| BÝLDÝRÝLER |
TECHNOLOGY IN THE PIANO
LESSONS*
H.Ü. Devlet
Konservatuvarý
*V. International Educational
Technology Conference
September 21-23, 2005
SAKARYA, TURKEY
ABSTRACT:
Digital technology has revolutionized the world of music
making and teaching. Recent advances in music technology offers many ways to
enhance piano teaching and enables the piano teachers to explore many options
for learning, teaching and performing music. Teachers are becoming learners
themselves by exploring the potentials. The use of MIDI, electronic keyboards, computers,
software, and internet offer more appealing way of presenting information and
motivation to both students and teachers in the piano lessons. In fact, technology
allows piano teachers to concentrate on teaching piano using both acoustic and
technological worlds.
I. INTRODUCTION
Like it or not, the world of electronics is here to stay.
New technologies now affect every area
of our lives. In so many music schools of colleges and universities all around
the world, many music students are introduced to computer applications in the
core music theory classes. Additionally, a number of technology courses are
offered beginning with an introductory course in MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital
Interface) that covers computer set-up and basic skills, electronic music
fundamentals, notation, and sequencing. Advanced courses such as MIDI arranging,
MIDI to video synchronization, synthesizer sound design, and non-linear digital
audio are also available to students after completing the introductory classes.
This high-tech world has even found its way into the private
piano studios. Technology offers a variety of educational and motivational
applications for the contemporary piano teachers. Each year more and more technological
equipment is available to the piano teachers. With software for music
instruction, studio management, music notation, MIDI sequencing, and even
digital auto recording on a hard disk, a personal computer is an affordable
teaching tool. It is made more effective by the widespread application of MIDI
so computers, syntesizers, and other equipment are compatible, regardless of
the manufacturer. These technological advances allow teachers to turn their
teaching studios into high-tech learning centers (Renfrow and Lancaster, 1990).
However, according to Uszler, there are keyboard teachers in
all categories even in the USA, the leader of the high-tech world;
(teachers) those who embrace with
enthusiasm all that new technology offers and immerse themselves in this heady
world; those who explore and experiment, sifting and weighing pros and cons as
best they can; those who try the waters, dabbing here and there to see if they
can remain afloat in the techno-world; those who ignore issues raised by technology
and panoply of products; and those who worry that western art music is under
siege and avoid and vestige of techno-taint (Uszler, 1992, p. 590).
The use of technology in teaching piano has become practical
with the emergence of MIDI in 1983 (Renfrow, 1991). MIDI is a means of
communicating music information among synthesizers, keyboards, computers and
other electronic sound equipments through digital messages. These messages make
no sounds on their own; they just tell the keyboard information such as which
note to play, how loud to play it, and how long the note should be held (Alfred
Publishing Company, 2005). Many things are possible when you interface a
keyboard with a computer. The most important educational feature of some and
new MIDI keyboards is the ability to play back your own performance and listen
to it objectively. If you need to, you can slow down the tempo to discover what
was uneven. You can speed up the tempo to see what the correct tempo is. The
record and play back capabilities can be used to rehearse with a partner who is
not present or to practice the right hand apart while the piano plays the left
hand part.
II. SYNTHESIZERS
Synthesizers use electronic circuitry to create both
traditional and non-traditional sounds and usually allow the users to create
and modify sounds. Sound modules also produce sounds, but they have no keyboard
and are controlled by an external MIDI-compatible keyboard. These items are
useful in the piano studio for exploring sounds and orchestrating second keyboard
parts or original compositions (Renfrow and Lancaster, 1990). Synthesizers are
a source of interesting and useful sounds; for instance, of simulated
harpsichord, clavichord, or organ sounds that can be used in playing Baroque
keyboard works (Uszler and others, 1991).
III. SEQUENCERS
Synthesizers are especially effective when used in
conjuction with a sequencer. A
sequencer is any device capable of recording and manipulating a series or
“sequence” of notes and playing back that sequence through an electronic
instrument, such as synthesizer or electronic piano. Most people who use a
sequencer treat it much like a tape recorder. The use of a sequencer as a
teaching device is a natural application. It usually involves nothing more than
simple recording and playback functions. Students can use sequencers to
critique their own playing, create second keyboard accompaniment, practice
technique, drill problem spots, or hear pre-recorded performances of pieces at
the appropriate tempo. Students even sequence right and left hand on different
tracks so that they can play one hand while hearing the sequencer perform the
other. By selecting sounds, sequencing them on
various tracks, and combining them, students can orchestrate piano solos and
duets. The exercise helps students learn to discriminate among various sounds
in an orchestral texture (Renfrow & Lancaster, 1990 and 1991).
