Contingent Encounters: Improvisation in Music and Everyday Life

Contingent Encounters compares improvisation across music and everyday life, challenging assumptions about its aesthetic and political implications. It argues that improvisation is a function of any encounter between subjects, objects, and environments, and that particular social investments cause it to be associated with relative freedom, risk-taking, and unpredictability.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 260 pages
Publication date: 31 August 2022
Publisher: The University of Michigan Press

Contingent Encounters presents a comprehensive comparative analysis of improvisation across music and everyday life, drawing on musicology, cultural studies, and critical improvisation studies, as well as the author's own performing experience. Dan DiPiero challenges the conventional understanding of improvisation by comparing it across domains, revealing its multifaceted nature. Through a series of insightful comparisons, DiPiero demonstrates how improvisation emerges in various contexts, including music, everyday activities, and social interactions. He examines the music of Eric Dolphy, Norwegian free improvisers, Mr. K, and the Ingrid Laubrock/Kris Davis duo, alongside everyday activities such as walking, baking, working, and listening. DiPiero's analysis reveals that improvisation is not limited to specific musical genres or contexts but is a fundamental aspect of human experience. By incorporating contingency into the discussion, DiPiero highlights how social investments shape the perception of improvisation, associating it with relative freedom, risk-taking, and unpredictability in both scholarly and public discourse. This book challenges long-standing assumptions about the aesthetic and political implications of improvisation, emphasizing its central role in human life.

Weight: 420g
Dimension: 152 x 228 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780472039197