Music Is Not for Insects

Many of you know that I am a big fan of Indaba Music and have been creating some some real meaningful projects for my students using their engaging on-line contests with real-world musicians. They are hosting another contest in conjunction with a new PBS documentary set to air this June about the science and culture of music. The following is a letter to the parents of my students explaining this contest and how I will incorporate this project in my classroom. I hope you will consider this unique opportunity for your music students. I will follow up with some resources in future posts…

Dear Parents of Piano Students with Mr. Pendergrass in Periods 2 & 7:

THE POWER OF COMPUTERS AND MAKING MUSIC-

We have been using Garageband and the Mac Mini computers in my classroom to create some wonderful music projects. Up until a few years ago, you needed access to a recording studio with thousands of dollars of expensive equipment to even start the kinds of multi-track recordings your students are creating.

THE POWER OF THE INTERNET-

Because of the vast connectivity of the internet, we are able to create and share music with others on a global scale. Up until just a few years ago, you needed a vast network of producers, insiders, managers and other people to get music heard by a global, let alone a national audience. Thanks to Indaba Music (www.indabamusic.com) we are able to share our music with others using their on-line music service.

INDABA MUSIC COMMUNITY- IN THEIR OWN WORDS-

“Indaba Music is an international community of musicians, music professionals, and fans exploring the creative possibilities of making music with people in different places. It makes finding other people, and working on recording, mixing, or mastering projects easier. For fans, Indaba provides unprecedented access to artists and to the creative process.”

A CONTEST AND COLLABORATION WITH PBS & INDABA MUSIC

AND

As a class, we are entering a contest hosted by PBS in partnership with Indaba Music. The Music Instinct: Science & Song is a new PBS program (airing June 24, 2009) that offers a new understanding of the power of music. In preparation for this ground breaking documentary, PBS has invited anyone to record an original composition using sound effects found in different natural and urban environments from around the world.

Students will be able choose from over 207 sound clips that they can access on the computer from Indaba’s web-site.

In accordance with contest rules, each student will combine a minimum of four sound clips from the PBS sound clip library using Garageband to create original contest entries. We will then upload these entries to the Indaba Music web-site as entries in this unique sound contest.

The winner will receive an iPod loaded with 200 additional sound effects, and a free online music course through Berklee College of Music vauled at $1,000. The top five will be featured on a Music Instinct album to be distributed on PBS.org and eMusic.com. The top ten, as voted by the Indaba community and the public, will receive a data DVD with 200 additional sound samples.

PARENT PERMISSION TO ENTER THE CONTEST

With your permission I want to upload your student’s entry to the Indaba Music web-site. Each student will have an account created using a special Gmail email-account I have created for this project:

• Only the student’s first name and first initial of their last name will be displayed on the Indaba Music website.

• No other personal information will be shared.

• All emails will be handled via the Gmail account I have set up and come directly to me (no spam for you or your student…)

• Once their entry is on-line, other students from my class, members of the Indaba Music community, and YOU will be able to listen to each project and vote for their favorite submission.

The deadline to enter the contest is May 4th, 2009, but I would like to upload our entries by May 1st.

You can find all the details about this contest on-line at http://www.indabamusic.com/contests/show/pbs_musicinstinct

Feel free to email me if you have any questions. This is a great opportunity for our student’s to share their projects in a 21^st century learning environment.

-Ken Pendergrass

More Information from Indaba below-

Indaba Music contest: http://www.indabamusic.com/contests/show/pbs_musicinstinct
PBS  press release: http://www.thirteen.org/pressroom/release.php?get=3264

About the documentary:
Music Instinct: Science and Song provides a ground-breaking exploration into how and why the human organism—and the whole ebb and flow of the cosmos—is moved by the undeniable effect of music.

This three-part series follows visionary researchers and accomplished musicians to the crossroads of science and culture in search of answers to music’s deep mysteries.

Indaba Music Contest
The Music Instinct: Science and Song, premiering Wednesday, June 24 at 9:00pm (check local listings), is a ground-breaking program that offers viewers a new understanding of the power of music. Music is found all over the natural world and in everyday life experiences. The documentary follows visionary researchers and accomplished musicians, such as Bobby McFerrin, Yo-Yo Ma, Jarvis Cocker, Evelyn Glennie, and Daniel Barenboim, to the crossroads of science and culture in search of answers to music’s deep and abiding mysteries.
This is a rare opportunity to interact with an exceptionally creative and well-produced program from a respected organization months before its launch. PBS, Thirteen, and the producers of The Music Instinct invite you to interact with this yet-to-be-released program and create your own dynamic musical language from sound effects found in different natural and urban environments around the world.

