Many years ago, as a student teacher in a middle school, I discovered the dramatic effect that technology had in stimulating a student's interest and development in music. On my first day, I observed a stagnant general-music class, in which students were spoon-fed information that was to be regurgitated at a later date for a grade. There was little or no active involvement in music. It was time to stir things up!

Thanks to the tech tools of the day (a synthesizer with patch cords, a reel-to-reel tape deck, a cassette recorder, and some vinyl records), the students came alive, exploring the world of music in unusual and creative ways. We recorded music and sounds that they created, and manipulated them with a tape recorder. We went on to notate their compositions with colored pencils and big sheets of paper, creating musical scores with the students' own set of symbols. It was fun and very liberating!

So when I saw a chance to use more modern technology in the West Bloomfield, Michigan, school district's music programs, I was up for the challenge.

I tend to be a little shy when it comes to asking my administrators for money. I wanted to develop my own confidence in working with the technology, as well as observe the students' reaction, before I asked for any substantial funding.

Fortunately, our school already had a MIDI keyboard and a computer with Cakewalk Pro Audio 6.0 sequencing software installed, so I brought in my own laptop computer and MIDI keyboard and set up two bare-bones workstations. They weren't elaborate, but they got us started. I had my students try their hand at composing some short songs, recording them with the sequencing software. With the school computer, we explored many music Web sites.

At a music-technology workshop run by the Michigan School Band and Orchestra Association, I picked up an interesting idea for a lesson plan in which I downloaded free MIDI files from the Classical Archives site.

After using the sequencer to change all the instrument parts to piano, I asked the students to become orchestrators. It was their job to listen to the piece of music and decide which instrument should play each part. Some of them came pretty close to the composer's original, while others were more “creative” with their choices. This is an especially good project for students who have little or no musical background. It improves their listening skills and musical decision making.

During one of my classes, the school administrators stopped in for a visit and were impressed that the students were actively engaged in a musical activity in which technology was playing a key role. The seed was planted!

When selling the idea of music tech to my school-district administrators, I had two key people in my corner: Technology Director Dr. Joseph Hoffman and Creative Arts Coordinator Debbie Zazaian. They were equally convinced that technology should be incorporated in all aspects of the educational curriculum. With their support, I presented a music-technology initiative to the administrators and school-board members.

Our first initiative was aimed at getting the entire music faculty onboard with technology. When Michigan instituted the Teachers Technology Initiative — a program that supplies every teacher in the state with a computer — I explained to our administrators that our music teachers needed to have the proper tools to implement this new technology. They agreed to add Sibelius notation software and an inexpensive MIDI keyboard controller from M-Audio called the Keystation that connects directly to a computer via USB (see Fig. 1). The keyboard came bundled with Cakewalk Express sequencing software. This was a great way to introduce the benefits of music technology to some of our more resistant music staff. Every music teacher has to score music at some point!

With the help of a school millage that our community passed, the school board approved the construction of our first fine-arts technology lab at my school, Orchard Lake Middle School. The facility was designed to serve as both an art lab and a music-technology lab.

After researching the various companies that supply music-lab equipment, we turned to SoundTree, the educational division of Korg USA, to help design the facility and identify the hardware, software, and training needed to meet the instructional objectives of the project. SoundTree also handled the installation of the lab, delivering a facility to the school district that was ready to roll on the first day of school. Several months later, a second middle-school lab was completed.

Each of our middle-school labs contained 16 workstations, each with a Pentium 3/1 GHz PC (running Microsoft Windows) and a Korg X5D keyboard. We added a Sound Blaster Audigy Platinum sound card to each computer because of the additional features the card offers, such as MIDI ports on the front panel for easy access, S/PDIF optical and coaxial digital inputs and outputs, a microphone input, and a FireWire port.

One very important feature of the labs is the Korg GEC3 Group Education Controller. This all-digital system gives me a way to handle the music and communication in my class in virtually any way I want. I can speak; play audio from CD, tape, or computer; and play my keyboard for the entire class or for any individual student. When students are practicing, I can eavesdrop on them to monitor their progress, and I can even initiate a private conversation. I can also group students together in any conceivable way.

Thanks to this system, our lab allows for differentiated instruction. The versatility of the lab and the technology allows students to explore the content of a lesson at their own level and to head in a direction that matches their interests. As a result, their enthusiasm for learning has shot way up.

We also have a projection system installed that can project any image from the computer, DVD player, VCR, and document reader onto a large screen. The ceiling projector is an invaluable tool when trying to demonstrate software such as Sibelius or Cakewalk.

Following the successful installation and application of the middle-school labs, the administrators asked us to present a proposal for the high school. Many of the items are the same as the middle school's but with a few additions. We have the same number of stations (16), but instead of Korg X5Ds, we have eight advanced Korg Triton LE keyboard workstations and eight 88-key Roland RS-9 synthesizers, with one of each at the teacher's station.

