You know it is a good summer when even up in Scotland we get a heatwave! Our staff will be making the most of the weather and getting their holidays in while schools are off. It is generally a quieter time here at Figurenotes HQ, as our school and community projects take a break and all the hardworking teachers that order Figurenotes resources get a well-deserved rest.
In light of this, any orders made mid-July to mid-August may take a little longer to process and be sent out. If you are desperate to get your hands on your parcel and need it urgently, please contact Drake Music Scotland. You can call during office hours (Mon-Fri, 9-5) on 0131 659 4766, or email info@drakemusicscotland.org.
Resource Base subscriptions and Figurenotes Software orders will not be affected, as long as they are bought through the online shop, rather than via purchase order. These are automated and sent out via email. Please check your junk folders if you haven’t received your download emails.
From everyone here at Figurenotes HQ, we wish you a brilliant summer break and can’t wait to get back to music-making next month.
Each video tutorial features a different expert from Drake Music Scotland, showcasing plenty of classroom activities, top tips, and creative ideas for you to use with your students.
First, Chris Furness showed us how to set up a Figurenotes 4-string guitar, with tips on how to adapt playing technique for different physical needs.
For early years groups, Caitlin Mulgrew guided us through a song with actions, movement games, and composition activities. Who doesn’t love a bit of creative play on the moon?!
This week, Pete Sparkes demonstrates a brilliantly adaptable exercise for improving rhythm and pulse. You can extend this exercise as far as you want, with melody, instruments, silly actions and noises; your imagination is the only limit.
In the final film of the series, Fiona Sharp demonstrates how chime bars can give students a sense of responsibility and control. She brings a hint of Blue Peter into the classroom with a brilliant, musical, art activity.
“I loved my day. Thank you very much. You have inspired me and made me very excited to get back to school and get started. Today has even made me want to learn how to play the guitar!”
Our last Music Teacher’s Toolbox was another fantastic day spent with an enthusiastic group of teachers and musicians. Thank you to everyone that came along and shared the day with us. We always love how much you throw yourself into the band sessions, in particular! There were some excellent renditions of Valerie and many other tunes. Well done for embracing the challenge of playing instruments you haven’t played before.
As part of our focus on BBC Ten Pieces, we created an iPad orchestra using Thumbjam and Figurenotes. Read about how to create Figurenotes overlays for Thumbjam here.Our orchestra played the Figurenotes score for the Lark Ascending (available via BBC Ten Pieces) and our soloists improvised their parts using the pentatonic scale. It sounded beautiful. Hats off to everyone that was using Thumbjam for the first time and sight-reading their part.
We then heard some wonderful compositions from each of our small groups. Each composition was based on a different piece from the BBC Ten Pieces lists. We were treated to a jazz interpretation of Firebird; an exciting rendition of Hall of the Mountain King using iPads, chime bars, and ingenious use of a Wowee speaker and ocean drum; as well as Mussorgsky with a Latin twist.
Resources from this training day are now on the Resource Base. Not a member? Join for just £23.99 a year. You’ll get discounts on future Music Teacher’s Toolbox events too.
Our next instalment of Music Teacher’s Toolbox will be on Saturday 24th November, 2018. Pop the date in your diaries now.
From its establishment in 1997 Drake Music Scotland’s primary purpose was to create music-making opportunities for disabled people of all ages. For the first 10 years this was primarily achieved through the use of accessible music technologies, giving those with limited mobility and co-ordination the means to control musical sounds and express themselves creatively. As well as working with physically disabled people, we also provided opportunities for those with learning difficulties. Many of these were able to play conventional musical instruments, but the main issue for us was how best to help them develop musical skills.
The ability to read music notation is a fundamental aspect of learning to play an instrument and joining in music making with other people. Notation presents a barrier for many learners – not just those with disabilities – and we hadn’t found a way round this. We relied on different approaches to music making, such as improvising, rhythm games, playing by ear, and creative composition using alternative notation such as graphic scores.
