Pamela F. Noble, University Of Texas At San Antonio

Welcome

Ml-16

Clavinova CPL-70

MT-200

MIDI-Merge And MT-200

Tachistoscope

Overhead Projector

Macintosh-Color Classic

Diane Boyd, Eastern Illinois University

Dawn C. Miller, University of Oklahoma

Playing together in ensemble is a rewarding experience for all musicians. This experience has even more potential when joining electronic and acoustic instruments together in a chamber music setting. Imagine a young flutist being able to perform with an ensemble of the intended instruments of an early classical quartet and then, just as easily, to play a contemporary jazz work with a seemingly "live" jazz trio. The opportunities for strengthening musical and performance skills using technology can be exciting and motivating for both teacher and student.

Today, in the absence of our own students, we ask you to use your imagination to visualize an ensemble of young keyboardists playing with an intermediate level flutist. You will hear different instruments playing in ensemble. The sequencer will help to create this illusion.

Engaging the young performer in these performances can enhance motivation. For the intermediate instrumentalist to hear a work as a recording in the original orchestration, while enlightening, is still a more passive activity than participating in a live ensemble of the same literature. Unfortunately most realistic situations do not afford us the luxury of having the appropriate instrumentalists at our fingertips. Even if we did, the development level of each performer varies widely depending on the idiomatic difficulties of each instrument. Technology can allow the creative teacher the flexibility to embrace student centered learning, creating a challenging environment for each student.

Adding an acoustic performer not only increases the socialization of such activities, which is a concern for the isolated pianist in the past tradition of piano lessons, but it sets the stage for determining phrasing, meter and the flexibility required of all ensemble playing.

We will illustrate this concept with a selection from Baroque mix. This collection, published by the Neil Kjos, Jr. Music Company, contains literature for keyboard ensembles arranged by Dawn Miller. The Bourree from Handel's Flute Sonata in G Major is a popular piece for the young flutist.

After only two years of teaching in the music department of a university located in the rural midwest, I have identified many consistent weaknesses that I hear repeatedly in audition situations. When sight-reading, playing scales, or performing solo literature, students display poor intonation, a lack of rhythmic consistency, and disregard for ensemble with the accompaniment.

The majority of the students learn about music only through the band program beginning in fifth or sixth grade. Unfortunately, these programs are often geared towards success at marching or concert contests, and minimal rehearsal time causes the individual to be overlooked. A student not grasping the subdivision of a quarter note into two eighth notes when it is taught in band class will always have a void in his/her understanding of the intricacies of rhythm. Too often a director is forced to say, "Imitate this rhythm after I sing," or even worse, "Don't play that section from letter A to letter B." Failure to comprehend the rhythmic fabric of the music leads to problems with tempo maintenance as well as tempo fluctuations. Not until a student can play exactly in time and understand the relative durations of note lengths can she incorporate a sincere rubato, stringendo, or ritardando into her performance.

The last movement of J. S. Bach's Second Brandenburg Concerto provides the student a clear path to rhythmic accuracy and tempo maintenance.

Playing strictly in time with the metronome is considered boring by most students; moreover, there are students who can play happily for hours with the tick of the metronome serving merely as background noise and not a guide. Additional features of this technology are its abilities to add the click of the metronome and to slow down the music without dropping the pitch level. This latter feature is especially helpful as the student is able to isolate tricky passages for slow practice with the simple touch of a button.

I have encountered very few students entering the university or my private studio who possess good senses of pitch. Because the mass-produced lower-priced beginner instruments tend to have inferior scales, it is possible for the student to train herself to hear out-of-tune. In addition, it is difficult to practice matching pitch in the band setting when the student is one of twenty flutists in the section or one of eighty in the full group. Flutists, too, are often perplexed by the tuning process once vibrato has been incorporated into their playing. More problematic is the tuning of intervals, a weakness that becomes painfully obvious in the smaller "one to a part" ensembles more commonly found in colleges and universities.

The next example, the slow movement of the Brandenburg Second Concerto, assists the student in matching pitches and tuning intervals.

As a coach of woodwind quintets and flute ensembles, I often notice a lack of awareness about where a particular line "fits." Frequently I pose such questions as "Who has the melody here?" or "Which part had the running scales?" only to be met with blank stares. Using technology pedagogically helps the student inflect within a larger framework of stability provided by the keyboard ensemble.