We also felt it important to include, at the high-school level, some alternative MIDI controllers, such as a Yamaha WX5 wind controller, Roland GR-33 guitar synth, and Roland V-Drum set. The high-school lab was designed, in part, to attract music students who aren't part of the traditional music program. Now they have a greater opportunity to apply and develop their nontraditional musical skills in a school environment.

This approach helps capture the musical interests of students who otherwise might not have the benefit of a teacher. How many musicians do you know who started out playing in a garage band but never had the opportunity to learn the fundamentals of music and music theory? This year, one such student was able to practice and further develop his skills in school. He often worked with the Roland V-Drums, solidified his music-theory knowledge, and developed his composing and sequencing skills with the software in the keyboard lab. He is now moving on to his freshman year at the Berklee College of Music. The music-tech class he took in his senior year was his first involvement in the school music program since eighth grade!

Having labs like ours is great, but with it comes challenges. You may find that not everyone on your staff is enamored with technology, especially if they've never worked with it before. They may have legitimate concerns about the investment of additional time in learning the new technology, developing meaningful lesson plans, and finding the proper computer and software support when needed. Therefore, ongoing training is an important part of our program's success. Once the teachers reach a certain level of comfort and fluency with the technology, they're more apt to use it in their classroom.

Here's a case in point: at Abbott, our district's other middle school, music technology is now taught by Carl Battishill, who is a 30-year-veteran teacher who has spent most of his career directing band. Battishill has always tried to keep up with music technology but was reluctant to start teaching music in the lab. But after one year of using the lab, he remarks, “I found it a great way to teach music to kids. It opens up their eyes and ears to the potential that they have to be composers. Too many of us grew up as players of instruments or singers and never learned that the ultimate experience in music education can be the composition of your own music. I hope that this class inspires kids to create something new.”

Working with a company that offers knowledgeable and timely support and training is a real plus. This fall, with SoundTree's help, we've scheduled a full day in-service workshop in which our teachers will learn about Cakewalk's Home Studio sequencing software. This not only helps teachers learn the tools but builds their confidence about being able to use them; that, in turn, builds internal support for the program.

Because we've had these labs for only a year or so, our program still has a lot of room for growth and refinement. I'd particularly like to focus on interdisciplinary applications, connecting with teachers of subjects other than music and offering them the tools to add sound to their student projects. This past year, my music-tech students collaborated with a film class in our school to produce a six-minute film about their school experience. My students scored the film and produced the soundtrack. Once you start thinking about it, you'll find plenty of opportunities like this. If a student is presenting a report on a foreign country, why not incorporate some of the music one would hear in that country? The science teacher could teach about the physics of sound by using the digital audio software we have available in our lab.

As a teacher, I am always looking for ways to awaken the creative side of my students, to help them think more deeply and discover new ways of looking at life. I love having a lab in the middle school because the students are at a wonderful age to connect with and strengthen their creative skills — that is, before the door of conformity and adulthood closes them off. A lab offers each student a virtual orchestra and much more: all of the traditional instruments, world instruments, and new sounds the students can create are at their fingertips.

As to what young people are able to create in a lab like this; well, the sky is the limit. They may compose the next big hit or even develop a totally new musical style. I tell my students, “What you create in this lab can have a profound effect on another human being.” That's a great way to empower a youngster! As a teacher, it's an amazing feeling to be able to open these doors to our youth, giving them a chance to find their own creative and expressive voices.

As you become more familiar with music technology, you'll find new ways that technology can improve your teaching. Before I began teaching music technology full time, I was the director of the school choir. Because I had no accompanist for rehearsals, I decided to sequence some of the songs we were learning. No longer tied to the piano, I could actually conduct the choir, and I was free to roam around the room, listening to individual voices without singling them out. The kids in the back row sure perked up! This past year, one of our elementary-school music teachers created a rehearsal CD of her entire concert in our keyboard lab.

I found another way to use the technology when I had to miss rehearsals for a conference. Instead of the choir watching videos for three days, my students spent part of that time working on their parts individually on the Media Center computers. How could they do that with no keyboards available? The secret was to take advantage of the sequencing software and CD burner. First, I sequenced the accompaniment parts of a few of the songs. I then recorded each separate vocal part on a different instrument: soprano on flute, alto on saxophone, and so on. I chose instruments with distinctly different timbres so the students could distinguish their parts in the overall mix. Then I changed the panning so that if a soprano listened to her CD with the sound panned all the way to the right, she would hear her part more loudly than she would the other parts. As she became more familiar with the notes, she could move the panning more to the center. To test herself, she could move the panning all the way to the left, where she would hear all of the other parts but none of hers. Finally, I burned CDs of the results. The kids loved the idea and started asking for rehearsal CDs to take home to practice!

