BP12_FinalVideo

PE7_GarageBandPart3

Play at your own risk...sick beats!

In Search of Sick Beats!

My musical typing keyboard.

The next stop in my quest to be a musical genius is musical typing in GarageBand.  Musical typing allows you to create sound and manipulate a keyboard to create unique beats or tracks.   

 This was definitely a trial and error process for me! I love music, but I recognize this is not my gift!    I can see why people in this profession have such a large following and can make large monetary demands!  Artists such as Pharell and Timbaland are known for making funky beats!

If you can make or create beats, it can be a gold mine!  I, on the other hand, will keep my day job!

The process for creating a successful beat is very tedious!  You must have an ear for music!  I know what I like, but it was difficult for me to translate it to my song!

My husband and my daughter would probably have much more success; they understand the language of beats!

Choosing an instrument to begin the beat process!

I did create a song with the musical typing feature.  Your keyboard resembles an actual instrument or a collection of instruments to give you different parts of a select music genre.   GarageBand does a great deal of the thinking for you, but you must use your musical knowledge to take it further.

Dragging,dropping and selecting components of my beat.

Making musical selections!

I thought this program gave me great insight to how some of my students feel about music and beats.  If you create, or in my case, stumble upon a great beat it is awesome!

I did a little research on YouTube and found many Mac DJ’s!  Almost all of them suggested the viewer dive right in and play around!!!  It's the best beat in the world, but it's a beat!

PE6_GarageBandPart2

More Adventures with GarageBand!

The next chapter in my GarageBand journey is using autotune.  Autotune is a fun sound effect that allows you to alter the sound of your voice.  Many singers and rap artists use this effect in their music tracks to distort and disguise the voice.

I learned how to do this on YouTube, the resource of resources! It seemed slightly complicated at first, but I took notes!

Select Voice Recording from the GarageBand Menu.

Select Real Instrument to record your voice.

Select Male or Female Voice.

Record your favorite song.

Playback and check the recording.

Select an effect that you like and playback.

Adjust the keys to achieve different effects.

Have fun!

I could use this in a recorded presentation describing the elements and principles of art or disguise my voice as a narrator or famous artist.  Try it out! This was a lot of fun, especially if you can’t sing! 

Select the voice icon in GarageBand.

Give your song a powerful title!

Select the Real Instrument icon to begin your project.

Select the right option for you or throw everyone a curveball!

Push the button and add some vocals!

Singing off key is best, it gives GarageBand something to work with during recording! 

Select an effect to alter your vocal.

Notice my vocal changes!

More experimentation!

Export to iTunes and listen to your masterpiece!

PE5_GarageBand

For my next lesson in GarageBand, I created a track using Magic GarageBand. With Magic GarageBand, you simply select a style of music and change the instruments to hear different versions  of the original.

My introduction to Magic GarageBand from Lynda.com.

Learning shortcuts in GarageBand.

The GarageBand!

My style of choice...Funk!

The highlighted instruments can be exchange for alternative ones.

Highlighted area shows practice area of the track.

My funky song in GarageBand.

I am recording my song in GarageBand.

My funky song is completely recorded in Magic GarageBand.

Sending my completed song to the iTunes library.

My funky song is now part of my iTunes library!

The next step in my learning process...learning how to upload an audio file to my blog!

PE4_GarageBand

My practical learning experience is with Garageband!  I like to believe I am a creative a creative person, but music is not my thing!  My first stop in this learning adventure: Lynda.com. 

The tutorials at Lynda.com or more in depth than the tutorials provided by Garageband.

I wanted to improve my musical skills and prepare for the months ahead!

This lesson on using distortion and overdrive effects was way out of my frame of reference!
If I were in a band, this would be a great place for me to experiment!

BP11_LiveBinder

My favorite tool of the week: LiveBinder!  

BP8_LiveBinder

LiveBinders is your 3-ring binder for the Web!

LiveBinders: The Knowledge Sharing Place!

LiveBinders takes users into the 21^st century with a three ring binder for the web!

With LiveBinders, users are able to search the web, bookmark great finds and place them all in one location.  This site is in the beta stage of development and is open to the public to use and experience. LiveBinders was a great find for all of my classes to use with upcoming reviews and semester exams.  Images, text information and even videos can be placed in any LiveBinder you have created. 

After completing the registration process, I was ready to create my first binder: Art Wonder!  I set up three tabs that would represent my current classes at my high school, much like tabs in a traditional 3 ring binder.

The next step is placing content in the binder for each tab I have identified.  I added LiveBinder to my toolbar and I was ready to search!  I searched for content that my classes are currently learning in the classroom. 

I added my menhdi Google search, a caricature artist website and a videoshare of the elements and principles of art to my Art I tab.  Now my students can access their specific tab and review the information located inside.  I have the option to make my binder available for public or private viewing.

Sharing binders is another great component of the LiveBinders concept.  Various categories are listed for you to examine and explore.  Since I am an art teacher, I wanted to take a look at the other art binders that were created.  This is a wonderful way to expose students to any subject, time period or technique.

Depending upon the subject, you may have many tabs or a select few for your students to access.  Students may even create their own binders for each class they have on their schedule.  A personal learning environment is created when students are able to add their own content to their binder.  With Livebinders, students don’t have to backtrack to locate bookmarks or try to remember an amazing site; they simply add it to their Livebinder. 

LiveBinder will put a stop to endless searches on the Internet with sites I want to share with my students.  I can place several sites under a tab and each student is able to go to the binder to access the information.

I believe LiveBinder can be a useful resource for students and parents.  Students can use LiveBinder for more than one class and access the information at anytime.  On the other hand, parents are able to access information and help their student keep assignments current.

LiveBinders are not just for education; they can be used in the corporate world for presentations or for personal projects like recipe books.  I introduced Livebinders to my students on Friday, and I look forward to seeing how they will utilize this tool of the 21^st century.  If you are looking for an one stop resource, follow this link to LiveBinders!

Image Credits: LiveBinder, National Portrait Gallery, Google and HSArtMakers.

BP10_TheMacLabExperiment Post

Image from Evernote website.

Do you have something that is noteworthy?  Need a place to organize it? The Mac Lab Experiment has the answer!

Follow this link to The Mac Lab Experiment and view my comments on Evernote posted by Michael S. !

BP9_21StaffDevelopment Post

Looking for something different and creative to use in the classroom or next iMovie?
Follow this link and check out my comments on a fun Web 2.0 tool posted by Matthew P.!

Image from the site of Matthew P./21StaffDevelopment

PE3_iMovie

PE3_iMovie

I was able to try new techniques in my OneMinuteMovie like:
-transitions
-altering the speed of the video
-overlaying still images with words.
I plan to do more with the techniques that I learned in my intensive training!

This was a hard earned certificate of completion!  It was hard to sit through things I already knew how to do, but learning the advanced techniques were worth it!

PE2_iMovie

The advanced preferences tutorials were the most informative for me.  I love working with iMovie and the simplicity it offers.

I eased up on the transitions, so I wouldn't look like like a amateur!

I will try challenging myself by employing more techniques for better movies.  I thought I knew a lot about iMovie, but there is still more to learn!

PE1_iMovie

My list of iMovie training tutorials!

Advanced techniques for iMovie.

A new technique to try for future movies.

I was able to do this with the One Minute Movie.

Editing images is something that looks challenging!