This CD-ROM is your invitation to include your students in an educational experience that they won’t soon forget!

The Music House Museum’s "School Dys" program for 2005 is entitled

"Sound - From Edison to iPod™"
This year’s program will be an exploration of how sound is created, how sound becomes music, and how music has been recreated and recorded over the last hundred years.

The tour will demonstrate the evolution of music-making machines from the late 1800’s through today’s modern digital technology, with plenty of hands-on learning activities.

Bring your class to

SCHOOL DAYS 2005

DATES: April 18 through April 29, Monday through Friday
TIMES: 9 AM, 11 AM, 1 PM
COST: $4 per student. Teachers and chaperones are FREE. Groups of up to 60 students per session will be divided into two groups. Age appropriate.
RESERVATIONS: CALL THE MUSIC HOUSE MUSEUM TODAY — 231-938-9300

PLAN NOW TO ATTEND AS SPACE FILLS QUICKLY!

There is something magical about the instruments on display at the Music House Museum. With the period-inspired settings and the historically accurate restoration of each machine, guests have the opportunity to experience moments in time. Original machines still play the exact same music and style that they were designed for nearly a century ago, and in so doing recreate the experience shared by those who heard them so many years ago.

Electrically driven player pianos, known originally as nickelodeons, started appearing around Chicago and New York in the late 1890’s. Playing out the new American style of music called ragtime, these pianos introduced this new sound to people from all walks of life and in nearly every town.

Instruments like the museum’s Cremona nickelodeon and Seeburg KT evolved with the music of the day.

As music shifted from ragtime to stride then the early forms of jazz, additional sounds and instrumentation were added to give just the right musical effects.

And many of the great technologies rose from mechanical music. A fine example is the Violano-Virtuoso made by the Mills Novelty Company of Chicago.

First introduced at the great 1908 World’s Fair as one of the United States Patent Offices “Eight Greatest Inventions of the Decade,” this musical marvel played both piano and violin from an entirely electrical system of intricate switches and contacts controlled by a thin paper roll.

With the lyrical sounds of the violin, this instrument waxed out the strains of the popular tunes through the first thirty years of the last century, amazing and entertaining all who had the privilege of hearing one of these fascinating machines.

Throughout Europe at the turn of the twentieth century, great public dance halls entertained millions with both live musicians and the great mechanical organs of the day. The company of Theofiel Mortier of Antwerp, Belgium created some of the grandest and most complex mechanical organs of his time. Huge instruments like the “Amaryllis” that once graced the Victoria Palace Ballroom of Ypres roared out the liveliest dance tunes from the classic waltzes to the lively new rumbas, teaching a whole generation the newest styles of dance.

Played alone or with a house orchestra, these machines where constantly supplied with the newest and most exiting new tunes from around the world, allowing many Europeans the chance to hear music from other countries that they may not have heard otherwise.

Organ pipes, percussion and rhythm instruments play automatically from punched cardboard sheets in a similar fashion to the technology that would give rise to the punched card computers at the end of the Second World War.

Curriculum Links:
This activity is useful for history, social studies, and creative writing courses.

National Standards: This activity fulfills several National Standards for History objectives for grades 2-4 including: Civilization, Cultural Diffusion and Innovation; Values, Beliefs, Political Ideas and Institutions; Comparative History of Major Developments; and Patterns of Social and Political Interaction. This activity fulfills several National Standards for History objectives for grades 5-8 including: Civilization, Cultural Diffusion, and Innovation; Human Interaction with the Environment; Values, Beliefs, Political Ideas and Institutions; and Patterns of Political and Social Interaction. It connects with important curricular concepts including family and local history, the changing character of American society and culture, and the gathering of people and cultures from many places.

Students:
Oral history is an important way of learning about the past. People who have lived during important historical events have memories about these events. Most of these memories are not written down in books. But oral history gives you the chance to preserve or save the memories of an older person. The memories may be about their life during World War II or about growing up in the 1920s. Your parents or grandparents might remember when President Kennedy was assassinated, or about the Civil Rights Movement.

Working on the oral history project is like being a reporter. First, you have to decide whom you are going to interview. Grandparents and older people have memories about the past that may surprise you! Your teachers or parents may be able to help you find someone you'd like to interview for this project. You can interview someone with a tape recorder, or simply by taking notes with a pencil and paper. Younger students can write a story about a historical experience or memory or draw a picture of one of the events by the person they interviewed. Older students can use the following guidelines to create their project.

Oral History Guideline
1. Set up a time and place to meet with your interview subject.

2. Know how to use your tape recorder. Practice recording a conversation with a friend or family member so that you’re comfortable with the process. Speaking clearly and precisely helps. Make sure the volume is OK.

3. Write up a list of questions to ask your interview subject concerning their memories of automated music and recordings and how this technology evolved and impacted their lives. Use questions that require more than a “Yes” or “No” answer. Start questions with “When-What-How-Why”.

4. When it is time to interview your subject, make sure you are there promptly. Bring a blank 60 or 90-minute tape. Bring extra batteries. And don’t forget your list of questions.

5. Always treat the person you are interviewing politely and with respect. Speak clearly. