Blog Post #4

This week I learned about using technology to facilitate the performance of music in the music classroom and some technical aspects of digital and analog recording and sound reinforcement.

Technology in Music Education

In this week’s chapter, Bauer describes different ways technology can be used to facilitate the performance of music in the school setting.  Using notation software to create ensemble warm-ups and using a recording program to visually display dynamic contrast are two suggestions I found interesting.

During the warm-up and fundamentals portion of a band rehearsal, Bauer suggests allowing each section of the band to play the melodic figures from the performance literature in unison.  The instructor could use a music notation program to transcribe the melody, or other important lines,  for all instruments.  Playing in unison will allow instruments without the melody to better understand the phrasing of the line.  In addition, the understanding of the line can help with balance issues in full band rehearsal.  The students may develop more of a connection to the piece if each are given the opportunity to play and learn the “important” or “main” part of the piece.

I already create warm-ups for my students based on the content required by our curriculum using Finale and Noteflight.  Thus, adding an additional component of unison melodic playing derived from the performance literature would be easy and most likely beneficial.   I can imagine my bass clarinet and trombone players being quite excited to play something other than the long value notes and rhythmic support roles they usually play in class.  I can also imagine my students actually practicing the melodic portion since it might be more fun to play and be recognizable to a listener.

Bauer suggests using a recording program like Audacity to visually show the ensemble the waveform of their music performance.  This visual representation of the sound can help show the students the amount of dynamic contrast the ensemble is actually creating.  My ensembles struggle with dynamic contrast.  Some of my students believe they are performing dynamics well, but in reality their dynamic range is very limited.  Using the visual as a guide, we could strive to show more dynamic contrast in the waveform.

I use technology to enhance our music learning experience.  I use recording, tuning and metronome apps and music playback apps in my classroom on a daily basis.  In addition, I create etudes and warm-ups for my students using notation software.  My middle level students use Noteflight for composition.  These technologies help the students perform, create and respond to music more easily.  We could, of course, do each of these things without new technology, but since we do have access, why not use it?  In my situation, each student has equal access to all the technology we use in class.  I can imagine access to the technology to be the main constraint for other teachers.

Technical Aspects

Audacity

This week’s composition assignment was to make a remix of a song using the open-source Audacity waveform editing software.  The Lynda tutorials and the related example problems allowed me to gain an understanding of this program.  I can imagine using Audacity to edit sound files by cutting portions out, changing the tempo or pitch and adding effects to create more interesting or more appropriate sound files for my students.

This week I learned about the following technical items:

1. Microphones
2.  Audio Input/Output
3.  Mixers
4.  Computers and Audio
5.  Digital Audio Software
6. Editing
7. Audio File Compression

Right now, I am responsible for setting up, purchasing and maintaining all of the audio equipment for our middle level instrumental music program.  So far, I feel like I’ve done an adequate job without any training or expertise.  After this week, I am very excited to get to school and begin working with our mixing board and microphones.  I know our next concert will be so much better, just because I now understand more about the different types of microphones and how to place them.  Also, I now understand how a mixing board works.  Prior to this week, I was overwhelmed with the number of knobs and dials.  Now I realize what everything means, and feel much more comfortable.

Blog Post #3

This week I learned about composition in the music classroom and some technical aspects of working with music creation hardware and software.  In addition, I interacted with my Personal Learning Network (PLN).

Composition in the Music Classroom

Some music education researchers suggest the composition of music is the highest form of musical self-expression.  If this is the case, guiding students through the compositional process should be an important factor in school music education.  

There are two basic approaches to music composition in the classroom.  The first involves composing using traditional music notation with the other does not use notation, instead the composer manipulates loops, MIDI and digital audio files to compose music.

Each of these two approaches to composition can be integrated with music technology.  Traditional notation advocates can use notation programs like Finale, Notepad, MuseScore or Noteflight to allow their students to compose music.  Traditional notation can help develop music literacy and connect the notation system to sounds produced by the software.  Some teachers believe this approach to composition is valuable since it helps to reinforce the reading ability traditional musicians use in practice and performance.  In addition, the students can learn to create music that other people can play on real, acoustic instruments.  

The use of Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs) can help students compose who are not adept at using or reading traditional music notation.  These programs, like GarageBand or Soundation Studio, allow students to manipulate audio files and loops to create music without the need for traditional notation.  Advocates of this approach believe students should be able to compose music even if music notation is a mystery.  Many of these teachers are interested in teaching and working with students who are not serviced by the traditional music ensembles offered in most schools.  