In the contemporary vein, enjoyable pop styles are easily accessible. Inclusion of this literature can increase motivation and provide an interesting alternative to the recital programming of the intermediate performer. This flexibility of programming is also the first step to making music visible in our school or community.

The following piece, I'm Passing By You, written by Dawn Miller and published by the Alfred Music Company, is an example of the endless timbral and contemporary style choices we can make available to our students through technology.

Consider the variety of styles contained in the jazz idiom. Wouldn't every jazz band director delight in acquiring students who have already internalized sophisticated jazz rhythms through active participation? Thewell known standard, Birdland will demonstrate a portion of this potential.

When I prepare a student for the annual solo contest, college audition, or other special performance, I hear repeatedly, "But it just didn't sound right with the accompaniment and it made me mess up!" The young flutist gives the score to the accompanist and focuses only on the solo line, without any regard to the role of the accompanying instrument. Sadly, pianists are in short supply in my region, and students are lucky to have a fifteen minute run-through with the accompanist on the day before the event. The student is unaware of the interplay between parts, how tempo fluctuations are prepared, or even how to cue entrances. Suddenly the experience becomes frightening, frustrating, and unfulfilling, and one that the timid or self-conscious student will no doubt elect not to replicate in the future.

Preprepared accompaniment disks are now available from a wide variety of music publishers. There is also interactive computer software that provides this function. I find it very useful to have my students make their own sequences of the orchestration to their concertos. Mastering a powerful, but not overly complex sequencer allows them the freedom to create with technology. In so doing, they are combining many types of thought. They are questioning timbre, learning transposition skills, absorbing the form of the entire work. They are being active learners. These skills will transfer to all areas of their continued music making. Listen to an excerpt from the Haydn Piano Concerto in D major. The student created this sequence to rehearse and perform with.

We would like to conclude with this excerpt from Claude Bolling's Suite for Flute and Jazz Piano . Bolling scored the work for flute and jazz trio, which includes piano, bass and drums. It is a favorite of ours, and we can never seem to get the remaining performers in one place at one time.

What we do can be done with $500 keyboards and acoustic instruments. The most expensive component of this arrangement is the sequencer itself. What you choose for this role can be as complicated as an advanced computer set-up or as simple as this sequencer, the Roland MT-200. A reasonable investment for the instructor, this particular instrument and others like it are portable and user friendly. There is ample software available and it is simple enough for students to use, even when you're not there looking over their shoulders.

Pauline Riddle, William Jewell College

In an already over-crowded college music curriculum, is there a place for technology in teaching keyboard ensemble literature? What basic equipment would this course of study require? How can technology and keyboard ensemble literature be combined to increase the student's musicianship?

Change is inevitable! Few musicians would admit to having their heads in the sand, yet many are reluctant to branch out and use new tools in teaching music. While there is comfort in the tried and familiar; technological advances in the field of music over the past ten years (such as the computer, music software, and Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) keyboards) have been phenomenal. Keyboard ensemble repertoire provides an excellent resource for incorporating new technology and innovation into the experience of music. Using technology at William Jewell College (WJC) in Liberty, Missouri, has expanded the music curriculum and injected a new excitement and joy into playing music.

There are a number of ways technology can be incorporated into a music curriculum. One possibility for adding a new course of study is to offer a one hour credit course each semester, meeting one hour a week. Yet another approach to creative music used at WJC is to offer a course during the two-week "Winterim" term between the winter and spring semesters. With either approach students gain an introduction to the computer (we use the Macintosh), MIDI, synthesizers, and modules. In addition, students increase their musicianship and develop deeper insights into the meaningful components of music.

A practical sequencing software program, Performer--by Mark of the Unicorn, is introduced at WJC during the first semester. Using the Performer software, each instrumental part is sequenced on a separate track. Band-in-a-Box, a MIDI-based "music minus one" program, is another very effective program that helps with improvisational practice. Because of its "user friendly" simplicity, this software program is an excellent choice for an abbreviated time such as the Winterim period at WJC.

During the second semester, a notation software program, Music Prose---by Coda Music Technology, is introduced. With Music Prose, three choices of data entry (Simple, Speedy, and Hyperscribe) are available. It is an effective program for printing the score and also for extracting individual parts. This program enables the student to print out improvisations, thus making it possible to analyze their work. Data sequenced with the Performer software can also be saved in a Standard MIDI File and then transferred to Music Prose for printing.

