Week 3 begins and I was certainly glad that I listened to the lecture first before I read the textbook. I struggled a little understanding the new jargon of bit depth and sample rate. The redeeming information for me this week was the video of the John Lennon Education Bus. I am so envious of those students and the teachers of those students who have had the opportunity to work on that bus. It is really hard not to get excited about the idea of an entire tour bus dedicated to digital audio workstations as well as video production. Last week, when improvisation was discussed, I felt daunted by a subject area that I do not feel proficient in. I still feel that way this week, but the opportunity to work with professionals on this tour bus who are versed in this kind of technology and being at your side to create your own music video based on your own composition excited me!
So many students that I have had and have yet to have could really relate to these "real life" projects. So often in teaching students don't see the connection between what they are asked to do and how this will benefit them in the future. As this video showed, many of these students will never go on to be high paid music recording artists, but this gives them the opportunity to work with their musical group, organize themselves, and produce a product enhanced with technology. I can also see this project appealing to students because there is a career path in music and video production! Students that are interested in media, music, computers or cameras could really appreciate and thrive in this setting.
Another point that really struck me this week was the recurring theme of audiation versus notation. This argument was really first brought to my attention during my instrumental techniques class earlier in this Masters of Music Education program. As a student, I was taught that music literacy was the most important aspect of being a good musician and my teaching techniques reflected this. However, during the instrumental class a comparison was made that we don't expect children to read a book before they understand how the words sound (speech); so why do we expect young musicians to read music notation before they understand how it "should" sound? This really revolutionized the way I wanted to approach music literacy. Due to this argument, the idea of compositional software that assist students in creating music based on what they hear in their heads as opposed to producing sheet music that others can recreate the sound really interests me. I am looking forward to playing around with DAWs and learning how to compose music based on what I want to hear. I am nervous about our music creation project since I am still grounded in notation, but I am looking forward to learning a new way to teach and compose myself.
I wish I'd read this before I posted this week Sarah! The last paragraph has me very excited about some of my future courses. Creation before notation. The thing I become scared of is the "gray area" between the non-notational and literacy. I don't feel comfortable bridging that gap. Maybe that's a self-serving argument though... since when has music teaching really been about the teacher? If it helps the students, maybe I need to begin exploring a few more shades of gray between creation and notation/literacy.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your post!
Hi Sarah!
ReplyDeleteI too thought the video of the John Lennon Education Bus tour was very inspiring. Having engineers and videographers on hand must be very convenient when working with students, teaching them the basics of composing and arranging, not to mention the making of music videos. I am working on setting up a similar, stationary lab at the school where I work. I plan to post about it as things develop.
To your point about music literacy, I believe that it is important for students to understand those basics beyond using technology. If a student is not becoming proficient at his or her instrument, I fear the use of technology may be more of a hindrance than a help. Real musicianship (i.e. reading music, improvising, playing with proper technique and intonation, etc.) should remain a key factor when incorporating music technology into one's education regimen. Then students can really maximize the opportunity to incorporate technology.