The Dame Roma Mitchell Churchill Fellowship to develop new specialised skills in historical violin performance as both performer and educator

Conclusions and Recommendations:// Improvisation was a key element of music performance of the 17th-19th centuries, allowing performers to add individual expressivity, showcase virtuosity and add musical contrast to works through ornamentation, diminution, cadenzas, preludes and fantasias. Teaching practices of the time enabled the development of improvisation skills through intensive aural-based training from a young age. One method in particular, ‘Partimenti’, was recently rediscovered and found to be highly effective in contemporary teaching practices. This method is not yet widely known, and part of my dissemination process will involve encouraging further understanding and use of the method, while integrating many elements into my own performance and teaching practices. Through observation, it is clear that improvisation studies can begin from the very first day of a child’s musical education and can be equally stimulating, challenging and eye-opening for a 5-year-old beginner as a 65-year-old professional musician. Improvisation is generally feared in the classical music world but does not need to be as inaccessible as it may seem. Re-introducing historical methods that were developed over hundreds of years brings a clarity and relative simplicity that can prepare a path for improvisation, while simultaneously informing deeper levels of musical understanding and awareness too often overlooked in current learning environments. Improvisation allows performers to become creators of music, and not just re-creators. Keywords: music, violin, early music, improvisation, baroque, classical, performance, pedagogy, partimenti, ornamentation, historically informed performance