Music Tech Week 3

This week focused on composing music using technology.  We were able to use Soundtrap to create a composition using loops, MIDI, and digital audio.  I enjoyed using this program because it is similar to GarageBand and other music sequencers but offers the flexibility of being cloud based so people are able to access their compositions from any device.  Music sequencers and DAWS allow people to create music with prerecorded loops and also allow the composer to record and input their own musical ideas into their compositions.  This is one advantage Soundtrap and other DAWS have over programs like Incredibox because while Incredibox is very fun to use and you can create some great mixes, the composer must pick from prerecorded sounds and does not have the ability to input their own music.  Here is a link to the composition I created using Soundtrap this week called “Floppy Tone Strolls With Friends”.

Using music sequencers is a great way to allow students who do not know much about music theory to be able to compose music.  Music sequencers allow for the composer to have instant feedback regarding the sound of their composition.  Also, music sequencers tend to have a large variety of sounds available for the composer to experiment with and if a composer does not like what they’ve created, they can easily delete sections or tracks without having to laboriously erase notes written on staff paper. 

I also think that music sequencer software allows for students to create music that is more culturally relevant to their lives.  I would imagine that most students in public K-12 education do not listen to classical band, orchestra, or choir music as much as they listen to music that is created in a music studio or on computers that use loops, digital audio, or samples.  Even a lot of live music performances make use of electronics like foot pedals that allow for musicians to record and loop sounds as part of their performances.  Unless a student is in a traditional music ensemble class, they are not likely to have the music performed or composed for those groups as their primary music interest.  They would have little motivation to learn traditional composition because they would likely not see the value in learning about something they would not use in their lives.  Learning how to compose using DAWS could be more relevant to their lives because they could create music that is similar to what they already listen to.

Bauer (2014) lists many composition activities that can be done using DAWS including loop-based composition, using nontraditional sounds to create music, using repetition and contrast, creating a remix, creating a composition, and creating a soundtrack.  Any and all of these activities can be done by students with little or no traditional music theory knowledge or traditional performance skills on instruments or singing. 

There are many students who are not involved in traditional music classes in schools and “a growing number of teachers have found that students who comprise this other 80% are attracted to school music classes that involve a non-notational approach to musical creativity through compositions, often facilitated through technology” (Bauer, 2014 p. 60).  With so many students missing out on the opportunity to create music if they are not involved in traditional music classes, it seems to me that teachers must begin to adjust their curriculum and class offerings to serve more students.  Music should be something that all students get at least some instruction in during their education and if 80% of students are missing out on that due to the fact that they cannot read or write notation or play or sing in traditional ensembles, music teachers should make an effort to add some nontraditional classes to allow for more students to learn about music.

Reference

Bauer, W. I. (2014).  Music learning today: digital pedagogy for creating, performing, and responding to music. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.