Compose with Sounds: Pedagogical software for teaching sound-based composition in schools
- Submitting institution
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University of Portsmouth
- Unit of assessment
- 33 - Music, Drama, Dance, Performing Arts, Film and Screen Studies
- Output identifier
- 7123838
- Type
- T - Other
- DOI
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-
- Location
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- Brief description of type
- A multi-component output consisting of pedagogical software together with a paper published in conference proceedings.
- Open access status
- -
- Month
- October
- Year
- 2016
- URL
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- Supplementary information
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- Request cross-referral to
- -
- Output has been delayed by COVID-19
- No
- COVID-19 affected output statement
- -
- Forensic science
- No
- Criminology
- No
- Interdisciplinary
- No
- Number of additional authors
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0
- Research group(s)
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B - Music, Dance, Drama and Performing Arts
- Proposed double-weighted
- No
- Reserve for an output with double weighting
- No
- Additional information
- This MULTI-COMPONENT output consists of pedagogical software together with a published conference contribution. This research, which developed from Pearse’s involvement in a project led by Leigh Landy (De Montfort University) from before this REF period, addresses accessibility and functionality issues of software for the teaching and learning of sound-based composition in schools. Drawing on writing by Magnusson (2010), Landy (2012) and Bell (2015) on the problems of interfaces for teaching sound-based composition, Pearse’s research utilised a continuous iterative development process involving students, teachers, community practitioners and academics. It addressed how to best support students to work with discrete sounds and visualise compositional frameworks.
Research and development workshops highlighted the importance of imagery and animations to ease navigation through compositions and to consolidate understanding of creative sound transformations. Unlike commercial Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs), it is the first software to incorporate 3D imagery to reflect the transformation of sounds and motivate creative engagement with sound design and electroacoustic composition. It also presents reworked and optimised tools based on 30+ conventional musical processes commonly used by composers. Unlike commercial DAWs, it uses a bespoke and innovative object/sound-based sequencing environment with constituent tools that enable each sound to undergo unique audio transformations and effects. This allows users of any skill level to work efficiently, without the risk of a transformation of one sound affecting another.
These features were incorporated into the software, which also offers an extensive policy and template system allowing pedagogues to enable or disable features. Libraries of sounds and functions can be shared. Template lessons and workshops were developed and are available at https://ears2.dmu.ac.uk/cws. The research has been presented at several international conferences and the software adopted in school curriculums in ten different countries.
- Author contribution statement
- -
- Non-English
- No
- English abstract
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