Group items tagged

"Music education has scratched the surface of integrating technology into elementary ensembles. I provide explanations and demonstrations of the potential of using various technologies to improve students' performance inside and outside the classroom. "

This YouTube playlist contains digital instruments and/or hybrid setups/ensembles.

Scorch is a free software that students can use to play along with music created in Sibelius. It works in your browser and doesn't require students to have Sibelius. I used this as a practice tool for my elementary students and even for my high school students as it allowed them to play along with MIDI at a speed of their choice.

You can use the share function on EverNote to create a note that can be shared with parents or students. This can be used with private students by giving them a private link where you jot down what they are supposed to prepare for next time, how much money is on their balance, or what was discussed during the lesson. It can also be used with larger audiences to communicate homework, upcoming performances etc.. This allows you to update the notes using your phone rather than having to send out an e-mail or posting on a website.

I believe this video is an excellent represenation of what is possible through STEM/STEAM. Onyx Ashanti describes and demonstrates the digital instrument he created.

This video demonstrates using a loop pedal with an electric cello.

SmartMusic has a lot of great resources built into the program to assist with assessment and feedback; however, it is also limited in that it is a computer determining pitch and rhythmic accuracy. While this feedback is better than none, I caution educators who use this as the only form of assessment and feedback. I personally think there is more to music than pitch and rhythm and I think that technology should encourage students to think as musicians rather than simply telling students when they are and are not musical based on two criteria.

Watch this brief video for a demonstration of how to use Evernote to easily communicate with students/parents.

A brief tutorial on how to use SoundCloud for collaboratively generated feedback/assessment in Music Education.

Joy Tunes is a music video game for recorder or for piano; however, any instrument can be used with a microphone and a computer to control the characters and play the various levels created. There is a free portion of the game with the option to buy more levels. Some of the levels can develop ear training while others levels develop reading notation.

Noteflight allows you to write music online and embed the music as play along files on your website/blog. The service is free to use and does not require software to create the files (unlike Scorch and SmartMusic).

This is a great app that allows you to do side-by-side comparisons of video along with visual and audio annotations that can be sent to students. Check out my YouTube demonstration for a better understanding of how to use this in a music education setting.

"A brief demonstration of how Coaches Eye can be used in music education settings."

A brief demonstration on how to use Diigo groups to collaborate with other music educators.