IV. DIGITAL PIANOS
Piano teachers entering the world of keyboard technology
finds the digital pianos the easiest instrument to use. The digital piano
technology supports many of the pedagogical approaches found within traditional
lesson formats. The wide variety of features available on different models of
digital pianos. They simply provide more options for teachers and students.
However, while digitally recorded CD can never fully capture the experience of
a performance, it is the next best thing to being there. Similarly, although
digital pianos will never replace acoustic pianos in performances and studio
recordings, a high-quality instrument offers a practical alternative to the
acoustic piano in a variety of situations (Hinz, 1993).
Digital pianos are highly regarded for its natural, grand
piano-like touch and quick response. The intent of a digital piano is never to
replace an acoustic piano in the teaching studio, but to enhance the teaching
experience. They re-create the sound of acoustic pianos by using sampling
technology that digitally records, or samples, the actual sounds of a grand
piano. These sounds are stored in the machine’s memory; a note played on a
digital piano thus produces a digital re-creation of the original acoustic
piano sound.
The digital pianos provide many benefits. Teachers can use
digital pianos as additional practice keyboards or with other MIDI-compatible
equipment for sequencing, orchestration, and exercises ranging from technique
to ear training (Renfrow and Lancaster, 1990). They have grand piano sound
without taking up the space of a grand piano. They are easy to move, whether it
is from room to room or to another location for recital purposes. They offer
dual headphones to practice without disturbing others. They require little
maintenance and no tuning. Many models offer a greater variety of options
including additional instrumental sounds. This feature gives the students to
experience with different sounds. Digital pianos may be used for teaching group
and private lessons, as performance instruments, and for experimental
applications (Bianchi, 1989/90). In group setting digital pianos are used frequently
in teaching laboratories, where instructors and students can hear one another
and communicate through the teacher’s console.
V. THE DISKLAVIER
Traditional acoustic keyboards are now available with MIDI.
Yamaha, for example, manufactures an instrument called the “Disklavier”. The revolutionary
Disklavier provides an ideal union of the acoustic and electronic. It is a
traditional piano with hammers and strings and available in both upright and
grand models. The Disklavier’s built-in 3.5’’ floopy disk drive accepts
Standard computer disks. The recordings are saved as Standard MIDI files,
enabling teachers and students to move data easily between the Disklavier, a
computer, and other playback devices. These files can also be sent as e-mail
attachments to individuals or classrooms anywhere in the world. Since they can
play on any computer, the receiving party doesn’ need a Disklavier to
experience the performance (Yamaha Corporation of America, 2005).
The Disklavier works just fine as a stand-alone device. Once
the Disklavier is connected to a computer, a musician can record, edit, and
notate scores with intelligent accompaniment software and interact with
educational programs. With properly configured computer, the Disklavier can
also play MIDI files from the Internet directly from the web browser. The
Disklavier allows students to hear their playing coming directly from and
acoustic piano for the first time in the keyboard history. You can see the key
and pedal action. With this feature students can evaluate artistic elements in
their playing such as voicing, dynamics, and pedaling. Speeding up and slowing
down a performance on playback allows students to assess the effect of tempo
upon interpretation. Speeding up a performance of a work that is still under
tempo motivates students by letting them to hear what they will sound like in
the future. Slowing down the tempo is similar to putting a performance under a
microscope. Students can play the primo part while Disklavier plays the
secondo. Hearing both parts together, student can discover how wonderful it
would be to play with a friend. Another natural application of the computerized
piano is to function as a rehearsel pianist (Litterst, 1992). Tempo and
transition controls and the handy remote make the Disklavier an ideal
accompanist for soloists, dancers, and other cultural and recreational
activities.
