What is the difference between a solo and improvisation?

Question

It seems that a solo is written out already and is used in rock. Yet improvisation is not written out and is used in jazz. Am I right? I have not been able to find any info on the difference between a solo and improv.

Answer 1

A solo can be a an improvisation like when Jimmy page originally wrote Stairway to Heaven's solo it was him just messing around and he chose a bunch of pieces of all those improvised parts.



An improvisation is an abstract idea where you may have a plan of where it will go but in essence you are just creating something out of the notes being played at that moment.



An improvisation can be one voice (like a solo) or made up of many voices vertically and/or horizontally in other words melodies or chords.

Answer 2

A solo is a piece of music that is written specifically to be played by a single instrument. It is pre-written and pre-rehearsed. The notes played are the notes on the page.

An improvisation, on the other hand, is a piece of music made up completely on the spot, without using sheet music. You may have an improvisational solo, where one man improvises a piece of music, but there can also be an improvisational duet, or orchestra. :) The main difference is that a solo is a prepared piece of music, and an improvisation is a spontaneous one.

Answer 3

Think of improvisation as a kind of solo. You're correct - improvisation is not written out, which is what makes it improv. A solo, however, does not have these boundaries - when a musician performs a solo they can choose to have it written out already, or have it be improv.



In short, improv is a type of solo.

Answer 4

a solo is played by 1 instrument

the player may read the music as is-or they can make up their part--this then would be an improvised solo

Answer 5

Solo.

Is any performance which is totally unaccompanied, the first non-keyboard example in jazz being Coleman Hawkins's " Picasso".



Improvisation.

Is the art of playing without any premeditation rather than making it up as you go along whereby good musicians manage to convince the listener of their spontaneity.