Essentially we recognised our own ‘teaching difficulty’ rather than seeing our participants as having a ‘learning difficulty’.
In 2008, we became aware of Figurenotes and, since that moment, this colourful notation system has had a major impact on our work. Our former Artistic Director, Brian Cope, went to Helsinki, where Figurenotes was invented and developed by Markku Kaikkonen and Kaarlo Uusitalo with their pupils at the Resonaari Music School. He returned to Scotland enthused by its simplicity and effectiveness, and we didn’t look back. Although other colour-based systems have been created, Figurenotes presents all the fundamental features of notation in a clear and accessible way, and at the same time allows learners to progress through three simple stages towards standard notation. Following our ‘Inspire’ pilot project, testing Figurenotes with a variety of learners from young children to adults, we needed no further convincing. Our mission was to introduce it to Scotland, make it more widely available by creating Figurenotes software and resources, and bring music leaders and educators on board with this revolutionary, but simple tool.
Over the last ten years, Figurenotes has had a pervasive and positive effect on all aspects of our work. As we reach the major landmark of our 20th Anniversary Concert, putting disabled musicians ‘Centre Stage’, it is enlightening to assess the impact it has had. Rather than being a dramatic ‘solution’ to everybody’s needs, there has been a gradual growth of confidence in our flexible methodology. A combination of the right kind of open-minded, creative and versatile people – musicians and music educators – with the best combination of tools, teaching practices and technologies to create a holistic approach that can be adjusted to meet the needs of any learner, seeing opportunities instead of obstacles, and allowing people’s potential and talent to be realised.
Highlights
We have had many successes with Figurenotes, both on a small individual scale, at organisational level and in terms of the wider sector both here in Scotland and further afield. Creating a list of our ‘Top Ten’ achievements with Figurenotes is nearly impossible, but here we highlight some of the major ways we have helped our participants realise their potential with the brilliant Figurenotes system over the last 10 years:
Winning the award for Best SEN Resource at the Music Teacher Awards for Excellence
This award was in recognition of everything we had achieved since launching Figurenotes resources in 2012. It was the first in what is now a much longer list of awards and accolades won by Drake Music Scotland.
Collaborations between mainstream and special schools
Increasingly, Figurenotes is enabling pupils from all schools to play together in concerts and collaborations. Many of these pupils would not have had this opportunity without Figurenotes. One of the highlights was our Mambo concert in Angus that featured in the BBC Ten Pieces newsletter.
Links with national organisations to increase accessibility and inclusion
Our resources for BBC Ten Pieces, Friday Afternoons, and links with Sistema Scotland have given so many more people access to music making. It is great to see these projects increasing their focus on inclusion and accessibility.
Recognising our work finding digital solutions to break down the barriers to music making for disabled people, including development of the Figurenotes software. Our music software is now used world-wide by teachers and students alike. A great tool for composition and for adapting pieces to the needs of the musician.
This research project helped us see the huge potential of Figurenotes and it’s effects. The orchestra frequently plays with top musicians such as Sir James MacMillan, Nicola Benedetti, and Colin Currie. Prestigious performances in both Holyrood and Westminster prove that learning with Figurenotes can take you a long way.
From a pupil moving to a mainstream school to study music after learning with Figurenotes, to a pianist with Dyslexia who is now training to be a music teacher. We absolutely love hearing back from projects all over Scotland and further afield. Access to Figurenotes resources has helped brass projects in the favelas of Brazil, school work in Uganda, Israel, Australia, Europe and the USA; the list goes on.
Tirelessly training teachers
We have been training teachers and musicians to use Figurenotes to increase accessibility, inclusion, and success for years. Our Music Teacher’s Toolbox training days go from strength to strength, attracting people from Australia, Czech Republic, Sweden, among others. We have seen an increase in training requests from organisations, schools, and companies, which means more teachers using Figurenotes and more people gaining access to music making.