VI. COMPUTERS
Computers are highly motivating pieces of equipment for all
ages and can be tremendeous asset in music education. Everybody knows the incredible
ways in which the computer is changing everyday life. It is possible for a
piano teacher or a student to play on a grand piano, record his performance to a
computer disk, edit the performance, and then send the final performance, on
disk, to the recording studio where another computer recreates the performance
exactly as it is recorded on a similar concert grand. All you need is a
computer, the appropriate software and a sampling synthesizer capable of
playing, under computer control, the orchestral parts with real, digitized,
instrumental sounds. The pianist, who is preparing for a performance with a
live orchestra, can also practice the solo part accompanied by the computer
orchestra (Litterst, 1987/88). The computer provides the potential for extra
music instruction, drill, or exploration. The activities that a student may
engage in on the computer include ear training, music theory drills, composing,
or just plain having fun. Moreover, a computer is an indispensable tool for the
piano teachers. The teachers may develop websites for use to advertise an
independent piano studio or to provide information for piano students.
VI. 1. Software
Using software is a wonderful way to learn the basics of
music. Using softwares also frees up time for the teacher and provides students
with a well-defined course of study and immediate feedback. There are many
types of computer software of importance to musicians. There are three
categories of music software that teachers may wish to consider using with students
in the piano studio; pedagogic software, professional music software, and
entertainment software.
Pedagogic software is software that is designed to teach something. For
instance, an ear training program may train students in the aural recognition
of intervals, chords, and perhaps offer exercises in melodic or harmanic
dictation. An introductory music theory program may provide drills for reading
notes in the treble, and bass clefs, recognizing key signatures, and spelling
or notating chords.
Professional software is software that can be used as a tool to achieve some
musical end. For example, there are many music notation programs available
today. Notation software is intended to be a tool for notating, editing,
playing back, and printing music. Many teachers find it helpful to get their
students to do a little bit of composing as a way of stimulating creativity and
enthusiasm, and for helping students to understand and read music notation.
Entertainment software is a program that is designed for its entertainment
or game-value. For example, a music theory program which drills students on
note recognition might have options for timed drills, competitive scoring,
animated on-screen characters, the printing of awards, or high scores etc.
Integrating game features into such a drill program can make it much more fun (Litterst,
1990).
One of the
most wonderful software that is commonly used in the piano studios, Cakewalk in Concert, for example, is an
intelligent accompanist for student practice and is designed to be used with
any Standard MIDI file. Cakewalk in
Concert provides a real-time interactive accompaniment for students of all
playing level. Students and teachers can practice along with a piece with
control over tempo and key. Therefore, the band or orchestra will follow the
student’s tempo and dynamics. Students would enjoy the experience of playing
with another musician, while the teacher concentrates on evaluating the
student’s performance. During playback, students and teachers can critique the performance
together. Cakewalk in Concert also gives
you on-screen displays of tempo, location, and volume.
Another software, Discovering
Keyboards, provides an introductory keyboard training course, a history of
keyboard instruments, an overview of MIDI and synthesizers, and a song book
that lets you store your own MIDI songs and print them on your computer’s
printer. The Pianist is a program
containing a huge collection of the most popular piano pieces. Alfred’s Basic Adult Piano Courses, Piano,
Play-a-Piece, Piano Discovering System Package, Kids Piano, Noteplay-Piano
Lesson in a Box, and Teach Me Piano
are some of the other piano courses to teach to play the piano to individuals
(Music Technology Guide, 2002-2003).
VI. 2. The Internet
The internet
has become part of our lives and the information available is overwhelming. Everybody
is using Netscape Communicator and Internet Explorer to send and receive
e-mails, do research on variety of topics, or make orders. A modem is used to
access additional information, sound files and images from educational and
research facilities throughout the world.
Newsgroups, sometimes called Usenet groups, are discussion
groups that cover nearly every topic that anybody can imagine. There are quite
a number of newsgroups devoted to piano music and piano teaching. Discussion
ranges from literature, technical studies, recital preparations, and digital
pianos to software, where to find music scores, and even the injuries related
to the piano performances. A listserve
is a cross between a newsgroup and e-mail. This is a newsgroup that comes to an
individual. The difference between a listserve and a newsgroup is that only
people who join the list are allowed to post to it and receive material from
it. All posts are forwarded to your computer on a continuous basis.