Another way that choral directors who like to do “pops” concerts can use sequencing software is to download MIDI files of contemporary songs. You can find free MIDI files online, but the higher-quality sequences are available for a small fee. Two Web sites that offer sequences online are Midi-Hits.com and TranTraks.

Our band directors have found that PG Music Band-in-the-Box software is great for creating quick accompaniments in just about any style you can think of. That makes it a great tool for teaching improvisation.

Sibelius notation software has helped our orchestra directors numerous times when they've had to rearrange music scores to accommodate their unique instrumentation. The directors scan the music into the computer, make some minor adjustments, and voila! — they have a new score with the correct instrumentation. Our band and orchestra directors have also found Sibelius useful in creating scales and exercise worksheets for their students.

The theater department loves it when I record rehearsal accompaniments for the dance teacher/choreographer. I supply her with two versions at different tempos. She has found this invaluable when students are learning the dance numbers.

To our surprise, we discovered that our students and teachers are not the only people who appreciate the potential of the music-technology lab: many parents have expressed interest in joining an adult music-tech class! There really are an endless number of applications for your music-technology program once you get rolling.

The support network among educators has grown by leaps and bounds over the past few years. Everywhere you turn, there are fellow teachers willing to help, with innovative lesson plans, suggestions for software or hardware for your particular needs, ways to involve the students with technology, and so on. One national organization that addresses those needs is the Technology Institute for Music Educators. On the local or state level, you might find a support group within the band, orchestra, or choral organizations.

Music technology has come a long way since I was in college. By incorporating the technology that is available today, you will become much more effective as a teacher. As you teach the skills spelled out in the Nine National Standards for music (available on MENC's Web site; www.menc.org), you will find that technology can help you cover these areas more completely. Once you see the positive effect that technology has in the music classroom, you will probably want to expand your set of tools. A keyboard lab, equipped with networked computers, software, and electronic keyboards, is a great way to go.

Marj Haber is a graduate of Oberlin Conservatory and a candidate for a masters in music technology at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. She has worked as a studio vocalist and has performed with Aretha Franklin. She is now a music-technology teacher at Orchard Lake Middle School in West Bloomfield, Michigan, and can be reached at haber@westbloomfield.k12.mi.us.

Hannah Haleala, an accomplished violinist in the orchestra, found Sibelius's scoring software to be very useful in notating her musical thoughts. She ended up with a short, three-movement symphony that the school orchestra played at the end of the year. Although she dismisses her accomplishment by saying, “I'm no Beethoven,” her work is quite remarkable for someone in seventh grade.

Danny Lecours, an eighth grader who plays cello in the school orchestra and guitar in his own band, loved the lab right away. “It brought together everything I had been doing on my own and had all the equipment in one place,” he remarks. Danny began composing rap songs, but the lab enhanced his appreciation for classical music, as well. He now composes music that shows the influence of John Williams and Danny Elfman and recently presented his compositions at the Michigan Association for Computer Users in Learning (MACUL) conference for student achievement in technology.

Cakewalk tel. (888) CAKEWALK or (617) 423-9004; e-mail sales@cakewalk.com; Web www.cakewalk.com

Classical Archives tel. (650) 330-8050; Web www.classicalarchives.com

Creative Labs tel. (800) 998-1000 or (408) 428-6600; Web www.creativelabs.com or www.soundblaster.com

Korg USA tel. (516) 333-9100; Web www.korg.com

M-Audio tel. (800) 969-6434 or (626) 445-2842; e-mail info@m-audio.com; Web www.m-audio.com

MENC: The National Association for Music Education tel. (800) 336-3768 or (703) 860-4000; Web www.menc.org

Michigan School Band and Orchestra Association tel. (734) 764-8242; Web www.msboa.org

MIDI-Hits.com tel. (386) 428-3389; e-mail info@midi-hits.com; Web www.midi-hits.com

PG Music tel. (250) 475-2874; e-mail info@pgmusic.com; Web www.pgmusic.com

Roland Corporation U.S. tel. (323) 890-3700; Web www.rolandus.com

Sibelius Software tel. (925) 280-0600; e-mail infoUSA@sibelius.com; Web www.sibelius.com

SoundTree tel. (800) 963-8733 or (631) 393-8535; Web www.soundtree.com

Technology Institute for Music Educators (TI:ME) tel. (610) 519-7215; e-mail timemused@aol.com; Web www.ti-me.org

Tran Tracks tel. (800) 473-0797; e-mail trantracks@crystal.palace.net; Web www.trantracks.com

Yamaha Corporation of America tel. (714) 522-9011; e-mail infostation@yamaha.com; Web www.yamaha.com