't improvise,
you should play this music because this music is perfect
and what you are improvising is not perfect.
And that's true, but that's the good part about that.
The good part about improvising is exactly that we are not _ me.
I'm not looking for perfection, I'm looking for the moment.
It can be a little bit embarrassing, I find, on my horn.
If someone says, just improvise on B flat or this and that.
I find it's just something I really don't feel I can do.
Because you think, of course, you're going to judge yourself.
That's the point.
If you don't judge yourself,
_ it's going to be great.
Improvise on B [Bb] flat. _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
I [Am] can do that.
Exactly.
I can think, wow, that's boring, I should use some other notes.
Well, that's judging.
You're judging your work.
Just try and be an open channel.
You can use a scale, you can use a rhythm pattern.
You can start with some elements.
That's what we do while we're improvising.
I just start with an idea.
Of course you need a structure.
_ So you've got to build something.
You've got to build a bridge.
And then at the same time, you're walking on the bridge.
So this can be a good start.
_ But it can be _ something totally different.
It can be just two [Dm] chords.
_ _ _ _ _ _ [G] _ _
_ _ _ [Dm] _ _ _ _
Do you [G] hear the chord before you want to play it?
Or do [Dm] your fingers_
Do you think, oh, I'll play that [Abm] chord.
That's a good [C] question.
It depends on your mood, actually. _
And what comes to your mind.
The main thing is just be an open channel.
Because _ you don't know where it's coming from.
And not worry about making mistakes.
_ Not worry about making mistakes.
No worry, because they're not_
It doesn't exist.
The thing called mistake doesn't exist.
In our world, unfortunately, it does.
If you start a symphony with a wrong note, we've made a mistake.
_ That's why we're maybe so panicked about letting ourselves go.
That's why I prefer improvising.
I'm going to go and practice that.
The main _ _ [F] thing, I prefer improvising because there's no mistake.
[Gm] _ _ [C] _ _ _
[Bb] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ [D] _
_ _ _ [G] _ _ _ [C] _ [F] _
[Bb] _ _ _ _ [G] _ _ [C] _ [F] _
[Gm] _ _ _ [Bb] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [G] _
[Cm] _ _ [A] _ [Eb] _ _ [Bb] _ [F] _ _
[Bb] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[Eb] _ [G] _ _ [Fm] _ [D] _ [G] _ [Am] _ _
[Bbm] _ [G] _ [C] _ _ _ [Ebm] _ [C] _ [F] _
_ _ _ [Bb] _ _ [G] _ [C] _ [F] _
[E] _ _ _ [Bb] _ _ _ [Gm] _ [Eb] _
_ [Bb] _ _ _ [G] _ _ [Gm] _ _
_ _ [D] _ _ _ _ _ [Bb] _
_ _ [Eb] _ _ [Bb] _ _ [Eb] _ [Ebm] _
[Bb] _ _ _ [Eb] _ [B] _ [F] _ _ [Bb] _
_ _ So when you play concertos,
will you play in Rhapsody in Blue a different thing every night?
In honour of George?
Especially in the solo parts.
Because he did that, so why shouldn't I?
If you play a classical piece, do you play classical pieces?
I played, actually, with the same orchestra,
I played the Ravel Concerto in G.
In that case, I play note by note.
Is it painful for you to do that?
Ask me.
Exactly.
It is.
_ It is.
Who cares _ if one guy in the world
doesn't _ like you to improvise on his music?
If the audience likes it. Who cares?
I mean, yeah, but you know, this guy is the composer of the music.
Who cares?
He's dead.
The music is here for us to enjoy.
The music should be a live _ _ experience.
_ So, _ _ _ let's forget about this guy.
Beethoven, Mozart, they're dead.
And their music is alive.
And to keep it alive, we've got to play the music
as if it's coming out from us.
But a lot of people think that the page is the music, but it's not.
The music's here.
In fact, _ usually, the page is not playing. _ _
Well, let's hope George Gershwin will like this.
And let's hope, for me, let's hope the kids will [N] like it.