The internet
is a great resource for listening to and studying music of various styles in or
outside the piano studio. There is a wealth of information available on the net
for the pianists. Information about music scores, piano teaching, music and
book publishers, pianos and keyboards, music software, CD-ROMs are just some of
the information available on the internet. There are so many sites available
which allow free printing and distribution of the information for noncommercial
use. The following free software may be used to view, hear, and print the
music: Scorch (from Sibelius), Adobe Acrobat Reader (version 5.0 or
above), and Quicktime. Directions for
downloading appear on the sites that require the use of the software. Sibelius Music (www.sibeliusmusic.com) boasts the largest
collection of self-published sheet music on the internet. Music can be
downloaded and viewed by using their free software Sibelius Scorch plug-in,
which is available on this site. Sheet
Music Online (www.sheetmusic1.com)
offers sheet music, piano benches, and supplies for purchase as well as public
domain sheet music, theory worksheets, and tests at no charge. The Sheet Music Archive
(www.sheetmusicarchive.net), Music Scores
(www.music-scores.com),
Easy Sheet Music (www.easysheetmusic.com),
All Piano Sheet Music (www.allpianosheetmusic.com),
and 247 Sheetmusic
(247sheetmusic.com/downloads) are some of the other web sites offering free
music to download, print, and distribute.
There are also
some helpful sites that offer databases of music history, biographies of
composers, and glossary of terms. If the teacher has access to the internet
while teaching, these sites could be useful during the piano lessons. Virginia Tech Multimedia Music Dictionary
(www.music.vt.edu/musicdictionary/)
and Learning Zone (www.naxos.com/newdesign/fglossary.files/bglossary.htm)
are some of the sites that list terms online serving as a reference source. Essentials of Music (www.essentialsofmusic.com)
offers overviews of periods of music history, biographies of composers, and a
glossary of terms as well. Music History
102: A Guide to Western Composers and Their Music from the Middle Ages to the
Present (www.ipl.org/exhibit/mushist/),
Worldwide Internet Music Resources:
Composers (http://www.music.indiana.edu/music_resources/composer.html),
DW 3 Classical Music Resources (select
“composer homepages”), (www.lib.duke.edu/music/resources/classical_index.html),
The Classical Music Navigator
(www.wku.edu/~smithch/music/ index2.htm), Learning Zone from Naxos (www.naxos.com/newdesign/fcomposers.files/bcomposers.asp),
and Dr. Estrella’s Incredible Abridged
Dictionary of Composers (www.stevenestrella.com/composers)
are some of the web sites link to individual composer pages.
VI. 3. Videoconferencing
Increasingly, music schools have been using videoconferencing as a way of connecting
with students over great distances. Using high-speed Internet transmission of
audio and video data, piano teachers are instructing their students at a distance.
They interact as if they were alone in the same room. The beautiful thing about
it is that a lot of people could be taught by great teachers, and great
teachers could be connected to more great students. For instance, the Manhattan
School of Music, the first conservatory to have a videoconferencing program,
has had success with online music lessons, connecting with musicians as far
away as Germany and teaching young students in underserved public schools
around New York. Working closely with The
National Arts Center in Ottawa, it has set up several master-level classes
using high-speed connections, with instructors in Ottawa teaching students on
various instruments in New York and vice versa. However, transmitting the audio
and video data can involve delays that throw the musicians, the video and the
audio off beat. Musicians, however, are a demanding group with extremely sensitive
high-resolution ears. To skirt some of those problems, the MusicPath system
uses a government-financed broadband network to speed the data. Morover, the
Yamaha Disklaviers give the musicians the actual live sound of hammers hitting
keys instead of sound through a speaker (Remote Piano Lessons, 2005).
VI. 4. Internet2
Nowadays, Internet2, a
consortium of more than 200 universities working in partnership with industry
and government to develop and deploy advanced network applications and
technologies to accelerate the creation of tomorrow's Internet. Internet2 is
recreating the partnership among academia, industry and government that
fostered today's Internet in its infancy. Part of that development is in the
arena of high-quality videoconferencing. As anyone who has spent any time on
the Internet knows, the quality of audio and video is still rather primitive.
Audio streams are usually thin and weak sounding, not to mention monaural, and
the video quality is even worse. The typical video file on the Internet opens
in a small window on the computer monitor and features grainy and jerky motion.
The incredible bandwidth of Internet2, however, allows for real-time,
bi-directional, full-motion, broadcast-quality video on a television monitor
with CD-quality, stereo audio. With that quality, comes the potential for
finally using Internet videoconferencing for music applications (Music
Technology at OU, 2005).