In this course of study, student workstations of basic equipment are needed which consist of the following: Macintosh computer, MIDI interface, MIDI keyboard, amplified speakers, multi-timbral modules, MIDI and audio cables. In addition, compatible printers for various qualities of printing are used. In the Piano Lab at WJC, the Yamaha Clavinova keyboard is used to sequence instrumental parts for keyboard ensemble repertoire. A MIDI interface connects the computer to the Clavinova keyboard, thus allowing data played on the keyboard to be "recorded" on the computer.

The E-Mu Proteus modules 1 and 2, contain sampled sounds which offer a variety of high-quality voices for orchestrating ensemble music. Each individual patch (voice) is designed to play within the range of the emulated acoustic instrument. A separate channel number can be assigned to each sequenced track. The channel number can then be programmed to patch numbers on the sound module. Thus, each track will be playing a separate instrumental part. The multi-timbral Proteus modules can each play up to 16 channels. With a relatively inexpensive MIDI interface like the Opcode MIDI Translator on both the computer modem and printer ports, a total of 32 channels are available.

A workable teaching arrangement is two students at each workstation. In this way, they are able to encourage, motivate, and inspire each other as they learn together. In a recent Music Educator's Journal article, Dr. Robert Pace (1992) states "peer interaction is an important part of the learning process. Students ultimately become their own teachers, more independent and creative."

The class curriculum depends primarily on the keyboard proficiency of the students. "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" from Celebrate The Season II by Michael Scott is a good beginning sequencing (recording) composition for using the Performer software program. Since the notes in this arrangement alternate between the right hand and left hand, it is best to record everything on one track. A printed instruction assignment sheet, in detailed step form, should be given to each student to assist in completing the project.

Students may practice sequencing notes by using the Performer program and playing in real time or in "step record." In step record; notes, chords, or rests are entered one at a time, specifying their durations. While step recording is easy for less experienced keyboard students, most students prefer recording in real time because it is faster. Recording in real time should be done by playing with a metronome, at a slower tempo. Surprisingly, recording in real time represents a challenging experience for most students.

"Silent Night" from Celebrate The Season by Michael Scott is another good beginning level composition. The right hand keyboard part is first recorded on track 1, and then the left hand keyboard part on track 2. The student may play the piece on the keyboard along with both computer tracks sounding at any desired tempo, or play one part with the computer playing the other part.

After each part is sequenced to track 1 and track 2, a patch from the sound module may be assigned for each track. The WJC Keyboard Lab has two sound modules, the E-Mu Proteus 1 and 2. The sounds are based on actual digital recordings of "real" instruments. A MIDI cable and interface connect the computer and the module. The MIDI cable connects to IN on the Proteus and is controlled by MIDI messages received at the MIDI IN connector. The Proteus, a multi-timbral module can play more than one sound at the same time. Multiple patch sounds may be accessed on different MIDI channels simultaneously. Each of the 16 MIDI channels can be assigned to play a specific patch sound.

Counting in strict rhythm is one of the first lessons students learn in sequencing and playing duets with the computer. Each quarter note equals 480 "ticks" and the eighth note receives 240 "ticks". Rhythm takes on a new meaning as the student can visually see the number of "ticks" that have been sequenced for each note and exactly where the note was rhythmically played. Many musicians play slightly ahead of the beat.

It is possible to align rhythmic inconsistency by quantizing the track. Quantizing moves notes to the nearest beat division selected. This step is necessary when several tracks play simultaneously. Editing capabilities make it possible to delete, change or insert a note on any count. Notes may be programmed to play ahead of the beat if this is desirable for effect.

Programming ritards and tempo changes cause the student to become more conscious of their importance. As students create musical scores, the importance of ritards and tempo changes is magnified. This happens as students learn how music sounds when played in strict rhythm. As a musical score is created, the metronome becomes increasingly important.

Another insight into the student's expanding musicianship is the importance of velocity, the pressure used in playing each key. Velocity is recorded on a scale of one hundred twenty-eight increments. Note velocities can be edited for individual notes or by regions. A simple command can be used for editing the entire track. Usually, students are not aware of or have not stopped to think about the meaning of velocity. Playing has many levels of velocity. Accents may be created by changing the velocity on one note. Crescendos and decrescendos can also be programmed into the score.

Assigning a different composition to students at each workstation provides the class with a variety of literature. The following are several additional examples of compositions used at WJC. "Sugar Cane" by Susan Hill is a 25 measure rhythmic easy composition for one piano, four hands. The four parts can be sequenced on four tracks, thus making it possible to practice the piece in a variety of ways. The student can play two hands along with the sequenced duet. "Bamboo Beat" and "Vanilla Beans" are additional examples of four hand duets that work well.

