The intensive Washington, D.C., training focused on improvisation, arranging, ensemble cohesion, musical resilience, and authentic performance across a wide range of styles.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — July 2026 — Violinist, educator, and Creative Strings founder Christian Howes led an intensive three-day professional development residency with the U.S. Army Strings from July 13–15 in Washington, D.C.
Over approximately 20 hours, Howes worked with the musicians through full-ensemble instruction, small-group breakouts, guided improvisation, arranging exercises, and coaching of the ensemble’s existing repertoire.
The residency had an immediate musical purpose: to help the musicians perform more flexibly and authentically across the wide variety of engagements their mission requires.
It also supported a much larger goal—building a more connected, resilient, and creative ensemble culture that can continue developing for years to come.
“I want to get us improvising and jamming with each other,” said Master Sergeant Robert E. Martin of the U.S. Army Strings, who helped initiate the training. “That will build our cohesion as an ensemble, and the creativity will feed into our arranging and performing.”
Developing Skills That Go Beyond the Written Page
The U.S. Army Strings perform for audiences in many different settings. That requires the musicians to move comfortably between ensemble sizes, musical roles, and styles—sometimes with a rhythm section and sometimes relying entirely on the string players to generate harmony, rhythm, and groove.
The residency was therefore not centered on learning one particular composition or style. Instead, Howes introduced a practical framework that musicians can apply across many different musical situations.
The framework organized ensemble playing into four essential components:
Ensemble configurations:
Solo, duo, trio, quartet, and full ensemble
Musical roles:
Melody, bass line, inner harmony, countermelody, rhythm, and percussive texture
Rhythmic forms:
Jazz, bluegrass, Latin, funk, rock, folk, and other stylistic grooves
Harmonic forms:
Vamps, modal harmony, blues, song forms, and chord progressions
The musicians practiced moving fluidly between these elements rather than depending only on fixed parts or predetermined arrangements.
A violinist might play the melody in one moment, provide an inner rhythmic voice in the next, and then shift into a bass line, countermelody, or improvised solo. When drums or bass were absent, the string players worked on distributing those musical responsibilities throughout the ensemble.
“Musicians become more adaptable when they understand not only their own notes, but the function they are serving inside the group,” Howes said. “Once they understand the groove, the harmony, and the available roles, they can make better musical decisions in real time.”
Improvisation as a Tool for Resilience and Cohesion
Improvisation was a central part of the residency, but not simply because the musicians wanted to take better solos.
Howes used improvisation to develop listening, decision-making, communication, confidence, and the ability to recover when something unexpected happens.
These qualities contribute to individual musical resilience. They also strengthen the larger ensemble because musicians become more attentive and responsive to one another.
“Improvisation requires you to listen, make a decision, and commit to it without knowing exactly what will happen next,” Howes said. “You also learn to adjust, recover, and support the people around you. Those are valuable abilities in any rehearsal or performance situation.”
The musicians worked with structured free improvisation, modal improvisation, complex harmonic structures, chord progressions, conducted group improvisation, and stylistic groove exercises.
Many sessions began with the complete ensemble and then moved into small breakout groups. This gave musicians an opportunity to apply the concepts independently, create their own musical structures, and make decisions without relying entirely on a conductor or outside instructor.
The groups then brought those experiences back into the larger ensemble.
Playing Eclectic Styles with Greater Authenticity
Another priority was helping the ensemble perform styles such as jazz and bluegrass with greater authenticity and spontaneity.
“Modern audiences expect us to be able to play authentically in eclectic styles,” Martin explained in describing the vision behind the training.
Authenticity involves more than reproducing the notes of an arrangement. Musicians must understand the rhythmic feel, harmonic language, phrasing, articulation, and social interaction that make a style recognizable.
A technically correct arrangement can still sound disconnected from the tradition it is attempting to represent. When musicians understand how a groove functions—and can listen, improvise, and respond inside that groove—the performance becomes more natural and relatable.
This kind of stylistic fluency can also make arranging more effective. Instead of depending exclusively on through-composed parts, musicians can build arrangements around clearly understood roles, forms, and musical functions.
The result is greater flexibility. An arrangement can be expanded, reduced, adapted to different instrumentation, or reshaped in response to a particular event.
Coaching Existing Repertoire
The residency included dedicated time for Howes to coach the Army Strings on existing arrangements.
This allowed the musicians to connect the newly introduced concepts directly to the music they already perform.
Rather than treating improvisation and stylistic training as separate activities, the ensemble explored how role clarity, rhythmic accuracy, balance, harmonic awareness, and spontaneous interaction could strengthen its established repertoire.
