ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the presence and conceptualizations of creative music making within formal music curricula. It looks into how composing and improvising are understood in official documents, drawing specifically on the case of the National Curriculum of Greece. Within this context, composing is conceptualized as a multi-directional “musical creation” process, constituting a continuum of musical exploration and improvisational activity to the more intentional and structural outcomes of musical composing. Document analysis is revealing of the minimal space that composing occupies overall in the texts in comparison to improvising. It is also positioned as an activity more suitable for older children. Similarly, collaborative composition is mentioned beyond age 10, while the use of technology in supporting composition is scarcely mentioned. The chapter closes with a discussion of the necessity for teachers’ preparatory training in composing pedagogy, from the early years of formal music education.