"Rondino" by Wim Brandse, a more complicated piece with 57 measures, is scored for two pianos, four hands. Part 1 has a section of unison eighth note triplets playing against eighth notes in Part II. The sequenced tracks aid the student in hearing and then playing the correct rhythms.

After a few assignments of sequencing parts and assigning channel and patch numbers to each track, the student can be encouraged to sequence a keyboard composition with instrumental parts. For example; "My Spirit Be Joyful" by J. S. Bach, written for keyboard and two trumpets, has 144 measures with a D.C. al Fine. This piece was selected to be sequenced and then performed on a departmental recital at WJC. All of the parts were sequenced on separate tracks and a bell part, similar to a zimbelstern, was created on one track along with a timpani part on another track. For the recital, a student played the keyboard part on the organ along with the computer interfaced to the Proteus. The bell and timpani tracks provided rhythm that assisted the keyboard performer in playing with the sequenced instrumental parts. The audience was fascinated with the computer screen scrolling the tracks.

A more complicated composition with 122 measures and several meter and tempo changes, "Two Piano Rondo" by Howard Pancoast, was chosen for another departmental recital. "Rhythmically and accented" are the beginning instructions given for playing this piece. The score takes on new meaning as velocity and dynamics, change in time signatures and keys, ritards, and various tempos and patch numbers are programmed into each track. The editing possibilities are virtually endless and can require detailed editing of the tracks. During the performance, all of the tracks were played using the computer interfaced with the Proteus 1 and 2. Since both modules were used, they were connected to the computer printer port and modem port. Students playing two keyboards, an electric guitar and a trumpet created their own parts to play with the tracks. Creative synthesizer patches were selected by the keyboard player.

Many learning opportunities were presented while sequencing "Fanfare, Fugue, and Processional" by Robert Wetzler, scored for organ, three trumpets, horn, trombone, baritone, tuba, snare drum and suspended cymbal. The score has several tempo changes along with ritards and 25 changes in meter.

Another method of presentation for keyboard duets is to record one part on a cassette or Digital Audio Tape (DAT) from the computer and module. This allows a keyboard player to practice and then play along with the tape in performance. This technology also enables a student to sequence the instrumental parts and then practice a concerto along with the simulated orchestra.

This past spring a WJC class ensemble, Nova Musica, performed "Concerto in G Major for Piano" by Robert Vandall on a departmental recital. Two electric guitars and two keyboards played along with the computer and Proteus 1. The keyboard players were highly motivated to spend extra time practicing their parts because they did not want to be embarrassed in front of their peers. In addition, they enjoyed practicing the music. Most students practice very hard to perfect their playing skill for public events and the audience is intrigued with the combination of sounds, both sequenced and improvised.

In a recent article, Sam Holland states "electronic instruments and MIDI remain merely the tools, but the level of excitement over what a single musician or a group can achieve through MIDI is magnetic to students..." (1992). Using technology to perform keyboard ensemble literature at WJC has allowed students to generate a new energy and excitement and discover an inner meaning in music.

Holland, S. (1992). Technology: Motivation and new energy. Soundboard, 5.

Celebrate The Season II Michael Scott CPP/Belwin , Inc.

(God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen)

Celebrate The Season Michael Scott CPP/Belwin , Inc.

(Silent Night)

Bamboo Beat Ruth Perdew Myklas Music Press

Vanilla Beans Susan Hill Myklas Music Press

Sugar Cane Susan Hill Myklas Music Press

Black Key Suite Robert D. Vandall Myklas Music Press

(Echo Waltz, Blue Licorice, Fanfare)

Rondino Wim Brandse G. Schirmer, Inc.

My Spirit Be Joyful Bach/Biggs Mercury Music Corp.

Two Piano Rondo Howard Pancoast Myklas Music Press

Fanfare, Fugue, & Processional Robert Wetler Art Masters Studios, Inc.

Carlos Maldonado and Brett Terry, School of Music

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

One of the major problems confronting beginning keyboard students is how to tell if a psychomotor skill is being correctly executed or not. In keyboard scale playing, these skills include not only knowing the correct fingering sequence or pattern to play a scale, but also such considerations as arm, hand, and finger position, passing of the thumb under the fingers and of the fingers over the thumb, correct attack and articulation (specially in legato playing), right/left hand coordination, etc.

