Effectiveness of telepresence learning environment for opera singing: First results from a case study

This brief paper shows the first results of a case study on a remote learning telepresence environment, specialized on lyric singing at higher education level. Opera eLearning study uses high bandwidth for delivering quality audio and video experience, and has been reviewed and evaluated by singing teachers, chorus and orchestra directors, and other professional musicians. Besides the exhaustive material recorded in video, which allows contrasting each of the singing lesson against a set of categories, usability testing and a user acceptance questionnaire has been applied. The analysis of results shows that the environment can be effectively used for masterclass lessons.Postprint (published version

Blended Learning in Teaching Piano Major Students in the Music Department of Hunan Vocational College of Art

Purpose: The purposes of the research were to 1) explore the effectiveness of the blended learning approach of piano on the performance of the major students in the Music department of Hunan Vocational College of Art and 2) to determine the students' perceptions of the blended learning approach through a questionnaire survey. The participants of this study were 59 students majoring in piano, freshmen and sophomores who were studying with a face-to-face method and Violy application at the Music Department of Hunan Vocational College of Art. The quantitative research design of the quasi-experiment and questionnaire were conducted. The paired sample t-test was applied for hypothesis testing while the descriptive analysis—mean and standard deviation were used to report the samples' perceptions towards blended learning. The results revealed statistically significant differences between the scores of piano performance post-test after Violy had been employed and the pretest. The four piano performances measured-accuracy, technique, musicality, and repertoire difficulty had shown the improvement scores of the students once the Violy application was integrated as a teaching method. In addition, the students exposed to the Violy application expressed positive attitudes toward the usage of the Violy application. Therefore, the Violy application is a proven effective learning tool to improve student piano performance

Virtual Saxophone

This report basically discusses the preliminary research done and basic understanding of the chosen topic, which is “Virtual Saxophone”. The objective of the project is to create an application so that user can learn to play saxophone without need to attending musical class or with the aid of instructor. Since nowadays people are busy with their work or studies and have no time for musical class, with the completion of this project, people will be able to learn to play their favorite musical instrument whenever and where ever they want to when they have free time

Interactive Software for Guitar Learning

In this paper we present software designed to help address problems encountered by beginning guItarists, using interactive software to find effective solutions to enhance the learning process. Software can be utilised to improve a player's ability tdhear mistakes in theIr performance, as well as to create a fun and entertaining learning environment 'to motivate the player to practice. A software prototype ~~s been developed, which served as a basIs for usabllzty testmg, to highlight the usefulness of vari~us methods of feedback and provide a way forward in developing valuable software for guitar tuition

Aleatoriedad controlada aplicada al estudio y práctica de la viola

En este artículo se propone una nueva metodología instrumental, basada en la generación de estudios  mediante la aleatoriedad controlada, y se indaga acerca de la relación existente entre su uso y el desarrollo técnico en la viola. Partiendo de los conceptos de atención y correlación durante el estudio del violinista y pedagogo Ivan Galamian hemos desarrollado diversas aplicaciones informáticas que generan estudios técnicos no determinísticos. Tanto el diseño de las aplicaciones como su eficacia se ha sometido a una doble valoración mediante cuestionarios a un pequeño grupo de alumnas del grado superior de viola y profesorado experto

Effect of nano black rice husk ash on the chemical and physical properties of porous concrete pavement

Black rice husk is a waste from this agriculture industry. It has been found that majority inorganic element in rice husk is silica. In this study, the effect of Nano from black rice husk ash (BRHA) on the chemical and physical properties of concrete pavement was investigated. The BRHA produced from uncontrolled burning at rice factory was taken. It was then been ground using laboratory mill with steel balls and steel rods. Four different grinding grades of BRHA were examined. A rice husk ash dosage of 10% by weight of binder was used throughout the experiments. The chemical and physical properties of the Nano BRHA mixtures were evaluated using fineness test, X-ray Fluorescence spectrometer (XRF) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). In addition, the compressive strength test was used to evaluate the performance of porous concrete pavement. Generally, the results show that the optimum grinding time was 63 hours. The result also indicated that the use of Nano black rice husk ash ground for 63hours produced concrete with good strengt

Violin Virtuoso: A game for violin education

This study develops a way to use the technology of video games to help teach people the violin. The unique characteristics of this research are to create a visual representation for music for violinists, to utilize pedagogy for violin education within a video game, and to use the Fast Fourier Transform to process input from an actual acoustic instrument and use the data to track user progress. Music games like JamGuru [9], Rocksmith [19], LittleBigStar [13], and Rock Band [18] have made strides in these areas of research; however, most of these technologies have not been applied to the violin. Expected results are that students' progress rate will increase as a result of playing the game. The input processing used in this research could be applied to areas where sound recognition is important. Furthermore, the concept of an adaptable game can be applied to other academic subjects