To help you explore this world of sound, PBS and Thirteen are providing you with 207 sounds from their own library, each recorded in pristine quality. To qualify for the contest, you must use a minimum of four of the sounds provided (although we encourage you to use more). While original recorded melodies or other material can be used in generating a composition for the contest, all compositions will be judged on the originality and expressiveness of the rhythmic and harmonic use of the sound clips provided.

After reading this post at MacWorld, I ordered my copy of Garageband ‘09 and the entire iLife ‘09 suite.

I hope that my previous posts about using Garageband in the classroom won’t be obsolete with this latest version of Garageband.

If you have been following my blog you know that, the students in my period 2 and period 7 piano classes participated in an on-line music contest hosted by world famous cellist, Yo-Yo Ma, and www.indabamusic.com, an on-line collaboration music service. Each student recorded an original theme and variation using Garageband on the Mac Mini computers in my piano lab. Then they uploaded these files as mp3s to the contest web page at www.indabamusic.com.

The contest is now over, and anyone can go on-line and vote for their favorite submission. The first place winner will have the opportunity to record with Yo-Yo Ma, and the top ten vote getters will get a signed CD of Mr. Ma’s latest album. This has been an awesome 21st century learning opportunity for my students.

PLEASE VOTE FOR US!

It only takes a couple of minutes, and your vote will really help us in this contest. Here is what you do:

1. Click on or paste the following link in your web browser: http://www.indabamusic.com/submissions?page=4&short_name=yo-yomacontest&sort=date#submissions

2. Look for the icons in this post to quickly find my students who have submitted entries in the contest.

3. Click on the vote button. You will be asked to submit an email so your vote can be confirmed or you can choose to sign-up for a free Indaba Music account (which is optional but worth it…).

4. When the email from Indaba Music arrives, click on the link in the email to confirm your vote. You are done!

It will only take about 2 minutes.

VOTING ENDS ON JANUARY 10TH,  so don’t delay.

In conjuction with on-line music collaboration service Indaba music, you can win a chance to record with cellist Yo-Yo Ma:

In celebration of his album’s upcoming release, Yo-Yo would like to share the joy of collaboration with Indaba’s international community. To get you started, he has recorded the melody of the traditional song, “Dona Nobis Pacem (Give Us Peace)”. Collaborate virtually with Yo-Yo by adding your own counter-melody or record an entirely new set of variations.

The contest rules are simple:

Download the audio file of Yo-Yo Ma performing Dona Nobis Pacem. Record your counterpoint or set of variations. You can use the Indaba Session Console on-line or your own recording software. Submit your final mix from the Indaba Session Console (or upload it if you used your own software) and submit it to the contest. Then vote for your favorite entry.

When I first heard about this contest from a fellow music educator, I thought for sure there would be several hundred entries on the Indaba music site. As of this posting, there are only 16 submissions!

And after listening to the submissions on-line, I thought, “My students can do this! They can record a set of variations using Garageband and enter this contest!”

So- you have until December 31, 2008 to submit an entry. Look for our submissions soon and give us a vote if you don’t plan on entering the contest…

Inspired by the Flickr group pool “What’s in your bag?”, I decided to take a shot of all the stuff in my backpack I take with me to work since I am transferring all my gear into a new bigger satchel. (Note: I have what you would call a “bag” addiction; messenger bags, backpacks, briefcases, I have several and can’t get enough of them. My wife claims I have a serious problem, but we have an understanding since I tend to bring up her shoe collection when I’m being admonished…)

I’ll highlight some of the things in my bag and why I have them, how I use them and then list what I wish I had in my bag. I’m hoping you’ll comment with some items in common or tell us what’s in your bag.

HIGHLIGHTED CONTENTS:

*13.3″ black MacBook. Not the latest one, but after having to give up a school MacBook at my previous job, I decided to bite the bullet and get my own. The list is endless on how I use this laptop and it’s many apps. You can get some ideas from my previous posts here.

*Flip Video Camera. I have this camera with me for instant digital video shooting. I also have a nifty mini tripod to go with the camera. From camera, to MacBook, to iMovie, to YouTube, the flip is so easy to use for digital video. I have reviewed this at length in the past.

*Sharpies. I currently have three and I am missing one…more thoughts here.

*Metro bus pass provided by my employer. Ask if your school has an employee discount for your local bus or metro system. I did not know this was an option with my school until someone told me about it…

*Cables, cables, cables. Firewire, ethernet, ipod, 1/8″ to RCA, etc., etc. You never know what kind of hook-ups you’ll need.

*USB drives- three of them in various sizes.

*250 GB external drive. More storage and back-up.