Keyboard method books as well as instructional software programs address scale fingering as a basic component of keyboard technique. However, due to the inherent limitations of the printed medium (in the case of text books), and of the instructional strategies used in most computer programs, only the cognitive aspects of the scale fingering problem have been approached. The advent and increasing availability of MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface), CD ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory), and QuickTime video technologies implemented through peripheral devices connected to a central controlling computer make it possible for the first time, to give aural and visual examples to the instrumental student.

Scale Patterns is a multimedia program that teaches the basic principles of scale fingering in a concise, logical, interactive manner, as opposed to the rote-based, case-by-case system traditionally used by many pedagogues. Using QuickTime technology, scanned images, and hypertext links, the program illustrates the four basic rules of keyboard scale fingering. Video examples include fingering patterns and sequentially played scales in all major keys. Students have complete control over the videoclips through manipulation of the traditional transport buttons (play, stop, pause, forward, and rewind). The instructional strategies implemented in this program could be used in a broad spectrum of instrumental applications, pointing towards an integrated solution to the isolated efforts that presently characterize the music instrumental field.

Scale Patterns can be used to supplement the basic keyboard skills component in piano pedagogy and music education curricula, not addressed by currently available keyboard skills software. Scale Patterns was developed in Macintosh HyperCard 2.1.

Scale Patterns was designed around principles drawn from schema theory and research on the importance of visualization and mental imagery in motor skill acquisition. Research in performance skills includes studies using CAI to supplement instrumental fingering and improving intonation. Berz & Bowman (1994) report experimental programs of independent study for developing conducting skills and various instrumental performance skills implemented at the college level. No research is reported, however, in the application of QuickTime video technology to teaching keyboard skills.

Early cognitive psychology theorists like Koffka (1935), Werthheimer (1945), and Piaget (1952), together with more recent ones like Neisser (1976), Rumelhart & Ortony (1977), Bransford (1979), Mandler (1985), Siegler (1986), Mayer (1987), and West, Farmer, & Wolf (1991) have proposed a theory of learning centered around concepts such as "wholes," "patterns of organization," "chunks of information," "internal constructs," "structures," and "insight." Central to their discussion is the idea knowledge is stored and retrieved in packets or bundles. This bundles can be knowledge "of or about" something (data schemata) or knowledge of "how" to process that information (process schemata).

The study of the connection between physical movement and the mental and nervous processes involved in keyboard playing is by no means a new endeavor. Approaches with this emphasis have been given different labels including the "Psycho-Technical", "Teleological", and "Psychological" methods of piano technique. All of these theories emphasize, to different degrees, musical substance and mental activity over finger action. Publications from the early part of this century emphasize the importance of auditory imagery and rhythmic patterns in keyboard performance.

Gardner (1982) has suggested that schema are abstract categories that are in part "rules" and in part "images". Based on the idea that schema guides efficient learning and performance, Scale Patterns presents the major scales in "chunks" or "patterns" of notes, as opposed to the traditional note-by-note approach. These patterns create the four basic rules that govern scale keyboard fingering. Students learn about these rules through textual explanation and video examples implemented via QuickTime technology. Ho & Shea (1979) and Wright (1991) have suggested that imagery strategies might facilitate procedural learning if used in conjunction with meaningful organizations. In "Scale Patterns" the fingering rules provide this organizing element.

The importance of mental imagery on keyboard motor skill acquisition can be traced as far back as Franz Liszt and his ideas of mental and psychological control (Maldonado, 1994). Bonpensiere (1952), Schultz (1936), Kochevitsky (1967), have stressed the importance of proper mental and nervous control in keyboard practice, including the capacity to create mental pictures of required movements. Gat (1965) tried to illustrate various aspects of piano technique through numerous photographs of film clips of prominent pianists playing difficult passages from the literature. His efforts are obviously limited by the static nature of the printed media. More recently, Galvan (1993) has investigated the role of kinesthetic imagery and mental practice in piano playing.

Scale Patterns tries to capitalize on the highly visual capabilities of the human brain through the use of QuickTime video examples of scale patterns. The videoclips constitute models that allow students to form mental images of scale patterns. Furthermore, by being able to compare QuickTime examples of correctly executed scales and scale patterns with their own performance, students will hopefully be able to refine their own metacognitive processes. Camera angles were studied to provide the closest possible match with the student’s angle of vision when sitting at the keyboard.

