With GarageBand, you can easily and affordably bring the excitement of digital music and other audio into your classroom. GarageBand is a fun and powerful tool that students can use to create, perform and record original music and podcasts. Students can then add what they create to their projects in all subject areas for a new dimension in learning.

With no musical training, your students can create original music by simply combining a series of pre-recorded musical performances (called Apple Loops). Or, they can plug in their guitar, keyboard or microphone and record their own music — then use the loops to create additional tracks to accompany their recordings. They can use their original score as background for their digital media projects, export their songs to iTunes and create their own music CDs or use them again as Apple Loops. What’s more, students can use GarageBand to easily record podcasts, then add images, special effect sounds and jingles to their recordings. They can then publish their podcasts on a webpage using iWeb and a .Mac* account.

GarageBand student project examples

Students wrote poems about their school and collaborated to compose a new school song.

After researching classical composers, students created jazzed up versions of their musical compositions.

GarageBand promotes student creativity
With GarageBand as part of the iLife suite, students have complete control of their digital projects. They can record their own footage in iMovie HD, use their own digital photos with iPhoto, write their own script, record their own narration and with GarageBand, set the mood, tone and pacing of the production by creating their own movie score. They can even record the audio from an iChat AV audioconference or videoconference for use in a podcast, giving students the opportunity to produce their own interview shows.

Music brings learning to life
The combination of students’ love of music and the ability for music to help students retain information makes GarageBand the perfect addition to any classroom. GarageBand provides an alternative means of expression for students who learn best through spatial, musical or kinesthetic intelligences.

Whether students are using GarageBand in the early grades for real-world application of mathematical concepts of patterns and sequences or in the older grades to set the tone and mood of their poetry, GarageBand provides an easy and affordable way to bring the excitement of digital music into your classroom.

GarageBand enhances music classes
Music teachers are excited about GarageBand because they see it as a simple way to add digital music creation to their music curriculum. They are using GarageBand to teach students how to compose music, compare various music effects, learn musical notation and create accompaniments for their music recordings. Students can easily alter their music — increasing tempo, changing dynamics, shifting pitch, frequency and amplitude and even switching instruments. And the visual interface in GarageBand helps students gain an understanding of how music is organised; for example, students can visually recognise the concept of ostinato in a composition.

Music teachers are also using GarageBand to create their own accompaniments for students to use during their individual practice sessions and find it an effective way for students to analyze their performances. Music students learn the same tools and techniques commonly used by professional songwriters as they use GarageBand to create their original songs.

See how students at Queensborough Community College are using Mac computers and GarageBand to learn skills for success in today’s music industry. Also, see how the Berklee College of Music is using PowerBook computers and GarageBand to prepare students for careers as music professionals.

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*The .Mac service is available to persons age 13 and older. Annual membership fee and Internet access required. Terms and conditions apply.