Mozart is a program designed to aid in the process of learning how to read music. It does that in form of a game and that is fantastic especially for kids. Having them play for a couple of minutes after band practice is a great little reward and motivator. This works well also in regular music lessons, but of course Mozart is not only for kids. We all can use a little motivation and trying to beat yesterdays high score is a pretty good reason to play another round.
Learning how to read music is not easy. Specifically at the beginning it requires a lot of memorization, one of the most tedious aspects of learning. Not only do we have to know the location of a note on our instrument, but we have to be able to find it instantly - without thinking. That takes a lot of training.
Getting involved on multiple levels is a proven approach, because additional involvement with the subject matter outside of the perceived practice session really enhances the learning process. With the Mozart game we can allow the use of some of our downtime to improve our skills. We dont need an instrument to do so, because one is built right into the software. Then, once the game starts we use this virtual instrument to identify each note as it flies across the staff system. The beauty of it is that you can play the game anywhere. Like when commuting on the subway, waiting at the dentists, in line at the super market, you name it.
Once the game begins notes start moving from the right side of the screen to the left. These notes have to be identified in the order of their appearance with the current input instrument (i.e. piano). Once a note gets too close to the clef on the left side of the screen it disappears in a cloud of vapor and the player loses one life. For each note named in time the player gets one point or more depending on level. The further the game progresses the more notes will appear in this steady stream and their range will widen. To liven things up a little there are all sorts of "special" characters. Some give you bonus points and others move suddenly or explode even. Once a player has depleted all their lives the game is over and they might receive a high score. After a couple of weeks or so playing the game to conclusion once will take 5 to 10 minutes and that is time well spent.
The secret to the games approach is that it isolates one specific aspect of reading music, namely that of identifying a note on the instrument. Training that ability to a near instinctual level is achieved by increasing speed and difficulty during the game. Games are really good at teaching us skills like super fast identification of objects for example. It is a fairly abstract thing to learn and that is why a games reward system works well to incentivise continued practice. We are not entirely fooled of course and there is a qualitative difference between educational games and those we play for fun, but nevertheless.
Instruments:
Banjo, Bass, Cello, Double Bass, Guitar, Mandolin, Piano, Viola, Violin
Features
• Intuitive interface
• Immersive game play
• All major and minor keys
• All common clefs
• Supports movable and fixed Do
• Adjustable tuning for all string instruments
• Support for left-handed players
• Missed note highlighting
• Training mode for range practice
• Half-speed mode
Designed for the beginning musician as well as the student or professional, Mozart is an excellent tool towards better reading in 12 minor and major keys, practicing Solfege, unfamiliar keys, clefs or just to have fun while learning.