In my situation, I ask students to compose using traditional music notations software.  We have purchased a Noteflight license for each middle school instrumental music student in our district.  We worked with a guest composition professor to guide the students through a composition exercise involving creating question and answer phrases between two different instruments.  The phrases were accompanied by a simple ostinato figure.  The students used Noteflight to transcribe their initial phrase and then to compose the ostinato figure.  For those students who are interested, we offer a “Composition Club” on Friday mornings during second semester.  In this club, we present a short 5-minute lesson about some aspect of theory or composition technique.  Then, the students are free to work with the Noteflight software to create music.  We walk around the room helping students with technical and compositional problems or questions.  At the end of each period, we present one student composition.  At the end of the semester, each student chooses one composition to feature in a recital.

Bauer offers 12 teaching strategies I will use during my composition classes and during our weekly Composition Club meetings.  Some I already use, and others I intend to implement are:

4.  Ask the student to describe and explain the composition.

5.  Question the composers purpose and intention behind compositional decisions.

8.  Prompt the student to self-analyze his or her work.  

11.  Provide reassurance.  

In addition, focusing on only one aspect of the composition instead of many can be more helpful for a student.  

The musical creativity of our composition students using traditional notation software is limited by their ability to read, understand and manipulate traditional music notation.   Thus, the student can only do what he or she knows how to notate.  Many of the compositional questions we receive in class are questions about how to notate a specific rhythm or how to notate a particular performance technique.  One benefit of these questions is that once the students learn how to notate something, they may transfer that knowledge to the performance of that notation in our music ensembles.  Interestingly, after reviewing 6/8 time in my class, many of my students experimented with compositions in 6/8!

Technical Aspects of Music Technology Hardware and Software

This week I watched numerous video lessons regarding Sound and Digital Audio, Digital Audio Workstations, Cables and Connectors, Computers and Audio and MIDI technology.  

Some of my key learnings from these videos:

1.  Frequency and amplitude.  

2.  Analog vs. Digital Sound

3.  Sample Rate and Bit Rate

4.  How a DAW can be set-up.

5.  The different cables used in audio recording and production.

6.  The importance of a fast computer.

7.  How MIDI works and how it can be manipulated in software.

Though none of this information was difficult to understand, it was not information I had been exposed to.  Recently, while working as a pit orchestra conductor for school and semi-professional theaters, I have been asked to set-up the pit orchestra’s synthesizers, MIDI boxes and direct line instruments.  This week I learned what each of the cables I had plugged in was actually called and what it did!  Very interesting and useful.

PLN Interactions

Again this week I explored Feedly, other websites, Twitter and Google+ to find information to share with others.  Though I am enjoying using Twitter and Feedly, I still feel disconnected from Google+.  I will attempt this week to work more with this social networking site to explore its potential.  

After the first few weeks, I am noticing more or my classmates posting and sharing information.  Since we are all using many of the same sources of information, I sometimes find myself racing to post information before someone else beats me to it!  I know it is not a competition, but with limited sources (so far) and many participants, stories can be scarce.  My goal this week will be to search for new information sites and share these with my classmates.  The more information we have access to, the better.

Blog Post #2

Blog Post #2 

This week I learned about MIDI technology, studied the creative process in relation to improvisation and worked with two different music notation programs.  In addition, I interacted with my Personal Learning Network (PLN).

MIDI

Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) is a set of digital instructions which tell a MIDI instrument when and what to play.  The MIDI file is not an actual music file, but just directions for an MIDI compatible instrument.  The instructions can tell the instrument which note, sound, volume and other effects to perform.  The files are small and thus can be transferred easily to other musicians.  In addition, since the file is only instructions, the file can be easily altered to correct rhythm (quantizing), correct pitches or change the sounds produced.  Today, most MIDI files are General MIDI, which means the instructions can be used to control different brands of instruments and different computer programs to produce similar sounds. 

An understanding of the basic mechanics of MIDI instruments and files can help a music educator work with students in a composition setting.  The MIDI instruments can be connected to a computer running a notation program.  The MIDI instrument could be used as an input device.  Also, the notation program can produce or create a MIDI file for transfer to other instruments for playback and editing. 

