The two articles about MIDI for orchestration, accompanying, and learning showed what is available now with technology in the classroom. Kersten convinced me why MIDI is better than a CD. I remember, long before my classmate's time, dancing to an LP and having it skip when we bumped it. Or trying to jog with my CD player having it skip. Everything, all the way down to ringtones on a phone are simple variations of binary code making life so easy.
MIDI has made it possible to cover more objectives in a class period. Watson makes clear tools of the trade to get novices involved in creating their own style of teaching through technology. He even mentions pitfalls like the 100 rule, and even gives those "old style" teachers a chance to continue using their LP's in the Picture This article. Practice files make it easier for students to learn music on their on, so less time can be spent on learning notes, and more can be spent on a well rounded National Standards curriculum.
I can say, coming from a background of music passed down, that MIDI has made teaching music much easier. Even on the spot at competition for drums, someone can sing into a digital recording device and I can understand the words. Remember when "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" played on the radio?? Well, maybe Dr. Bauer, but this song has so many words. Who on earth can understand what Gordon Lightfoot is saying? Digitally remasters started coming out, let alone Pat Metheny's orchestrion that runs on an Apple G5 (will mention this more in my PLN).
History of music premiers use to involve waiting for the score to come out at least one year later. Many of my performer friends can play like mad and not read a note. I enjoyed charging (still do) them $X per instrument to score their newly created music for studio musicians, and show orchestras. The thing is, many of them have locked into using MIDI to cut out the musicians, and save time in the studio. I'm thankful I can read, because they still need me to score the arrangements.
There has been one question on my mind during this article. What does the practice file consist of? Is it all parts, individual parts? Are they put in using a MIDI device or something else?
ReplyDeleteGlad you asked that question, Jeff. Most practice files, all of the lines are inputted. The instructor can remove the line the person (let's say alto, in the choir) is trying to learn. That leaves the other vocal lines, which are then exported to a MIDI file where the student can hear everyone other part, but the alto.
ReplyDeleteThe nice thing about the MIDI is sometimes the vocal patches on the instrument aren't very good, so pianos or something else can be selected to play the exact same commands while the alto learns.