Homework: listen, survey, comment

This must be complete by Thursday morning at 10 a.m
You will listen to the following four recordings (2 songs, each in two versions), then choose which you think is ‘best’ via the surveymonkey link, and finally comment as to why you chose the A or B versions of each song.
You’ll hear more about this in [...]

Required Comment 2: Reflect on the two assignments

Please take a moment and comment on the Audacity and GarageBand assignments. How would you revise them? What was the biggest challenge? What did you enjoy? How much do you like your final compositions?
You don’t need to answer all of these, but do take a bit of time to reflect on and comment on those [...]

CAI in Music Education

This week we’ll be investigating several CAI (computer-assisted instruction) resources that teachers use in music. Under the category of intelligent accompaniment, we will take a look at SmartMusic (http://www.smartmusic.com/) which is made by MakeMusic; the company that makes Finale. We will also look at Sibelius’ new counterpart called Starplay (http://www.starplaymusic.com). The different uses of these [...]

Homework: Record Effect reading

One of my absolute favorite pieces by one of the best music writers currently working (Alex Ross, music critic for the New Yorker) is a review of books looking at recorded music:
http://www.therestisnoise.com/2005/05/music_and_machi.html
Please read this article before class on Tuesday. For us, the issue is making sense of the impact recording makes upon music (and music [...]

Assignments: Remix and Musique Concrète

These two assignments must be done before class on April 15 (we will listen to them in class on that day!). You will have some time in class today and some on Tuesday, but most of this assignment should be completed outside of class.
Audacity help and tutorials here: http://audacityteam.org/wiki/index.php?title=Audacity_Wiki_Home_Page
We will also look at several artists [...]

Horns and Politics

Here’s the link to the in-class survey:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=urph0nnZVJ2H7bd8UIbfTA_3d_3d
In the mean time, I visited NYC for the conference of the American Educational Research Association, but also stopped by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which has an amazing musical instrument collection, including this beautiful horn:

Political spots: a few examples

Here are just a few examples to watch to get a sense of music in political ads, from some candidates no longer running:
John Edwards goes straight for the heart strings of the Heartland, with music to boot:

Ron Paul (well, I guess he’s still running) covers a lot of ground with a [...]

Brief Reminder: Homework!

We have homework due this Thursday. You will only have 10 minutes at the beginning of class for finalizing things you couldn’t figure out outside of class and for printing.
If you have you piece finished before class, please bring the printed copy with you so that the printer cue isn’t too full.
Coming Attractions: Tchaik 5…

Homework for next Thursday and Lessig for fun

You have a notation assignment due next Thursday! You will be proofreading a piece for digital publication.
If you missed class, email Matt for a description and tune assignment!
And now for something completely different:
Haven’t had enough about creative rights yet? An amazing 20-minute presentation by Lawrence Lessig was recently forwarded to me, entitled “How creativity is [...]

Quick read and comment

The New York Times has an interesting summary of a research study on the content of popular music as it relates to drugs:
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/05/under-the-influence-ofmusic/
Please give it a quick read and comment. What do you think? Has music influenced your own behavior or those around you in negative or positive ways?
Here’s the actual study if you’re interested:
http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/162/2/169