I have used my understanding of MIDI to set-up our music computer lab and to troubleshoot problems with our input and notation hardware and software.  The students in our Music Theory I and AP Music Theory classes use the computer lab and the Finale notation software to complete part writing assignments.  The use of MIDI keyboards is an important part of these classes.  Though the students do not have to understand how this technology works, they do have to have working technology.  Thus, we as teachers must understand how to set-up and fix these devices.  We have used both USB inputs and MIDI to USB converter boxes for use in our lab.  Depending on the devices used, we have to be able to troubleshoot for our students. I have also used my understanding of MIDI to connect keyboard synthesizers to sound modules for use in our musicals.  An understanding of MIDI is necessary for proper connection and use. 

The Creative Process and Improvisation

Teaching students to be creative thinkers and creative musicians is an important part of music education.  Though many people believe creativity is a mysterious concept and only a few people are capable of creativity, researchers have described many different types of creativity and outlined the steps of the creative process.  This research can provide a guideline for educators to follow while guiding our students through their own creative processes and help them recognize that creativity is a process which can be practiced and utilized by all. 

The four stages of The Creative Process according to Graham Wallas are:

1.      Preparation

2.      Incubation

3.      Illumination

4.      Verification

In relation to improvisation, these four stages can be outlined for the students by the music teacher.  Stage one, Preparation, involves acquiring the technique and theoretical knowledge necessary to understand the process of improvising.  This could include the understanding of chord structure, musical style, posture, and fingerings, in addition to many other aspects.  Stage Two, Incubation, involves stepping away from the problem (improvisation) and allowing the knowledge from stage one to become internalized and connect to the problem.  Stage Three, Illumination, involves the sudden solution to the problem.  In this situation, illumination would be the trial and error process of improvisation when the technique learned in stage one and the internalization from stage two come together to allow for an improvised musical idea.  Stage Four, Verification, is a performance for an audience.  The audience can give feedback and this feedback can be used to improve the performance. 

After 12 years of working with a high school jazz band and years of playing in college and high school, I am just starting to feel comfortable with how I am helping my students learn to improvise.  I think the most important thing we’ve developed is a culture of experimentation and acceptance.  The students are willing to try things and make mistakes.  We also try to reflect upon each solo.  What do we like?  What could the soloist do differently? For each jazz tune we work on, I have every student write a solo that follows the changes.  During rehearsal, each student will play their solo.  I remind them that even if they don’t know how to notate what they want to play, to write something that will help them remember what they want to do.  This has seemed to work well.  The solos tend to follow the chord progression, which is much more mature sounding than using a blues scale over everything.  In addition, the students hear each other play and borrow licks and rhythms from each other.  We also talk about building a solo with a clear beginning middle and end. 

In my concert bands I attempt to incorporate improvisation into our daily rehearsals.  During class warm-up and fundamental time, I ask the ensemble to perform a Major Scale (whichever key center is the focus for the week) for 8 beats per scale degree.  One section improvises using the root, 3^rd and 5^th of that scale degree.  This exercise is free improvisation in a small group setting using a changing diatonic chord structure. 

I also have created a few pentatonic accompaniment “licks” for my ensemble members.  Small groups of students work together to play these pre-composed accompaniments while other students improvise pentatonic solo lines over the top.

Notation Software

This week I worked with two different free notation software programs, Noteflight and Muscore.  Each of my middle school students has a subscription to Noteflight and we use this program for most of our class composition activities.  Unfortunately, since I have used Finale for the last 17 years, I did not take the time to learn this new software program with my students since I thought it was an inferior, student level product.  The tutorial I completed this week, displayed at the end of this blog post, helped me understanding the basics of this software notation system.  Friday morning, during our middle school “Composition Club” I was able to help these students troubleshoot their compositions much more effectively than I was able to previously.  Though I am more familiar with Finale, and still enjoy using it more, I appreciate the sharing capability of Notability.  I like that students can share their compositions with each other and can share the compositions seamlessly with the instructor.  Students no longer have to e-mail me .mus or .xml files which may or may not work on my computer.  Now, I can just open their files from my browser and make comments. 

MuseScore was another notation program I used this week.  The tutorial videos were very well done and helpful.  They walked me through the process of creating two musical examples.  One features I liked about MuseScore was the ability to “drag and drop” musical items into the score.  We used this feature when adding a repeat sign and an ending.  These are two of the more complicated simple Finale functions.  I like this “drag and drop” feature and hope Finale incorporates it into their program.  I also liked the simplicity of creating a decent sounding drum-set example.  Very simple and the drum sounds were nice.

One thing I liked about both programs was their ability to support .xml files.  Thus, I could create a file in Finale and open it in MuseScore or Noteflight.  In addition, files created in these free programs could be opened and edited in Finale.

