Cochlear Implants

            As a musician, the ability to hear is… crucial.  If pressed to name a deaf musician, most people would say Ludwig van Beethoven or another noteworthy composer or performer much later in their respective careers.  Very few could name someone who lost their hearing at a very young age.  This is because listening to and especially making music rely incredibly on hearing.  This is not to say that deaf people do not listen to or appreciate music.  In fact, the opposite is quite true; most people who are profoundly deaf can still enjoy music and dance because they can feel the music vibrations.  People who are deaf can also enjoy music through signed song.  For some, deafness is not a permanent condition.

            A cochlear implant is a surgically implanted electronic device that grants a person who is profoundly deaf, or severely hard of hearing, with a sense of sound.  Although the quality of sound may be different from natural hearing, patients are able to hear and understand speech, environmental sounds and even enjoy music!  The effects of this technology can be life-changing.  I cannot imagine what it must be like to sense sound for the first time, let alone hear music.  Below is a video of such an experience as a two-year-old hears his mother’s voice for the first time thanks to a cochlear implant.

Smart Board: An Amazing Teaching Tool

             As I reflected on my post about assistive technology and as I completed my final project, I was continually drawn to the Smart Board.  My first encounter with the technology was as a student in high school.  At the time, I was amazed at the sheer cool-ness of an interactive projection screen.  That being said, my teachers who were fortunate enough to have a Smart Board in their classroom rarely used them as more than a projection screen and saved the interactive capabilities for rare gimmick-driven occurrences.  Reflecting on the Smart Board through a pedagogical scope has both shown that my teachers missed an opportunity to enhance their lessons and informed my conclusion that Smart Boards deserve a place in almost any classroom.  The Smart Board is less of an accessory and more a valuable resource to enrich the learning environment.  Because it projects images, produces sound, and is interactive it collectively caters to visual, auditory and tactile learners.  How often can one technology provide so much?  An immediately example of the Smart Board’s application to music education that comes to mind is an adaptation of one of the technologies I referenced in my post about assistive technology.  I explained that some sort of Velcro board for placing notes on a staff would be an excellent example assistive technology.  The smart board could take this idea a step further by making the notes and staff completely digital.  This way, one could ultimately save or print whatever the student composes through this system.   I imagine that with the appropriate program, one could even have the student compose using the “drag and drop” idea and have the computer “perform” what they wrote.  This is only one example of the seemingly endless uses for this technology.

Final Project

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0As_udrC-Q8endERISEVaTU9YRTRSbkdoclJuWEFwclE&usp=sharing

 

            For this matrix, I analyzed a lesson for beginning recorder that I worked with in CURR 310 (Inclusion Module).  It is important to note that the unmodified plan was intended for 9^th grade, but had unreasonably low expectations and objectives.  Therefore, I have treated the lesson as though it was intended for a 3^rd grade general music class.  In this lesson, the students will learn basic recorder technique as well as how to read very basic notation.  The lesson culminates with group performances of “Hot Cross Buns” with teacher accompaniment on piano.

 1.         I will begin the lesson by introducing the instrument to the class.  After demonstrating the basic technique of how to hold the record and produce a sound, I will use the Smart Board to display an interactive recorder fingering chart.  Using the chart, I will explain the fingerings for the notes G, A, and B and demonstrate the way they sound.  At this point, students will have the opportunity to experiment with their instruments.  Based on NJCCC Music Standard 1.1.5.B.2, the students will begin to explore the elements of music as they apply to their recorder playing.  They will specifically focus on pitch and timbre at this point in the lesson.  Also, the students will be utilizing the interactive fingering chart (simulation) to explore the complex system of how to produce the appropriate sound on their instruments as per NETS 1.c.

 2.         As students become comfortable holding and operating their recorders, I will introduce basic notation for the three notes we have covered and also introduce rhythmic values for those notes.  Again, this will all be shown on the Smart Board.  After playing a simple melody from the Smart Board, student volunteers will have the opportunity to build their own melody (drag and drop) for the class using the notes and rhythms we have covered.  Next, I will create a new melody for the students to practice in small groups.  In these groups, students will use Garage Band (or similar recording software) to record and evaluate their own playing as they practice.  This step is aligned with NJCCC Music Standard 1.3.2.B.1 as the students will be “play[ing] on pitch from basic notation in the treble clef, with consideration of pitch, rhythm, dynamics, and tempo.”  Because of the Garage Band element, this step incorporates NETS 2.a. “Interact, collaborate… with peers… employing a variety of digital environments and media.”

 3.         In this step, students will be given sheet music for the song “Hot Cross Buns.”  I will facilitate group and individual practice of the piece through a variety of strategies.  We will continue to enrich the practicing by recording and evaluating using Garage Band and also utilizing a metronome to maintain time.  This step aligns to NJCCC Music Standard 1.3.2.B.6 as the students will be learning a more complex melody and working in groups and individually.  Students will be given the opportunity to use Garage Band again during this step as per NETS 6.b.

 4.         At this point, the class will finally perform the piece.  Students will perform in groups as I accompany them on the piano.  By using a MIDI keyboard, I can employ a variety of different sounds as well as provide a rhythmic accompaniment.  This is important for the purpose of variety but will also open up a dialogue about texture based on the keyboard sounds.  Again, students will “Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media.”  After successfully performing the song in groups, individuals will have the opportunity improvise (using the notes they are familiar with) over the basic harmonies of the song.  Improvisation is one of the more overlooked abilities in this sort of setting and is also featured in the national and state standards.  NJCCC Music Standard 1.3.2.B.5 indicates that students will “Improvise short tonal and rhythmic patterns over ostinatos, and modify melodic or rhythmic patterns using selected notes and/or scales to create expressive ideas.”

