Computers have fundamentally changed the way music studios work. Auto-tune allows producers to change the pitch of out-of-tune singers, for instance. Thankfully, these advances in digital technology benefit not just musicians, but also children wanting to learn music. Groovy City is one example of a great music program, built on the approach to song creation used by many producers and songwriters today.
Developed by Sibelius Software, Groovy City is a fun program that allows young ones to create songs by placing objects along a timeline. Each object represents a sound, be it a chord, note or percussive hit. Children can also loop sections to make them repeat and set the length of their song.
This approach to composition is at the heart of software-based music production, so the children are learning a method that will transfer, when they get older, to the way professional music workstations operate.
Perhaps most importantly, Groovy City is entertaining and straightforward to use. The sounds are fun, and the animations and interface make creating songs easy. Instead of looking at notes, kids see a character walking through a city and they move little animations to create sounds, notes and rhythms.
My daughter picked up the idea very quickly and was soon making her own songs. She created basic ideas and, as her skills developed, expanded on the songs with new tunes and beats. Apart from a basic introduction to the interface and the occasional hint, she could pick up most of the features by playing around inside the program.
There is also a more serious side to Groovy City, with an explore mode that helps children learn about musical notation and composition. It includes excellent sound libraries for composing in different genres, from urban and hip hop to jazz and classical.
