Compositions in Improvisation: The Instant Composers Pool Orchestra

Abstract

The Instant Composers Pool (ICP), founded in 1967 and still performing, is one of the oldest groups in European improvised music. This article presents some aspects of their current performance practice and their views on improvisation. The performances of the ICP revolve to a significant degree around the compositions of Misha Mengelberg, who is one of the founders of the group and a classically trained composer. Even though the study of improvisation has been an important part of a crucial move away from the composition-centred tradition of musicology towards issues of performance and musical interaction, I suggest that consideration of these topics need not be opposed to that of composition.