We are looking forward to the biggest highlight of all: Centre Stage
This wonderful project, which uses Figurenotes to help in the recovery from eating disorders, was brought to our attention recently. The instant accessibility of Figurenotes seemed to work really well in this scenario and allowed the group to compose and express themselves without any prior musical knowledge.
My name is Nadine Allan and I am a recent Music and Communities graduate from The University of Aberdeen. During the final year of my studies, I created a music project called ‘Can You Hear Me?’ that used Figurenotes to compose a song with the North East Eating Disorder Service (NEEDS) in Aberdeen. NEEDS is a charity that is run for sufferers and carers of eating disorders by volunteers who have experience with the illness. The charity holds meetings at Cornhill Hospital in Aberdeen monthly, where individuals can share experiences and support one another in a confidential setting.
‘Can You Hear Me?’ was a project that created a pro-recovery song for sufferers and carers of eating disorders. The main purpose of the project was to work alongside participants to create a song that represented their feelings, emotions and opinions on the illness. I wanted the project to highlight a new outlet for the participants to express themselves. This outlet was music.
The participants were involved in four sessions over the course of four months. The first two sessions were art based, where the group worked together to create lyrics in a sensory way. Firstly, I got the participants to create mood boards and paintings based around their favourite songs and memories. I then asked them to note down what it was about the music that made them feel these emotions and why. As a group we then brainstormed words or phrases from four categories: empowerment, self esteem, body image and relationships. The participants chose words or phrases from these posters that would become the lyrics for their recovery song.
The final two sessions focused on word setting and creating melodies by using Figurenotes. Once the participants separated their words into syllables and then rhythms, we began making the music! I brought along my own keyboard for the participants to use. I labeled an octave on the keyboard to match the Figurenotes colours. I also brought along the Figurenotes diagram to use as a visual aid when explaining Figurenotes to the participants. This acted as a guide throughout the composition process that we were able to refer back to when experimenting with the keyboard.
As the participants took it in turns to compose, they would mark the corresponding colours underneath the rhythms and lyrics to create their melodies. Once each line was composed, I would impute this into my music software. This allowed the participants to listen and edit their music as the session went on.
As majority of my participants had little or no experience with music making, I found using Figurenotes a really easy and accessible way for everyone to create music together. This allowed the participants to bond with each other while learning completely new skills. These were skills that they were unable to access previously, due to their illness.
Participants worked well as a group and listened to each other’s work when composing their own part. By using colours as a way to notate, the participants were able to focus in on the music and the sound of it rather than getting caught up in the ‘notes’ of the keyboard.
The participants often mentioned how they thought the process of writing their own music would have been a lot harder. However, by using Figurenotes they were able to freely write music. Overall, I felt that by using Figurenotes I was able to give the group creative control in an environment where they perhaps felt they didn’t have any control.
Thanks to Nadine for sharing this brilliant project with us. It is so useful to see the different ways that Figurenotes is being used in a wide range of settings. You can find out more about NEEDS through their website.
If you’d like training in inclusive music education using Figurenotes, with many composition activities, come along to the Music Teacher’s Toolbox on 24th March.
Not a sentence that many people in the UK have uttered in the last week, but we have been extremely lucky with the weather! Why? Emma, Pete, and Lauren just managed to get out of the country before all flights were cancelled.
Boston played host to the Massachusetts Music Educators Association (MMEA) Conference 2018. Drake Music Scotland and Figurenotes took to the stage, presenting on Figurenotes notation, technology, and inclusive music practice. We had been invited to present following the work of one Boston teacher fighting to improve provision for students with additional support needs. There are brilliant things happening in Scotland in this field, and Massachusetts’ teachers were keen to get ideas to take into their classrooms and propose to their decision makers.
“I wish I’d had this when I was learning”
“As a person with Dyslexia, it is a big deal for me to be a music major. We tend to get weeded out of music programmes. [Figurenotes] would include us!”
