"A story > needs meaning, doesn't it?"
Indeed. However, define meaning in said context, or try to, and you'll find many different definitions.
I would say a major component of meaning is emotion, (others include time,memory/experience, imagination family/social dynamics,reason etc)and certainly music can express emotional energy.
I am going to add to that, for I agree with you on what you've said. But in line with what I'm saying... true, a story can be found "in the moment", while not knowing what moment comes next... but what I initially meant with "story" vs "not story", via Per's question, was that I more meant prethought vs in the moment... perhaps letting the music assist you in knowing where the next part of the story is (maybe it's a choose your own adventure and you don't know if it's a, b or c until you've played the 4 (or whatever) measures before said movement... vs prethought, where your thoughts are dictating where the music goes before it happens
Very simply, improvs that have beginning/middle /end sequential quality are similar enough to stories
They are similar in that they have such movements, but different in how such movements occur, and what places such movements are directed from.
that they easily become screens for personal emotions to be projected onto.
Absolutely. But to me, prethought vs ?posthought? ?duringthought? are muchmuchmuch more abstract. More about sharing a personal feeling that words can't go to (with improv), but that can inspire words... vs pre thought... which says "i want this story/feeling/emotion/etc to specifically come out in this way. Perhaps using prethought in an improv environment is merely taking all your experimentations of times previous, cataloguing them in your mind in terms of understanding what equals what to you, the storyteller... then thinking before you.
That's really what I'm driving at here... thinking before you do and doing that. Doing and thinking while doing. Simply doing. And how we all mix all those approaches.
If the player(s) are expressing emotional energy it can be easy for other's to relate it their own emotional energy
Perhaps that is the difference I speak of. When we are led by both prethought (or not) and/or letting the music form the story with our emotions/abstractions, we are more shooting forth a very specific idea, that others can then relate to personal... and when more in the moment, music leading thought leading music leading... it seems less specific a story you are telling, but more one that can be widely felt in different ways due to it not being so specific.
And don't get me wrong, I love both ways and all in between.
-nn
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