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Educational: 5.0
Overall Design: 4.8
Ease of Use: 5.0
(4.0 = good, 4.5 = very
good, 5.0 = excellent)
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Program Description What The Kids Said Who Is This Program For
Why We Selected This Program Computer Requirements
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If you are learning to play an instrument or learning music, do you realize that you can actually learn the basics of music theory on a computer? And that it can be a lot of fun?
Music Ace is designed to teach and embed the fundamentals of music theory, the basics of the keyboard, and develop the listening skills of the budding musician. This program is complementary to normal music instruction for any musical instrument.
Regardless of the instrument you are learning, the common skill set all starting musicians need, is the ability to read music, be able to hear and identify the different notes, and know the basics of the keyboard. Learning on a computer with a very well designed interactive software program like Music Ace, makes learning the essential elements of music theory very thorough - you know that you are getting all the bases covered - and fun in the process.
The core of the Music Ace program is comprised of 24 lessons encompassing 13 different areas of learning from key signatures to note reading, to the major scales.
In each lesson, Max, the friendly music professor, introduces 2 or 3 basic elements (i.e. which note goes where in the treble clef) in a learning module and asks you questions as you go, to make sure you have understood each concept. There is lots of visual animation (i.e. music notes, with little faces, bouncing around), as well as verbal and auditory cues to help the learner grasp the concepts being taught. Once each lesson is completed, there is a game designed to allow you to practice what you have just learned and let you know how well you are doing. Each lesson is accompanied by a unique game specifically designed to re-enforce that lesson's content.
Each lesson builds on the previous and you have the flexibility to start anywhere or return to any of the lessons, at any time. The program tracks lesson completion and score levels on each game for each user.
In addition to the 24 music lessons, there is the Music Doodle Pad (see right) where you can see songs being played both on the page and on the keyboard simultaneously. Most interestingly, you can create and notate your own songs and hear them being played back to you. This is designed to allow you to experiment with all that you have learned.
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Learning note positions
Identifying relative pitch
Creating and hearing your own compositions
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"Music Ace is an example of the very best computer programming for music instruction...this product is of the highest professional quality."-- Pennsylvania Music Educators Association News
"Fantastic product! Our daughter didn't like music lessons, but she loves Music Ace. It's fun for me, too. Thank you."- Los Osos, CA
". . . One drawback of Music Ace is that after several hours, my daughter refused to get off my computer, being so engrossed in the lessons." - Big Springs, TX
"This is a very comprehensive program. If I could have only one, I would have chosen Music Ace!"- Russel Springs, KY
"The piano students use Music Ace in conjunction with their regular program, and they go through the basic material so much faster! After six to eight months of lessons, it's not unusual for them to play at a one-and-a-half to two-year level." Becky Topia, Uvalde, TX
Music Ace is for the beginning music student of almost any age. It is an excellent teaching resource to complement any musical instruction program whether it be music lessons in the home or classroom instruction in the fundamentals of music or learning to play.
From the pictures above you may have the impression that this is only for piano students. First recognize that the fundamentals of the key board are typically taught to learners of any musical instrument and the music theory and auditory training, which represent the core of this program, are an essential foundation for any musical instrument.
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Many of us don't normally associate a software program on a computer with learning to play a musical instrument. For those of us who have learned to play an instrument, learning the theory part of music, was not always the most joyous part of the experience. In fact, it is typically our music reading skills that held us back.. Music Ace is a way to accelerate the learning process for the emerging musician..
What really impressed us with Music Ace was how much could be learned through a software program that pertained directly to learning to play an instrument, not to mention how thorough the teaching could be, and finally, and perhaps most importantly, how much fun it was.
The designers of Music Ace spent considerable time testing this program in it's prototype stages with kids in the classroom to ensure that it really delivered the learning value as well as was fun for the learners. In our view, they succeeded well on both counts.
The animation - bouncing animated notes with smiling faces - is very cleverly designed to both present the material in a visually entertaining way, as well as illustrate the concepts being taught. The amount of new information in each lesson is just right for younger students (yet works well for a learner at any age). The question/answer interaction within each lesson keeps your attention, as well as ensures that you are understanding each piece as you go. The pitch training throughout the program (developing your auditory abilities to discriminate between notes) is excellent. And finally the ability to experiment and compose your own music on the page and hear it played back is unique. The opportunity for tinkering and experimenting is endless.
As with all software, this learning process allows the student to set their own pace and do as much as he or she is able and willing to do within one sitting. The games after each lesson are well designed, entertaining and give you immediate feedback on how well you have not only understood the lesson but also how well you are able to exercise the skill that you have just learned.
If you are a music teacher or a parent with a starting musician in the house, we would "wildly and enthusiastically" recommend this program. It has won lots of awards in it's field and through our own testing, we know that it can accelerate the early stages of learning to the point where the emerging musician can start to play well enough to really enjoy the experience.
(See below for detail)
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Pricing and Online Ordering
(or call toll free -1-800-250-9229 )
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Windows: 98/2000/Me/NT4/XP, Pentium 166 MHz or faster, 32 MB free RAM, 640x480 256-color display, 60 MB free hard disk space, 16-bit sound, CD-ROM drive and mouse, General MIDI keyboard (optional)
Macintosh: PowerPC/iMac/G3/G5, System 9 or OS X, 32 MB free RAM, 640x480 256-color display, 60 MB free hard disk space, CD-ROM drive and mouse, General MIDI keyboard (optional)
or to see other music programs
Piano Suite - ages 8 & up
Making Music - ages 5 -12
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