Music Teachers, Students Go Back to School with Virtual Orchestra
NOTION Conducting Revolutionizes the Learning Experience
September 25, 2007 |
Starting this fall, NOTION Music will change the way many schools across the country teach conducting.
By using NOTION Conducting, an integrated environment consisting of software, computer workstations, and curricular materials, music instructors are able to overcome what has traditionally been an inherent problem - teaching orchestral conducting without an orchestra. NOTION Conducting enables students to learn and practice the art of conducting with a virtual orchestra that responds as if a student were conducting a live ensemble of musicians.
"We wanted NOTION Conducting to simulate the experience of working with a live orchestra, but in a learning environment," said Dr. Jack Jarrett, founder and vice president of research and development, NOTION Music Inc. "This allows students to receive direct and immediate feedback, while studying, practicing and developing their own interpretations of a score."
NOTION's patented technology represents a revolution in the way this profession, that is hundreds of years old, is taught. Until now, most students around the world have learned conducting via piano, pre-recorded example, solitary score study or at best, a small ensemble of instruments played by classmates. With NOTION Conducting, teachers are able to focus solely on a student's movements, while the student is able to conduct a full "orchestra." Other students in the classroom respond to the conductor in the same way real orchestral players would, so the conducting student hears the actual results of his or her gestures, including sloppy starts and skipped beats. For the first time, conducting students can also take the orchestra with them on their laptops to practice anytime, anywhere.
One school benefiting from the software is the renowned Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, which has incorporated NOTION Conducting into its 2007/2008 conducting curriculum.
"With NOTION [Conducting], our students are able to go beyond learning the basics of conducting to developing their own interpretations of a score, learning how to solve problems in real time, and building their confidence in conducting a full orchestra," said David Mash, Vice President of Technology, Berklee College of Music.
"Part of our mission is to encourage music education," added Jarrett. "We expect this product to help students realize the art and excitement of conducting." |
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For all news and press inquiries, please contact:
Brian McConnon
mtech marketing communications
610.480.8360
brian@mtechmarketing.com
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