The work also demonstrated how an ensemble can preserve the structure of an arrangement while creating more space for individual initiative and group responsiveness.
Creating a System That Can Continue
In addition to leading the three-day workshop, Howes served as a consultant and advisor to the ensemble.
He developed a Standard Operating Procedures framework designed to support rehearsal, performance, and individual practice after the residency ended.
The framework establishes shared terminology and repeatable systems for:
- Rotating musical roles
- Practicing rhythmic and harmonic forms
- Working in different ensemble configurations
- Developing improvisation and arranging abilities
- Creating groove without a traditional rhythm section
- Breaking complex skills into smaller, measurable elements
- Moving between sectional, small-group, and full-ensemble practice
The materials were adapted from methods Howes has developed through Creative Strings and his curriculum for teaching eclectic styles, improvisation, harmony, and contemporary musicianship.
The objective was not to make the ensemble dependent on a visiting instructor. It was to give the musicians tools they could continue using on their own.
“The goal is to establish a shared musical language,” Howes said. “A successful residency should create immediate results, but it should also leave behind a process that continues functioning after the teacher has gone.”
Supporting Long-Term Cultural Change
Martin described the residency as part of a longer-term vision for strengthening morale, interpersonal connection, creativity, and musical versatility within the Army Strings.
That vision includes developing newer members who can carry a culture of jamming, improvisation, and arranging into the ensemble’s future leadership.
The emphasis on creative participation also gives more musicians an opportunity to contribute ideas. Instead of creativity residing only with a conductor or arranger, individual players can take greater responsibility for the musical result.
This does not mean abandoning structure or professional standards. It means creating musicians who can operate effectively both within a detailed arrangement and in situations that require greater independence.
What This Means for Music Education
Although the U.S. Army Strings operate in a specialized professional environment, the questions behind the residency are relevant throughout string education.
How can classically trained musicians become more confident playing without written music?
How can an orchestra develop a stronger sense of groove?
How can musicians learn to arrange, accompany, improvise, and make decisions together?
How can an ensemble become more adaptable without sacrificing precision?
How can teachers introduce jazz, blues, folk, Latin, rock, and other styles with greater authenticity?
These questions are central to the work of Creative Strings.
The same core methods used during the Army Strings residency can be adapted to professional ensembles, universities, school orchestra programs, private studios, youth ensembles, and individual musicians.
Creative Strings programs include:
- Professional development for orchestra and string teachers
- School and university residencies
- Ensemble coaching and institutional consulting
- Improvisation and arranging workshops
- Creative Strings summer workshops
- Online classes and guided practice programs
- Curriculum and training resources for educators
Preparing Musicians for Today’s Musical World
Modern musicians are increasingly expected to perform across stylistic boundaries, work in changing ensemble configurations, learn music quickly, and contribute creatively.
Technical excellence and music-reading ability remain essential. But they are only part of complete musicianship.
Musicians also need rhythmic fluency, harmonic understanding, stylistic awareness, confidence, adaptability, and the ability to listen and make meaningful choices.
When a professional ensemble with demanding public-service responsibilities invests in improvisation, arranging, and stylistic fluency, it reinforces an important point: these abilities are not optional extras. They are practical skills for the musical world as it exists today.
The U.S. Army Strings residency demonstrated how creative music training can strengthen individual musicians while also building a more cohesive, responsive, and versatile ensemble.
It also affirmed the larger mission of Creative Strings: helping string players and educators move beyond simply reproducing what is written on the page and become more confident, creative, resilient, and fully engaged musical artists.
Bring Creative Strings to Your School or Organization
Christian Howes and Creative Strings offer customized programs for professional ensembles, universities, schools, orchestra programs, conferences, private studios, and arts organizations.
Programs can include single-day workshops, multi-day residencies, educator professional development, ensemble coaching, curriculum consulting, improvisation training, arranging instruction, and combined educational and performance events.
Learn more about bringing a Creative Strings training or residency to your organization at CreativeStrings.org.
About Christian Howes
Christian Howes is a violinist, educator, composer, and founder of Creative Strings. His teaching helps string players develop improvisation, harmony, rhythmic fluency, arranging abilities, stylistic versatility, and greater confidence as creative musicians.
Through performances, residencies, teacher training, curriculum development, online education, and Creative Strings workshops, Howes has worked with musicians and educators seeking to expand what string playing and string education can encompass.
About Creative Strings
Creative Strings provides training and resources for violinists, violists, cellists, bassists, fiddlers, teachers, and ensembles interested in improvisation, harmony, contemporary styles, and creative musicianship.
Its programs help musicians develop practical abilities that complement traditional classical training while building greater confidence, adaptability, and connection through music.