*Custom Westone Hearing Protectors. Custom ear plugs; they reduce the sound by about 15db and save my eardrums from constant bombardment. You need these if you teach in a room that is really live or have students blaring instruments at you day after day. I’ll bet your school health plan will pay for them. At first, they will bug you, but then at the end of the day when you are not suffering with a headache, you’ll get used to them and be grateful for some piece of mind and PROTECTION FOR YOUR HEARING.

*Rhodia Staple Bound Graph Pad. I’m a big fan of technology, but nothing beats a good little note pad and pencil to jot down ideas.

*Targus TG-CRD25 Universal 32-in-1 Memory Card Reader. Ok, you may not have to ever read 32 different memory cards, but this adapter works great for SD cards, memory sticks, compact flash, XD- almost any kind of memory card you or your friends digital camera or other digital device uses. Plug it into a USB port, and you are ready to transfer.

*Fish shaped bottle opener (for a refreshing beverage…after work of course), two ipods, Sony earbuds, guitar pick, headphone splitter, Kensington laptop lock and extra cell phone battery.

THINGS NOT PICTURED BUT WORTH MENTIONING

*Scores. Music scores for band, choir and piano classes I teach.

*Daily Lesson Planner. The paper kind.

*Blank CD’s. A couple for playlists that need to be burned.

*Paper calendar. I still use one of these even though I’m a Google Calendar user…

THINGS I WISH I HAD

*Zoom H2 Digital Recorder. I used to have a digital recorder like this at my last school…I would like another one so I can record rehearsals on the fly.

* A digital camera. Crazy, I know, but my wife has the digital camera in her bag!

I am currently teaching a piano lab class with 7th and 8th grade students and we are starting to create Garageband projects using some of the songs we are learning out of our piano method. I am hoping to collaborate with another school using Garageband by posting finished projects on-line. This could be as simple as commenting on each others projects in an on-line gallery or providing tracks to exchange…I’m open to ideas and would welcome your feedback.

This could be for any age group. I’m just interested in sharing some web 2.0 goodness with some other music educators. Please contact me.

• Macworld | Creative Notes | Adding some magic to GarageBand songwriting

  In the previous installment of my ongoing recording project, I wrote about about how I like to use GarageBand to write songs. Songwriting involves some talent, luck and in the case of a new song I’ve been working on, some magic.

• Chilirec – Your Free Internet Recorder!

  Get your free personal Internet recorder with the possibility to record hundreds of radio channels.

• Princeton University – Researchers map the math in music

  The connection between music and mathematics has fascinated scholars for centuries. More than 2000 years ago Pythagoras reportedly discovered that pleasing musical intervals could be described using simple ratios.

• Honda Robot Will Conduct Detroit Symphony | Listening Post from Wired.com

  Yo Yo Ma and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra will soon submit to a robotic overlord in the form of Honda’s Asimo, which will pick up a baton to conduct the orchestra.

• American Choral Music, 1870-1923 (Performing Arts Encyclopedia, The Library of Congress)

  American Choral Music, 1870-1923, a collaboration of the American Choral Directors Association and the Library of Congress, provides access to significant choral music in the public domain by the leading American composers of the time.

• Harmony Central®: Roland Provides Sneak Peak Of New Rhythm Coach Product

  The RMP-12 is the world’s first electronic marching percussion instrument to incorporate Roland’s patented multi-layer mesh head technology, allowing drummers to practice longer with less stress and fatigue.

• MyPlayList Combines Flickr And Online Music

  MyPlayList, a bootstrapped startup from Agentbleu, a Englishman living in France, combines streamed music and Flickr for a free music service that delivers visual as well as musical abundance.

• Macworld | Creative Notes | Songwriting with GarageBand

  First of all, I don’t go into my home recording studio and say, “OK, I’m going to write a song now.” It doesn’t work that way for me—I either feel it or I don’t. If I don’t, then a song doesn’t get written. Regardless…it always involve

• Royalty Free Music from Beatsuite.com

  As a beatsuite.com member you can download the preview files for all Royalty Free Music tracks at the touch of a button. Whether you want to try it in your project, share it with a colleague or pitch it to a client.

• Free-scores.com : World Wide Free Sheet Music (Directory and Direct Download)

  We are proud to participate to the transmission of free sheet music. Our project is to distribute for free the most important choice of public domain free scores and under autorization free scores. We feature 8756 piece of music to download in PDF format.

Thanks to Matthew Needleman and his latest posts about differentiation for the inspiration behind today’s post. This combined with my use of Garageband in the music curriculum made for a great part 2 to my post about enhanced podcasts.

*NOTE: my apologies to those of you reading my blog in a feed reader. I have noticed that when I post podcasts and other media into an edublogs post, it doesn’t show up in Google Reader and you may need to follow a link to my blog to see the posted item.

