The Five Questions You Must Ask When Reviewing Piano Software
You have probably found a number of programs available on the Internet for learning to read music. The main problem is selecting which program will really meet your requirements. The following five questions will help you to investigate any music software to determine if it is right for you.
Question 1: Was the software developed by a genuine software developer?
I have downloaded lots of music programs from the Internet and sadly a few of them were developed by well meaning music teachers who were ‘experimenting ‘ with software development. This can be a recipe for disaster!
Several of the software programs I’ve downloaded constantly crash and many of them simply do not work because the developer has not tested them on different types of computer.
You can usually identify professionally developed software by looking for the following signs:
- The developer’s internet site is clean and professional.
- The site includes testimonials from real customers.
- The site offers a refund guarantee. A good developer will be very happy to stand by their product with a refund guarantee.
- The developer has an email address placed on the site so that you can contact them if you do have
problems
Question 2: Does the software teach or test?
The real problem with note reading software is that many programs simply test what a youngster already knows by illustrating a note and asking the child to name or identify it.
If a child can’t read music, they end up guessing and when they guess wrongly, the programme gives them negative feedback. In the child’s mind this reinforces the notion that they can not read music.
Well designed software on the other hand always gives a student the chance to learn the material in a non-threatening environment before they are tested on their understanding.
Question 3: Does the software offer a series of step by step lessons?
You should generally look for software that’s intuitive to use. Ideally a child should be in a position to use the software by themselves.
The programme should start at the very beginning and steadily take your youngster through a series of easy to follow step-by-step lessons.
Question 4: Is there a clearly defined goal?
Children are incredibly motivated by striving for and achieving rewards and goals. Well designed software makes use of this fact by presenting your child with a sequence of small tasks that lead to the achievement of an overall objective.
For example, they may have to gather a number of keys so as to open a secret door. This sort of approach keeps children coming back for more.
QUESTION 5: Is the program FUN?
Most of the musical drill programs I’ve seen on the Net are remarkably boring!
If a child is going to benefit from a program they need to play it regularly. As usual there are two ways to make a child do this.
There is the Sergeant Major approach of telling them that they have to work on a computer drill for 20 mins.
Or there is the more subtle approach of making the game so enjoyable that kids ask to play it. Using this approach, kids don’t even notice they’re learning.
These are the rules I use when I judge software for use in my music studio. They’re also the rules I used when I designed and developed my own piano software – Piano Is Fun.
If you enjoyed this article on evaluating piano software, and you would like to find out more about Dr. Anthony Fernando’s piano software, just visit his website.