“This is just the best thing I’ve seen.”
“That progression makes total sense. So we can get all the kids playing and reading? That’s amazing.”
The wonderful feedback we received and the enthusiastic response from teachers made the long trip worthwhile. Some music education focuses attention on the most ‘gifted and talented’ pupils, often those who have already had the privilege of private music lessons. Making classroom music more accessible will include students who are often left behind or not given the chance to learn, as well as increasing engagement in the extra-curricular music activities within the school. Increased confidence from quick success makes motivating your class much easier, with no pupil left behind. It was wonderful to see the ‘lightbulb moment’ as these teachers understood what would now be possible in their classrooms. That was definitely worth travelling over 3000 miles for!
If you want advice on how Figurenotes could be used in your school, get in touch. Our next Music Teacher’s Toolbox training event will take place on Saturday, 24th March 2018. Take a look at the programme and book your place today.
Rhythm is the heart of Figurenotes. From banging out beats on the drum kit, to beautiful marimba solos, you can work wonders with Figurenotes percussion. With studies showing that musicians using Figurenotes have a stronger sense of pulse and better rhythmic skills, let’s take a look at the different methods of using percussion:
1. Drum kit
2. Pitched Percussion
3. Unpitched Percussion
Drum Kit
The diagram above shows the structure of both the drum kit and the drum notation.
A black square represents the kick drum. Circles are the snare and toms. Crosses represent the cymbals.
The notation puts these shapes on 3 different lines. Kick drum squares sit at the bottom, circles in the middle, and squares on the top. This echoes both standard drum notation and the physical placement of the kit. This moves onto 5 lines in stage 2 Figurenotes notation.
Tuned percussion works in the same way as piano. We place stickers on the instrument and match them to the note on the page. The diagram below shows a piano with Figurenotes stickers. The red circle is middle C.
When learning chime bars and similar instruments, we recommend placing the sticker where the beater will strike. This helps musicians to learn where to play the instrument for the best sound.
You can limit the amount of notes you present by limiting the chime bars you lay out, or removing unwanted notes from a xylophone or glockenspiel.
Unpitched Percussion
Untuned percussion gives you a lot of freedom. You can assign any shape or colour to a sound/instrument. You can choose to add stickers or not.
In some settings, it helps to keep this consistent from week to week. Other times we may want flexibility to change instruments and keep the same parts, for example. This is up to you.
You also have the option of writing each individual part out as a melody line using your chosen colour and shape, or lump parts together into drum kit notation explained above. See what works for you and your musicians.
For more structured untuned percussion, see the drum kit example above.
Figurenotes is perfectly suited to the piano. By placing stickers on the white notes, we make it much easier to see the repeating pattern of notes that the piano has.
Each note has a colour and each octave has a shape. You can see the relationship between notes, while still seeing them as different. Match the note on the page to the sticker on your instrument and you are playing!
Middle C is the red circle in the diagram below. Make sure you get the correct order of colours and shapes when placing your stickers on the keys.
We recommend placing the stickers in line with the tip of the black keys (see photo below). This means that the player can still see the stickers when their hands are in position.
Figurenotes allows you to build chords using small, simple steps.
In order to play a chord, we first play the colour of the chord box.
We then find a friend, not a neighbour.
To finish the triad, we play another friend, not a neighbour. This creates your triad.
Start playing your piece with a single note for the chord part, then try 2 notes, then go for the full 3 note chord. Work at your pace.
Develop even further by using chords with sharps or flats. You can see in the image below that there is a blue note with an arrow inside the box. This means that if we come across a blue (F), we need to adjust it by moving to the note to the right of it (F#).
Notate allows you to write chord parts and melody parts for either hand, so whether you have a beautiful bass line or some thumping chords, reading the notation won’t be an issue.