 5.         Finally, as a homework assignment, students will continue to practice the three notes covered in class by working with a parent or other adult.  Students will also need to continue to practice “Hot Cross Buns” at home as well.  Students can optionally record their performances using a portable recording device.  They will also be encouraged to play along with one of several prerecorded accompaniments that I will have uploaded to Youtube.  Students will continue to harness their skills at home utilizing the standards featured in previous steps.

Assistive Technology for Music Education

            Assistive technology refers to assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices for people with disabilities.  Personally, it only seems right that everyone have the opportunity to somehow participate in music; it is a human right.  Also, federal laws such as IDEA 2004, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ensure that students with special needs have equal access to education.  Therefore, it is no surprise that there is a wide range of resources available to increase the accessibility of music making.

            Based on the definition of assistive technology, one of the simplest examples that would help in music composition (or any context) is a pencil with a specialized grip for the student.  Another useful tool when teaching composition is a Velcro type board that allows students to physically place notes on a staff.  Musical instruments are an entire world of assistive technology.  These range from instruments such as the bells that are inherently accessible to students with motor skills issues to adaptations for existing instruments such as a trombone slide extender.  Further innovative examples include music reading devices that make music reading easier by magnifying and adjusting the brightness of scanned images.  These devices even include the ability to “write” on scores with a special stylus and have a foot pedal page turning option.  Another very interesting device in the Soundbeam, which maps body movement to sound production.  Regardless of how simple or advanced, assistive technology is a necessity in music education.

Jazz Festival Technology

            Two weeks ago, I attended the Princeton Jazz Festival.  It was a two day event held at Princeton High School that featured numerous middle school and high school jazz ensembles.  I went to the second night of the festival to see the high school bands.  While I was there, I was rather surprised by the extensive use of technology by both the performers and adjudicators.

            Some of the innovative technologies in use at the festival were the kinds that are always present in a contemporary big band.  This includes microphones and amps for the musicians on stage.  One of the most obvious technologies that I immediately noticed were the two large screens on either side of the stage with a live projection of the performers on stage.  Two cameras were stationed at either side of the stage and were operated by high school students throughout the performance.  I thought this was a great way to make the festival a cross-curricular event.  The most astonishing example of technology in use at the event, however, did not involve the students at all.

            Each of the three judges responsible for evaluating each group and their performance was equipped with a laptop and a smartpen.  Although a laptop is not particularly noteworthy, it is worth mentioning that the judges’ comments and scores were instantly sent to the control room where a fourth official collaborated and printed the results for the individual bands.  As for the smartpen technology, I still have not recovered from how cool it was!  The judges simply pressed the record button that was printed on their special notebooks and were able to take notes and simultaneously record verbal commentary; both of which were included in the packages given to each band at the end of the event.  It was expedient, efficient and very impressive!

Hooktheory

            Back in September, a friend of mine sent me a link to a blog titled “I analyzed the chords of 1300 popular songs for patterns. This is what I found.”  Although it is written in a somewhat conversational manner, the research and results posted by Dave Carlton are some of the most in-depth, serious and accessible about popular music available.  The first part of the study explores the popularity of certain chords; this includes the most popular keys pieces are written in followed by the most popular chords.  The second part of the study seeks to answer, based on statistics, “What chord should come next?”  This section takes any chord and provides the frequency that any other chord follows it based on the 1300 songs.  Since my original visit to the site however, the project has grown into a larger community of popular song analysis.

            This is a wonderful project with regard to music education; especially music theory.  Like almost any subject, one of the main factors that determines a student’s interest is relevance.  This is certainly true for music theory.  The Hooktheory website is a user friendly database that using music theory skills and applies them to understand popular music.  Not only is it simply interesting, it would also serve as an excellent teaching tool.

            You can learn more about Hooktheory and explore the analyses at: http://www.hooktheory.com/

Thinking Back to Music Technology

            After posting about the EAMIR project, I couldn’t help but think back to my experience in Music Technology class.  Almost all of the teaching apps available through EAMIR were created using a program known as Max/MSP/Jitter (which are the three programming languages).  We spent a majority of the second half of the semester focusing on Max.  I found the program and its capabilities to be captivating.  It is rather user friendly and relies heavily on MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) data.  For my final project, I chose to work with Max to develop an interactive begin trumpet method book.

            The early pages of the book cover the basics of holding the instrument and producing sound.  One of the fundamental aspect of producing sound on the trumpet is setting up your embouchure (the muscles around your mouth).  In order to demonstrate this, I made a patch that corresponded to a page in the book about the way your lips should look before playing the trumpet.  This consisted of a series of (rather silly) pictures of me demonstrating the wrong and right ways to accomplish this next to a live webcam stream of the student so that they can compare.  The second patch I made is called “Instant Accompaniment.”  As the name suggests, it provides the student with a basic accompaniment to practice along with.  The accompaniment is limit to drum tracks but student have the options of Latin, Rock, or Hip Hop in three different tempos.  It was fun and rewarding to use Max to create a resource I can utilize in the future.