The+Mighty+Maestro


 * 1.** **CITATION AND GENERAL INFORMATION**
 * Title: The Mighty Maestro 1.2.3 ([] )
 * Author: Dan Collingbourne (ORB Education)
 * Publisher: ORB Education ([] )
 * Copyright (Released): September 2009
 * Platform: Wintel: Windows Me, Windows 2000, Windows 2003, Windows NT, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7
 * Peripherals: Speakers are needed to hear sounds; however, no other peripherals are needed or necessary
 * Grade/Age: Late Elementary through Early Junior High School/Middle School
 * Type of Class: General Music, Band, Orchestra, Choir


 * 2.** **TEACHER SUPPORT**
 * The Mighty Maestro is shareware software that is aimed at teaching students the basics of music theory through lessons, activities, games and exercises. In regards to the support that teachers are provided to meet these goals, there are very minimal options available. There are no instruction manuals, online guides or tutorials. Basically, the only form of support provided is email contact to ask for help, support, or ask questions. In addition, there are no lesson plans, sample screens or resource information provided to aid in the use of the program. However, the program does have printable score pages that can be utilized by the teacher. Additionally, when purchased, teachers can utilize a score tracker to follow student progress.


 * 3.** **INSTRUCTIONAL CONTENT**
 * The Mighty Maestro is software that has the goal of teaching students the basics of music theory. In an effort to achieve this goal, the program utilizes an excellent interactive format to teach a variety of musical concepts. The program covers basic note values, such as eighth notes, quarter notes, half notes, and whole notes, as well as bars and measures. The program also covers note reading and pitch recognition both visually and aurally. The concepts of rests, repeats, dynamics, and accidentals are honed through the programs. In addition, slightly more advanced topics, such as keys and key signatures, can be taught through the program. Also, each musical category that is covered has several levels that progress in difficulty of concept from very basic to more advanced.
 * Through the use of the Mighty Maestro to teach basic music theory concepts, some of the National Standards in Music Education are addressed. The National Standards in music education that are addressed are:
 * National Standard in Music Education No. 5: Reading and notating music.
 *  National Standard in Music Education No. 6: Listening to, analyzing, and describing music.
 * National Standard in Music Education No. 9: Understanding music in relation to history and culture.
 * 4.** **INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN AND PEDAGOGICAL SOUNDNESS**
 * The Mighty Maestro is a software program that can be very appealing to students to use to learn the basic concepts of music theory. The program utilizes a variety of structures to meet its goals. The program functions as a tutorial as it presents new information to students and then asks them to practice and test their knowledge of the concepts. In the tutorials, the program presents material in an interesting manner through audio examples, visual reinforcement, as well as written text. There is also a good degree of interactivity. As students learn about concepts, they click buttons and pictures to get new information. Although students have some control over how they learn new information, the program does not allow for easy forward and backward movement through materials, and there is not a great deal of capability for answer-judging to students’ questions, other than correct or incorrect. In addition to functioning as a tutorial, the program also serves as an instructional game. After students learn and practice musical concepts, they will proceed through drill and practice games to reinforce their knowledge of the musical concepts. In addition, the games are straight-forward enough and at an appropriate level for the students using the program. Along with tutorial and gaming structures, the program also makes use of the discovery structure as students need to listen, observe, and use trial and error to help them learn the musical concepts presented. The variety of approaches provides students with more ways to develop an understanding of the concepts being taught. In addition to utilizing a variety of structures to teach the musical concepts, the program utilizes teaching strategies that are at an appropriate level for the students using the program. Concepts are explained, then examples are provided, and then students can experiment with information or practice by playing games. In addition, scaffolding is provided for students as they progress through material with increasing difficulty levels. The presentation of the program also helps make it age appropriate and appealing to students. There are nicely drawn graphics that demonstrate the information and add to understanding. In addition, the presentation can be altered slightly through color and background changes to make the program more appealing to individual students. Users can also move through the program at a desired rate; however, again, it is not easy to go back and forth through screens even though you can easily get back to the main menu and work from that point.
 * With the variety of approaches and advancing levels, the program seems to have good instructional design and pedagogical soundness. The sequence of materials is excellent. It progress from teaching and practicing a concept at basic levels and then builds upon that information and increases difficulty. In addition, the pace of the instruction is good, allowing students to progress at their own level, while having excellent quality of interaction with the material. In addition, through all the activities and layout of the program, it provides good motivation for the students.


 * 5.** **RECORD KEEPING**
 * In order to keep track of student progress, the program has a score tracker for user records on individual computers. In addition, a score tracker can be purchased that allows the teacher to receive and track student records for progress and assessment purposes.


 * 6.** **OVERALL EVALUATION**
 * I think that the Mighty Maestro is an excellent piece of software to develop basic theory skills for students. The software is in a presentable, age-appropriate format that is appealing for students to use. The material builds upon concepts presented, increasing in difficulty and level of concepts as the program proceeds. In addition, there are reviews and exercises to check knowledge of information. Although there are many great features, the program does not provide a great deal of help features or instructions to use the program. In addition, it can be challenging getting to the exact place in the program where you want to be at a certain point in time. Despite the few challenges, I think this program provides an excellent means to present and review basic music theory concepts with late elementary and early middle school aged students in the music class, and it can even be used in performance based classes to help teach and reinforce musical concepts.
 * Rating: +++ (3 out of 4 Stars)


 * 7.** **REVIEWER**
 * Reviewed by Mark Awad (10/31/2009)