Procedural tasks, like keyboard scale playing, require learning a series of steps. Because practice is so important in procedural skill acquisition, Krueger (1991) has suggested that visualization may be a very appropriate interface for training procedural skills. Rosembloom & Newell (1987) have also suggested that practice improves performance via the acquisition of knowledge about patterns or chunks in the task environment.

Scale Patterns is organized around the circle of fifths as the navigation "hub" to go from key to key. The use of the familiar image of the circle of fifths reinforces the theory behind the construction of the major scale, and its relationship to keyboard fingering rules. For example, the right hand fingering rule for scales starting on a white key states that, with the exception of F major, the fourth finger will always play the new accidental in the tonality, i.e. the leading tone (F-sharp in G major, C-sharp in D major, G-sharp in A major, and so on).

Clicking on any given key name (for example, C, G, or A-flat) sends the student to that key. Each key has four related cards. The first of these four cards gives the students the option of clicking on a keyboard to hear the scale tones, or watching a QuickTime movie of a performance of the scale. Clicking on the keyboard also displays additional information about each scale degree and its correct musical nomenclature (Tonic, dominant, leading-tone, etc.). More important, however, is the possibility of looking at the QuickTime movie of the scale performance. By clicking on the transport buttons located at the bottom of the movie window, students can compare right and left hand performances. These movies can be displayed on the screen at the same time. Furthermore, by dragging on the small transport rectangle, students can view the movie backward or forward in slow motion in order to analyze the correct motions involved in playing the scales (Fig. 1).

Fig 1: QuickTime movies of scale played by right and left hands

The second and third cards show finger patterns for the right and left hand respectively. These cards allow students to see QuickTime videos of (a) the scale patterns played in succession (b) each scale pattern on its own, and (c) the scale played in the traditional note-by-note fashion. Fig. 2 shows the screen image after students have clicked on the "show me the patterns" button. This is the four-note pattern in the scale of C major played by the right hand.

The fourth card, labeled "Multi-representation card", displays information when the students click on a finger, a note on the staff, a key on the keyboard, a "Finger group" box, or when they type a letter name on the "Note name" box. For example, if a student clicks on a finger he/she will see the following information displayed on the screen: (a) the finger number, (b) the key(s) that finger plays on the keyboard, (c) the notation of the sound(s) on the staff, (d) the note name(s) of the sound(s) in the note name box, and (e) the group of fingers where the finger belongs (Fig. 3). The same information would have been displayed if they had, for example, clicked on a note on the staff, or a key on the keyboard. Additionally, when the student clicks a "Finger group" box (bottom left corner of the screen), a QuickTime movie shows that finger pattern played by the right or left hand, as the case may be (Fig 4). Information about these options is given to the students via voice digitization.

Fig 2: QuickTime movie of the right hand patterns

The fourth card, labeled "Multi-representation card", displays information when the students click on a finger, a note on the staff, a key on the keyboard, a "Finger group" box, or when they type a letter name on the "Note name" box. For example, if a student clicks on a finger he/she will see the following information displayed on the screen: (a) the finger number, (b) the key(s) that finger plays on the keyboard, (c) the notation of the sound(s) on the staff, (d) the note name(s) of the sound(s) in the note name box, and (e) the group of fingers where the finger belongs. The same information would have been displayed if they had, for example, clicked on a note on the staff, or a key on the keyboard. Additionally, when the student clicks a "Finger group" box (bottom left corner of the screen), a QuickTime movie shows that finger pattern played by the right or left hand, as the case may be (Fig 3). Information about these options is given to the students via voice digitization.

Schema can be integrative. By allowing multiple ways of looking at a given phenomena, Scale Patterns proposes that one representation (aural or visual) can be activated in conjunction with another, triggering an integrative process whereby different elements of the schema (keyboard location, fingering, staff notation, note names, finger groups, and actual visualization) become strongly related to each other. The more integrated the structure, the easier it will be for students to retrieve it as a unit, the less likely they will be to confuse it with similar schema (for example, another scale's fingering pattern), and the greater the possibility of isolated elements activating the whole (for example, a fourth finger on d-sharp triggering the E major scale schema).

The main multimedia techniques used in the development of the project include computer video technology using QuickTime 2.0 together with VideoFusion 1.6 and ScreenPlay as video digitizing/editing and playback software respectively; scanning technology using a Silverscan II scanner and Adobe Photoshop 2.5.1 software; HyperCard's AudioTools for voice digitization, editing, and playback; and finally HyperCard's paint tools to create keyboard images, icons, and miscellaneous graphics.

Fig 3: Multiple information screen with QuickTime movie