Great Composition App for Music Students & Mashups

One of my music students found a great FREE online application today while trying to make a mashup.  They wanted to find the tempo bpm of a song and the key it was in, so searched for an app and found HookTheory.com  This application will do that plus a whole lot more.  They have a beginner music composition music theory ibook for purchase at $14.95 as well as two wonderful online applications that are totally FREE.  This interface is slick and easy to use and it will even create a notated score using western notation and even tabs if needed.  Composing is simple and fun.  Everything is colour coded and the application will even suggest chords to go with your melody.  Checkout THEORY TAB for composing.  The snap shot below gives you an idea of how everything look.  Pretty straight ahead and if you have trouble figuring things out there is an online manual with video tutorials.  CHECK IT OUT YOURSELF ONLINE.  

 

Learning How to Play Guitar by Playing a Game

String Wars is a game that can be played using a real guitar

“The most enjoyable and effective way to learn guitar!”

So many of us are gamers and love music as well.  Stringwars is a great way to do both at the same time.  I can see it being a tremendous boost for getting students to practice.  When we are having fun learning it doesn’t seem like practice.  I unfortunately do not play guitar myself but I am going to get my students to try it out and see what they think.  You can even record your performance for assessment.  Great fun!  Learn to play guitar and enjoy music.  Try out String Wars

Great Online Free Music Concerts – the Tiny Desktop Concerts

  NPR is one of my favorite places for music education. They have some many great programs and one of them that is just so much fun is their “Tiny Desktop Concert” series.  These programs are recorded live in acoustic style from the desktops of the NPR staff.  Fun concept that has created some phenomenal music performances that may otherwise have never come about.

Guitar, Bass, and Drum Backing Tracks for Assessment

I have had trouble assessing my rhythm section players when they play with other instruments as part of a band as the other parts are either wrong or too loud.  One of my guitarists found a solution online at “Songsterr”.  It offers a music minus one platform for guitar, bass, and drums.  They also have rhythm tracks.  This solution has been great.  It gives the students something to practice with as well as if you become a member it will also let you mix and slow down the tracks.  So you can make the drums louder or softer depending on the situation.

They also offer quite an extensive lesson section that teaches how to play different styles as well.   The music library is spot on for today’s youth and includes many of the favorites.  Check it out at “Songsterr”

Cool New MIDI Instrument – Percussa Audio Blocks

Audio Blocks is one of the coolest new instruments I have seen.  These look like so much fun.  Audio Blocks by Percussa are a new MIDI instrument that you can input your own samples to create completely original and new compositions of your own.

I wish they were a bit cheaper to buy.  A set of four blocks runs around $600 US.  A little steep.

Here is some info from their site.

Improvisor is a MIDI sequencer application which plays back multiple step sequences with up to 64 steps in length.

Each sequence is entered using velocity and semitone patterns, relative to a root note.

Semitone patterns can be played back using different velocity patterns or the other way around.

Semitone patterns can follow each other, which means they will add to each other’s relative semitone steps.

By drawing your own semitone and velocity patterns, and making patterns follow each other, you can create completely new melodies, which you didn’t imagine before!

Why All Leaders Should Take Conducting Lessons

I came across this interesting list while learning more about conducting on the site developed by Michael Hyatt on leadership skills.  Give it a read. It made my heart sing!  🙂  The original article is found here. Give it a good read and see if you agree.

8 Things Leaders Can Learn from Symphony Conductors

Saturday night, Gail and I went to the Nashville Symphony with our daughter, Mary, and her husband, Chris. Mary had bought tickets for Gail’s birthday. It was a magnificent evening.

The orchestra was conducted by the renowned Hugh Wolff. He and the orchestra performed Beethovan’s Concerto No. 4 in G major for Piano and Orchestra. Horacio Guitiérrez played the piano. After the intermission, the orchestra performed Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances, Op. 45.

We are privileged to have seats on the second row. I was less than 20 feet from Hugh Wolff. I was fascinated just watching him lead the orchestra. Toward the end of the evening, it occurred to me that conducting and leading have a lot in common:

1. The conductor starts with a great score. Conductors have a plan. They start with a musical score and a clear idea of how it should sound. Only then do they attempt to recreate in real time their musical “vision.”
2. The conductor recruits the very best players. Great conductors attract great players. Mediocre conductors attract mediocre players. The very best players want to work for the very best conductors. Like attracts like.

READ MORE HERE

Question: How do these items relate to leadership? What else can we learn from conductors?

Please go here to read the original article and find out more about this site on Leadership.

Online Music Lessons – ZipLesson

Zip Lesson
Online music lessons have never been easier
ZipLesson provides teachers and students the ability to connect through live, real-time videoconferencing with zero hassle. Simply find a teacher, select a time, and reserve a lesson. It’s as simple as that.
Effortless scheduling

ZipLesson’s unique scheduling and payment system allows you to find a teacher whose schedule fits yours. All lesson times are displayed in your time zone, so even if your teacher is halfway around the world, you’ll know exactly when to meet.
How does it work?
Find a time on your teacher’s calendar that works for you. Once your teacher confirms she’s still available, you can pay for your lesson with a credit card or PayPal account. Then, when it’s time for your lesson, just click the Skype button associated with your lesson to call your teacher.
How much does ZipLesson cost?
Student accounts on ZipLesson are free. All you pay is your teacher’s lesson fee. It’s also free for teachers to sign up and start teaching. Teachers pay a small service charge for each lesson they teach.

WONDERFUL Elementary Music Resources for FREE

Making Music Fun is a great set of free downloadable resources for Elementary music teachers. Worksheets, Classical composers, Listening, Lesson ideas, Resources, find a word, Youtubes, and printable theory and certificates. All for FREE. No strings. GREAT stuff!

Teaching Rock Songs can get Students Rockin!

I read an interesting article about a “new” idea on how teaching rock to young people is a wonderful way for them to get interested in learning music. I am not sure how “new” this idea is but it does make sense. I started using Rock Band software on a PlayStation with my grade 6 students a few years ago and it got them all playing their favorite songs on drums, guitar, keyboard, and singing as well.

We use to teach common folk songs to get kids interested. Why don’t we update the situation to include current material rather than the same songs as when our parents were kids. Makes sense that their would be more interest if the songs were more current.

You can read the article called “Rock is not the Enemy” and make your own call, Rock Is Not the Enemy By DAVID BORNSTEIN

Great Music Resources for the Classroom

I have been making my own resources for a while now because I had a hard time finding published materials I was happy with. I finally found a great site called FUN Music Company. They have so many great resources and they fit the way I work because I can download them as digital files and print off whenever I want. Fun Music Company has a wide variety of materials to choose from. Everything from great printable theory books of all levels. Great for grades 6 through 12. They also have course materials for Rock & Roll, Instruments of the Orchestra, Jazz & Blues, Composers, World Music and more.

And, they are very reasonable priced for the quality and quantity of worksheets, assessments, lessons, workbooks, listening suggestions, log books, etc. etc.
Check out Fun Music Company and see what you think.