About us
Welcome to Improvise for Real!
We are music lovers just like you. And just like you, we dreamed of truly understanding music and being able to create it ourselves.
We believe that the musicians who follow their own imagination are the ones who change the world. Our vision is rooted in the tradition of great art schools—where students explore sounds creatively and learn to tell their own musical stories.
Improvise for Real was created to give you this path. A way to learn music that’s creative, personal, and helps you truly express your own voice.
David Reed
Co-founder and teacher at Improvise for Real
David Reed is a professional guitarist based in New York City and the co-founder of Improvise for Real. A musician for more than 30 years, his unique perspective on music and creativity is drawn from his experiences playing and teaching music in New York, Los Angeles, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Nicaragua, Senegal and Guinea-Bissau. David is the author of “Improvise for Real” and the creator of the IFR method for guitar. His video lessons combine soloing, comping and chord melody playing to give you a complete mastery of both harmony and the guitar.
Mireia Clua
Co-founder and teacher at Improvise for Real
Mireia Clua is a professional violinist based in New York City and the co-founder of Improvise for Real. Mireia is the creator of the entire IFR ear training program including our Sing the Numbers audio courses. She has personally taught hundreds of IFR students in live workshops, and she has more than 20 years of experience teaching music to both children and adults. Mireia is especially focused on creating a safe learning environment where each student feels respected, nurtured and encouraged.
Jelske Hoogervorst
Teacher at Improvise for Real
Jelske Hoogervorst is a professional jazz saxophonist and improvisation coach based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Jelske has been teaching the IFR method for more than 10 years to private students and group workshops. Her video lessons include lots of playing activities like “trading fours” where you get to play along with her, taking turns improvising melodies. This opportunity to improvise in a musical dialogue with a professional jazz artist is both inspiring and educational, and it’s one of the most popular features of Jelske’s IFR courses.
Paul Bourque
Teacher at Improvise for Real
Paul Bourque is a professional pianist and composer based in New York City. Paul teaches the IFR video lessons for piano, with a special focus on how to incorporate the left hand into your improvisation practice right from the beginning. Paul is a truly gifted teacher who creates the ideal learning environment for musical creativity at the piano. His lessons are beautiful, meditative and deeply inspiring.
Ben Bourque
Teacher at Improvise for Real
Ben Bourque is a professional guitarist, bassist and trombonist based in New York City. Ben teaches the IFR video lessons for bass with a special focus on applying the IFR harmonic concepts to the unique role of the bass, creating riffs and walking lines in addition to soloing. Ben has a special passion for both music theory and ear training. His video lessons for bass include lots of creative exploration, jamming with backing tracks, and learning to hear and sing the sounds you play.
