Technology and music in the early years of schooling

An investigation of junior primary school children's use of computer-based music technology found that, with active support from teachers, young children were able to participate effectively in relatively complex musical processes, with particular regard to listening, performing and composing, thus extending the traditional scope of young children's music education.

Transforming value perception in music information systems

Information systems are changing the way artists and consumers create, use and interact with music. Music experience has become richer and more sophisticated than simply buying and listening to music. New links between IS and music are forging unprecedented levels of creative e-collaboration, innovative music technology development, new music commerce and marketing methods, alongside with the emergence of e-music communities nurturing up-and-coming artists careers. Distinct from non-creative industries, the music industry is at the forefront of technological innovation where the ubiquitous adoption of music downloading, widespread use of personal music systems, and value chain disintermediation has shifted the focus of value delivery towards consumer control. This paper provides new insights into the effect of recent technological change on stakeholders within the music industry value chain, and of music information systems upon creative music products. The paper further explores the stakeholder perceptions of the value added or depleted from music by the technology, and examines the future expectations of information systems amidst the volatility and uncertainty of the music industry.

Alien (excerpt 01)

Alien Excerpt 01 is an instrumental piece using synth sounds to create an eerie science fiction feel.

Enhancing students' experience in music composition through music notation software

A project was undertaken in a Hong Kong primary school to investigate the role of music notation software in leaching music composition. The project was divided into three stages. During the first stage, appropriate hardware equipment and software applications were installed in the school music room, and four teaching plans were developed on the models and strategies derived from findings in the local and international literature. During the second stage, these teaching plans were implemented in Grade One, Grade Three, Grade Five and Grade Six classes of the school. During the third stage, the effectiveness of these teaching activities was evaluated by comparing the experiences from the second stage to the corresponding findings from similar projects undertaken in other Hong Kong primary schools, as well as to findings from the international literature. The results demonstrated that tile visual and audio stimulation created by computer"based technology can motivate students to successfully engage in music composition. Moreover, computer"based technology provides an opportunity for students to compose music in an atonal idiom. However, a large number of students were unable to demonstrate the concept of structural design in their musical products, and one of the findings from this investigation was that teachers need to be more purposeful in their teaching by directing students to employ the technique of repetition of interesting musical fragments or phrases in order to achieve a sense of unity in their pieces.

Investigation of the value chain for creative products : a phenomenological study of the perceptions of music intermediaries

During the past decade, innovative digital technology and Internet marketplaces have created a variety of 'phenomena' of businesses, media and institutions considered to be important interaction channels in the music industry, along with an influx of Peer-to-Peer services such as Napster, and Kazaa shifting the business models of major music labels and distributors. Considering the Australian Music Association reported an annual retail turnover of approximately $300 million in 1992 and later in 1999, an increase in figures reported at $396.8 million with the inclusion of music DVD sales, the notion of value-adding to a music product emerges as a profitable venture at each length of the music industry's value chain. In spite of this, Australian studies have often overlooked the underlying perceptions, fears and ideas of those working within the value chain, especially regarding the impact of new technology on their roles. This paper identifies the perceptions of various intermediaries within the Australian Music Industry, identifying common themes and viewpoints amongst the study's participants. Consequently, the paper concluded that the perception of value in the music industry is somewhat influenced by a variety of factors, including music knowledge, communication and dependence on intermediaries to name a few. Common themes were revealed throughout the study include the perception of competitive advantage, new opportunities from new technology and the notion of defining a gimmick versus Value-Adding emerged as indicative of adding value from the study participants.

Value perception in music information systems

When referring to the value that IS adds to business and provides to consumers, we often (implicitly or explicitly) pertain to monetary value. However, perspectives exist regarding the notion of value which go beyond the monetary significance and maintain a direct influence on businesses and their performance. This paper explores the concept of value, its importance in IS, and the importance of understanding of how IS stakeholders perceive value. The paper focuses on the challenge of studying value in IS -although value manifests in properties of an information system, it can only be experienced and perceived subjectively through sense perception, experience and judgement of the system stakeholders. To address this challenge, the paper suggests the existence of a clearly shifting trend in the perception of IS technology and comments on the social impacts of end-users (consumers) being absorbed into the value-creation process for an information system in the music industry.

Implementation of ICTs in primary music education in Hong Kong

This study investigated the present state of IT policy implementation in relation to music education. The current status of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) integration in music curriculum in primary schools in Hong Kong has been assessed to provide references and recommendations for enhancing the state of integration, and for subsequent and sustainable development.

Enhancing music composition opportunities through techology in upper primary classrooms

The research contributes original knowledge about an e-learning model for music education delivery in schools. An innovative project called 'Compose' which combines a range of developments and resources based on computer technology with specific initiatives to addess the identified barriers to composition was designed. This model offers a potentially viable way to make the expertise of music specialists available online in primary classrooms where such expertise would not normally otherwise be available.

IT-assisted music composition education in Hong Kong primary schools

"Pedagogical framework for music composition with Information Technology" was devised to assist primary school music teachers to carry out composition activities through the application of IT. PFMCIT offers directions for developing in-depth teacher training programs, and establishing process-oriented curriculum guidelines to promote effective teaching and learning of music composition.

Fear of music : sounded poetry and the poetry soundtrack

This essay proposes the term ‘poetry soundtrack’ for a form of sounded poetry that I have been practising for some years (examples of which can be found in this issue of Axon). The poetry soundtrack is a sonic object made up of original poetry, music, and sound design. Such a form is now being produced—under various names—by numerous poets, thanks to the development of the Digital Audio Workstation (or DAW). In my essay, I argue that the poetry soundtrack has occupied an aesthetic no man’s land between avant-garde ‘sound poetry’ and documentary-style recordings of poetry readings. I propose that a general ‘fear of music’ has led critics to favour such forms, and concomitantly to ignore musico-poetic forms of sounded poetry. In addition, I analyse the ‘digital poetics’ that can be found in producing sounded poetry with a DAW, especially with regard to the ‘vocal staging’ that such technology can produce in the poetry soundtrack.

"Music therapy helped me get back doing": perspectives of music therapy participants in mental health services

BACKGROUND: Mental health service development internationally is increasingly informed by the collaborative ethos of recovery. Service user evaluation of experiences within music therapy programs allows new phenomena about participation in services to be revealed that might otherwise remain unnoticed. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to demonstrate how asking service users about their experience of music therapy can generate useful information, and to reflect upon the feedback elicited from such processes in order to gain a deeper understanding of how music therapy is received among service users in mental health. METHODS: Six mental health service users described their experiences of music therapy in one or two individual interviews. Transcripts of interviews were analyzed using the procedures and techniques of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. RESULTS: Interviews with mental health service users provided rich, in-depth accounts reflecting the complex nature of music therapy participation. Super-ordinate themes refer to the context in which music therapy was offered, the rich sound world of music in music therapy, the humanity of music therapy, and the strengths enhancing opportunities experienced by service users. CONCLUSIONS: Participants indicated that they each experienced music therapy in unique ways. Opinions about the value of music therapy were revealed through an interview process in which the researcher holds an open attitude, welcoming all narrative contributions respectfully. These findings can remind practitioners of the importance of closely tuning into the perspectives and understandings of those who have valuable expertise to share about their experience of music therapy services in mental health.