Characterizing Movement Fluency in Musical Performance: Toward a Generic Measure for Technology Enhanced Learning

Virtuosity in music performance is often associated with fast, precise, and efficient sound-producing movements. The generation of such highly skilled movements involves complex joint and muscle control by the central nervous system, and depends on the ability to anticipate, segment, and coarticulate motor elements, all within the biomechanical constraints of the human body. When successful, such motor skill should lead to what we characterize as fluency in musical performance. Detecting typical features of fluency could be very useful for technology-enhanced learning systems, assisting and supporting students during their individual practice sessions by giving feedback and helping them to adopt sustainable movement patterns. In this study, we propose to assess fluency in musical performance as the ability to smoothly and efficiently coordinate while accurately performing slow, transitionary, and rapid movements. To this end, the movements of three cello players and three drummers at different levels of skill were recorded with an optical motion capture system, while a wireless electromyography (EMG) system recorded the corresponding muscle activity from relevant landmarks. We analyzed the kinematic and coarticulation characteristics of these recordings separately and then propose a combined model of fluency in musical performance predicting music sophistication. Results suggest that expert performers' movements are characterized by consistently smooth strokes and scaling of muscle phasic coactivation. The explored model of fluency as a function of movement smoothness and coarticulation patterns was shown to be limited by the sample size, but it serves as a proof of concept. Results from this study show the potential of a technology-enhanced objective measure of fluency in musical performance, which could lead to improved practices for aspiring musicians, instructors, and researchers

Investigation into Aspects of Feedback and Gamification in Computer-Assisted Musical Instrument Tutoring

This thesis investigates how different variations of presentational performance feedback influences the motivation of a learner in a computer-assisted musical instrument tutoring context. Further, the thesis overviews methods to increase students’ engagement with the learning process. Positive and negative content balance in performance feedback is proposed through conducting user testing and evaluation. User testing was carried out using an online browser-based guitar tuition app developed for the purpose of this thesis. A custom-built application allowed full control over varying the balance of positive and negative content within performance feedback for different testing groups. Last experiment was aimed to find aspects of gamification to promote and encourage users to better themselves and to keep learning. A brief description of up-to-date technology used to design and develop the guitar tuition software product is described. Despite the results being inconclusive they appear to indicate that presenting negative feedback is detrimental to the learners’ motivation. Furthermore, gamifying the learning experience and introducing competitive nature of games into musical instrument tuition appear to increase learners’ engagement, and prevent the learner drifting into boredom

O vídeo como estratégia de estudo para alunos de iniciação ao piano

Mestrado em Ensino de MúsicaAprender a tocar piano é um processo bastante complexo do ponto de vista neurológico e que envolve o professor, o aluno e o respetivo instrumento, bem como as interações envolvidas entre eles. Essas interações são bastante diversificadas mas estão confinadas ao tempo de duração da aula de piano, sendo o estudo de casa de extrema importância para a evolução do aluno. Assim é fundamental promover estratégias de estudo em casa, recorrendo a novos métodos como é o caso das ferramentas audiovisuais. O presente trabalho incide sobre o impacto do uso do modelo no estudo dos alunos em casa, e sua influência na evolução da aprendizagem. Trata-se de um estudo comparativo do desempenho dos alunos quando estudam peças com auxílio de um modelo gravado em vídeo e sem auxílio deste modelo. A avaliação, baseada em diversos critérios considerados importantes na apreciação técnica dos alunos numa fase inicial de aprendizagem, foi verificada também através de uma avaliação externa. Os resultados indicam que o uso do modelo gravado em vídeo poderá servir como estratégia de estudo para alunos do primeiro grau de piano, e, por isso, contribuir para a promoção da aprendizagem e o alcance dos objetivos programáticos.Learning to play the piano is a complex neurological process which involves the teacher, the student and the instrument, as well as all interactions between them. These interactions are quite diversified but are confined to the duration of the lesson; individual practice at home, therefore, is extremely important for the development of the student. Thus, it is fundamental to promote study techniques at home, and to involve varied teaching methods, such as audiovisual tools. This thesis focuses on the impact of the use of filmed excerpts in the individual study at home, and their impact on the evolution of the learning process. It is a comparative study of the performance of students while studying and practicing the musical pieces with the assistance of a filmed model, and without it. The evaluation, based on several criteria, also involved an initial stage of technical appreciation, confirmed through external evaluation. The results indicate that the use of filmed models may be an effective tool when used as a study strategy by basic-level students and, therefore, contribute to the promotion of instrumental learning