INTRODUCTION-

As a music specialist, the challenge to create differentiated lessons for grades K-5 can be daunting. On some days I have seven preps and using technology with a seventeen year old general music curriculum is a trick.

Here is a general music lesson from the popular “World of Music” curriculum published by Silver Burdett & Ginn that I differentiated across several grade levels (citations are at the end of the post). Using Garageband, you can easily enhance and update a music listening lesson with an audio-visual component for today’s digital learners.

THE LESSON-

We start with a second grade listening lesson that uses a chart with pictures to help students follow along with a wild Shostakovich “Polka”:

Using a digital camera, I imported the pictures from the textbook into Garageband along with an mp3 of the music to create an enhanced podcast with pictures that would appear as the music was being played:

LET’S DIFFERENTIATE-

Here is where the differentiation comes in: for Grade 1, I play the Garageband project with the pictures and a “call” track I created announcing the instruments as they appear:

Click the “audio mp3″ box below to hear how this sounds:
Polka with call track

For Grade 2, we use the student text to follow along with the music; and then we play the Garageband project that looks and sounds like this below:

grade2polkalesson.m4v

For Grades 3-5, we can start having kids choose pictures as they listen to the music and drag them into a podcast track with markers:

Or differentiate even further by giving students a podcast track with no markers:

Another lesson using the same “Polka” appears in a Grade 3 listening chart with more sections and different pictures to represent the music:

Here is what that lesson looks and sounds like using more detailed descriptions:

grade3polkapodcastwmarkers.m4v

FINAL THOUGHTS-

I hope you can see how it is possible to take a typical listening lesson and use Garageband to create a visual and audio experience for general music students. Most of our kids find it hard to listen to extended periods of music. A visual component may provide the interest needed for an extended piece of music. Differentiating the lesson with various levels of participation from grade level to grade level is also achieved. My fifth graders actually create a listening lesson for my younger students using this process by choosing their own music and pictures.

Citations for textbooks:
World of Music Grade 3- (green book)
Listening Guide #4
“Pizzicato Polka” from Ballet Suite No. 1
Palmer, Mary. World of Music. Morristown: Silver Burdett & Ginn, 1991.

World of Music Grade 2- (red book)
Polka page 102 Listening Chart
Palmer, Mary. World of Music. Morristown: Silver Burdett & Ginn, 1991.

Citation for muisc:
“Polka” from the ballet The Golden Age by Dimitri Shostakovich

Related Posts:

Enhanced podcasts with Garageband: part 1

Getting your Garageband podcasts to work with Edublogs and other video hosting sites

Garageband Tip01 of several: Burn to CD without using share to iTunes

“Not that loop again, and again…”: Using Garageband responsibly to create music for your digital projects.

Garageband Tip: Musical Typing

Enhanced Podcasts with Garageband are a powerful way for you or your students to create some projects that are rich with content. Here is a quote from the Apple web-site:

Enhancing Your Podcast Episode with Artwork and Chapters

Podcasts are about more than just audio. You can also include artwork and links to websites to enrich the meaning of your content. And you can create chapters so your audience can move between the sections of your episode.

Below is an example of an Enhanced Podcast I created. Watch it one time straight through (it’s less than 30 seconds);

then watch it again and pause along the way to access links or move between chapters and see how an Enhanced Podcast described above looks and feels.

enhanced-podcast.m4v

Since Garageband podcasts are optimized for viewing in iTunes, Enhanced Podcasts with links to websites and chapters will look different when uploaded as m4v files (see my post on how to do this). Here are some screen shots comparing an Enhanced Podcast in iTunes and the one above embedded into Edublogs.

First, a screen shot from iTunes.

And here is what the links look like when uploaded and embedded as an m4v file:

Either way, when you click on the link in iTunes or an m4V file, if you are connected to the internet, your browser will open and take you to the web-site you have designated.

Here’s how chapters look in an Enhanced Podcast in iTunes:

Chapters in m4v files look different:

Chapters allow you to go to a specific sections in your podcast. Very handy for a long podcast that needs some indexing.

A final note about appearance: with Garageband, any artwork you have loaded into your podcast track will look “normal” when played back or “shared” out to iTunes. For some reason, when you upload a podcast as an m4v file here in Edublogs, the pictures are a bit “distorted” or may look slightly pixelated.

I have been able to upload Garageband podcasts to Ourmedia.org without this problem. See my Enhanced Podcast here without distortion:
Enhanced Garageband Podcast

More about video sharing sites and podcasts in Part 2…

Related Posts:
Getting your Garageband podcasts to work with Edublogs and other video hosting sites

Garageband Tip01 of several: Burn to CD without using share to iTunes

“Not that loop again, and again…”: Using Garageband responsibly to create music for your digital projects.

Garageband Tip: Musical Typing