Manyness in music improvisation

This chapter explores the notion of multiplicities, of differing selves, in the practice of music improvisation. It examines a celebration of the diversity of voices that we are so fortunate to encounter in improvising with others, in being in the company of “manyness in music improvisation.” In exploring Fernando Pessoa, specifically his ideas around multiplicities and multiple identities, the author aim to bring to the discourse of music improvisation the work of a poet who, despite having been studied and scrutinised by scholars in other disciplines, has not seen much application in the study of music improvisation. The chapter provides a short insight into the political context of Portugal at the time and a basic overview of Fernando Pessoa’s life. Pessoa’s stage metaphor suggests that we resist an emphasis on the intersubjective, possibly even resisting the often-glorified notion that is prevalent in improvisation practices of “dialogics,” where improvisation is seen as an egalitarian, open, dynamic and processual interaction between humans.