Proceeds from Figurenotes resources go to Drake Music Scotland. This wonderful charity enables people with disabilities to learn, compose, and perform music.“Our vision is to transform people’s lives through the power of music. We play a lead role in making Scotland a place where ground-breaking new music featuring skilled musicians and composers with disabilities comes alive for everyone. We reshape the definition of musicians, musical instruments and ensembles, building momentum as the country’s centre of expertise in inclusive music technologies and as an innovator on the international stage.”Figurenotes is incorporated into almost every one of their projects. Pete Sparkes, Artistic Director of Drake Music Scotland, tells us how Figurenotes has improved their ability to deliver music sessions and unlocked the huge potential of their participants.
“The brilliance of Figurenotes is its simplicity. This notation has allowed us to work with schools and individuals who have previously found it difficult or impossible to fully participate in music. In much of the instrumental teaching world there is a focus on standard notation. While this method clearly works well for some pupils, and there are always examples of wonderful young musicians who have learned this way, we believe that a significant number of people never learn to play music because the teaching methods do not suit their learning style. Figurenotes is simple, concrete and adaptable.
Photo credit: Anne Binckebanck
Photo credit: Anne Binckebanck
Photo credit: Anne Binckebanck
One of the main benefits of using Figurenotes is that through early success we can build confidence and motivate further learning. Lack of confidence to tackle learning challenges is a major reason why some people give up music. There is a common perception that you need ‘innate talent’ to succeed. This is at best, misleading, and at worst, prevents participation in music. We know that early success with an instrument can lead to the realisation “I can play music.” This powerful motivation leads to increased confidence and future success.
We use Figurenotes throughout our programme – all over Scotland and beyond. On a Monday morning we have piano pupils working with their teachers on new Figurenotes tunes. Tuesdays see our flagshipDigital Orchestra devising new music using magnetic shapes and a whiteboard. Wednesday sees a training session for musicians from theScottish Chamber Orchestrausing Figurenotes to create more accessible resources for their Masterworks project. On Thursday, our Associate Musician is leading a school band using Figurenotes Guitars and iPads. And on Friday we continue our development of eye-gaze technology utilising Figurenotes colours. This is just a snapshot of the diverse range of projects we deliver. Figurenotes makes these projects possible and we love it.”
Proceeds from Figurenotes resources go to Drake Music Scotland, so not only do you get great resources to support your own work, you also get the warm feeling of enabling them to continue their important work in inclusive music.Come and celebrate 20 years of incredible music-making at their 20th anniversary concert, Centre Stage, to see the work you’ve been supporting.
Digital Orchestra. Photo credit: Kirsty-Jacqueline Lingard
Twice a year, we run a full day of training for music educators and practitioners. At the Music Teacher’s Toolbox, we’ll give you a good grounding in how Figurenotes can support your work and help your pupils flourish. This training is always tailored to the participants, so let us know what you’d like to see on the programme. You can take part in the Facebook poll here.
Our most experienced Figurenoters keep coming back to these training days and consistently get something fresh and new, filling them with enthusiasm and energy. The mix of people attending is always a real treat. For March 24th, we already have bookings from as far afield as the Czech Republic!
“No matter how often I attend these training days there is always something new to learn, and new ideas to share and take back. Great day meeting lots of interesting people and thinking about new ways of working.”
You’ll gain a better understanding of different musical approaches, helping you create a more inclusive music practice. Some participants are looking for a way to aid just one pupil with dyslexia, others want to make sure no one gets left behind or singled out in their classroom, and some just want to improve their pupils’ rhythm skills. Our aim is to give you the extra tools you need to create an inclusive learning environment in every musical scenario.
“Extremely useful. A whole new world has been opened up for my teaching practice, especially within ASN.”
Remember that one of the perks of your Resource Base subscription is a discount on your training place. Use the code RB2018 in the online shop to get your discount. If you aren’t a member yet, add the subscription to your order and you can get the discount straight away.