Personal Learning Network

This week I used my Personal Learning Network (PLN) to connect with other music educators.  I found more organizations and music educators to follow on Twitter.  I learned about MT (modified tweets) and RT (retweets).  Though not music or education related, I also engaged in my first Twitter conversation.

I am enjoying reading articles through the Feedly service.  I am still thrilled I can get so much information sent directly to me instead of spending time searching for it.  As I said last week, I have used RSS services in the past, but never for specific information.  I was only using it for general news sites and college hockey stats and stories.  Using the subscription service for music education and music technology information has been useful.

I don’t feel as connected to Google+ as I do to Twitter or Feedly.  I will explore this site more in the next week and attempt to make a greater connection.  

Noteflight Example

Blog Post #1

• Describe the significance of technology in today's world and people's lives.

Technology is an important part of our lives.  Any tool, physical or a system, created to solve a problem is technology.  Thus, our daily experiences are shaped by technology in many forms; some so commonplace they are often disregarded as part of the definition.  William Bauer describes pencils and automobiles as technology, but narrows our focus to “computers and related digital tools that can be used to help humans develop an understanding of concepts and skills necessary to create, perform, and respond to music” (Bauer, 2014).

• Discuss the role of technology in general education.

Current students have been immersed in digital technology for most of their lives.  These “digital natives” use these tools instinctively to interact with their environment.  Most teachers have spent less time with these same tools, making them “digital immigrants” who may use technology well, but not as instinctively or in the same ways as their students.  Bauer compares these “digital immigrants” to non-native speakers of a foreign language.  Even though fluency can be achieved, an accent is usually present in speech.  Not everything is as natural as a native speaker. 

Thus, students use technology in their daily lives more fluently than adults.  Educators can harness this student knowledge by utilizing technology to deliver and manipulate content.  The technology used should not be used for the novelty, but should be used to actually deliver content in a better, more natural way than without it.   Currently, students use technology to interact with each other and to find and present information in their social lives.  We can use these same tools to enhance or change their schooling as well.

• Provide examples of Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) in music education.

On page 12, Bauer presents Mishra and Koehler’s TPACK figure to show his audience the importance of different types of knowledge in education.  The intersection of Technological Knowledge, Pedagogical Knowledge and Content Knowledge (TPACK) can result in using each area of knowledge to impact students in a meaningful way.

Bauer describes a TPACK music activity on page 15.  A music composition activity is developed for a general music class.  The teacher understands the music theory components well enough to teach beginning composition.  This demonstrates content knowledge (CK).  The teacher also understands how students learn and how to best deliver the content to the students.  This demonstrates pedagogical knowledge (PK).  The teacher also is aware of technological tools which can help the students use technology to discover and manipulate the content presented (TK).  In this instance, the teacher uses music notation software to help students notate and present their compositions.  This activity shows the confluence of these three knowledge areas in a music classroom to show TPACK. 

 Reproduced by permission of the publisher, © 2012 by tpack.org

• Establish a digital Personal Learning Network

In his article, “Your Personal Learning Network: Professional Development on Demand” (2010), Bauer describes a Personal Learning Network (PLN) and outlines the creation process.  A PLN can be established by using a RSS reader like Feedly to subscribe to RSS feeds from Blogs, Podcasts and other content providers.  The use of a RSS reader allows the user to use one online site to display chosen information instead of searching each individual site for content.  RSS readers and subscriptions allow the information to come to the user instead of the user looking for the information.  Twitter can also be used to follow content creators and interact with other interested parties. 

Bauer stresses consumption of online material is not enough to fully utilize a PLN.  The information should be reflected upon and original content should be created and shared with others in the PLN.  This will allow for more ideas and more information circulated in the PLN.

• Connections

The creation of my PLN was an interesting and exciting experience.  I have used RSS readers and subscription services in the past, but have not used them recently.  The amount of relevant information presented was great!  I liked not having to search multiple sites for information. 

I have had a Twitter account for years, but haven't used it for anything professional.  I wasn’t aware it was being used in a professional manner.  I follow local and national politicians, a few news services and a lot of trash (gossip, celebrities, sports, fake news, etc…).  I rarely created my own tweets and almost never retweeted anything.  After this week, I am looking forward to using this tool to become a better teacher. 

References

Bauer, W. I. (2010). Your Personal Learning Network: Professional Development on Demand. Music Educators Journal, 97(37), 37-42.

Bauer, W. I. (2014). Music Learning Today: Digital Pedagogy for Creating, Performing and Responding to Music. Oxford: Oxford University Press.