With Internet2, we can send and receive
"DVD-quality" video and "CD-quality" audio simultaneously.
Thus, the quality allows a student and teacher to be in remote locations yet
still see and hear each other well enough to make critical aesthetic judgments.
The School of Music at the University of Oklahoma pioneered the use of Internet2 to conduct private music lessons
as well as master
classes and performances at a distance in 1999 (Music Technology at
OU, 2005). Since then, Internet2 videoconferencing technology has provided the partner
schools an extraordinary opportunity to develop musical and academic programs
of instruction for a wide of range of educational and professional settings. Hopefully,
through this technology, so many music schools will reach out to students and
professionals in virtually any geographic region all around the world in the
near future.
VII. PIANO BOOKS AND
METHOD BOOKS
Because of the amazing advances in the high-tech world, publishers
frequently issue materials specifically for electronic keyboards to be use in
music education. Naturally, most of the literature explores the educational
applications of technology in the piano studios. Many piano literature books
and method books now provide Standard MIDI File disks, CDs, cassettes, or
software, adding musical interest to motivate students when they play or
practice. These supplementary materials may include performances of all the
pieces in a particular book for a student to listen to and study accompaniments
for pieces in that method book, ear training, rhythm drills, etc. Because the
tempo can be controlled by the student, the speed can be varied to suit any
stage of the learning process. Belwin
Complete Adult Keyboard Course by Feldstein, Play by Choice by Kern, Alfred’s
Group Piano for Adults by Lancaster & Renfrow, Follow Me by Appleby and Morton, The Complete Keyboard Player by Baker, Start Playing Keyboard by Lavender, Alfred’s Basic Chord Approach to Electronic Keyboards by Palmer,
Palmer, and Manus, etc. are some of the piano books and method books offering
technological support.
VIII. CONCLUSIONS
Technology
offers exciting possibilities for feedback in the piano teaching studios. The
capabilities of the electronic devices are only beginning to be explored. The
MIDI, digital reproducing pianos, computers, software, printed materials with
MIDI disks, and internet present almost limitless options for teaching,
practicing, rehearsing, and research.
Many
piano teachers find that students love exploring new equipment and learn more
about music in the process. The use of technology continues to spread among
piano teachers all around the world, including many who were once skeptical but
now see its benefits. Not all teachers will choose to equip their studios with
MIDI technology. However, no piano teacher today should ignore its effect on
the profession. The uses of technology is limitless and to get involved
educators must start now. Already widely accepted in our profession, technology
will become even more popular with each new development.
REFERENCES
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http://www.alfred.com
Bianchi, F. (Dec./ Jan. 1989/90). Buyer’s Guide to
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Hinz, B. (April 1993).
Comparing Electronic and Acoustic Pianos. Clavier, pp. 26-28.
Internet2
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March). URL http://www.internet2.edu
Litterst, G. F. (Summer 1990). Tackling Technology: Using
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Litterst, G. F. (Winter 1987/88). An Introduction to
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(36), pp. 28-31.
Music Technology Guide (2002-2003). Akron, Ohio: Lentine’s
Music Inc.
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URL: http:// music.ou.edu
Remote Piano Lessons, in Real Time [WWW document]. (2005, August). URL
www.nytimes.com/2004/03/11
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(1991). The Development and Evaluation of Objectives for Educating Graduate
Piano Pedagogy Students to Use Computer and Keyboard Technology. Unpublished
doctoral dissertation, University of Oklahoma, Norman, USA.
Renfrow, K. D & Lancaster, E. L.
(May/June 1991). MIDI Equipment for Piano Teaching. Clavier, pp. 30-31.
Renfrow, K. D & Lancaster, E. L.
(Nov. 1990). Technology for Teachers. Clavier, pp. 28-30.
Rothstein, J. (1995) MIDI: A
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Souvignier, T., & Hustwit, G.
(1999). The Musician’s Guide to the Internet. Hal Leonard Corporation.
Uszler, M.
(1992). Research on the Teaching of Keyboard Music. In R. Colwell (Ed.). Handbook
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MENC.
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E. (1991). The Well-Tempered Keyboard Teacher. New York: Schirmer Books.
Yamaha Corporation of America [WWW document]. (2005, July). URL http://www.yamaha.com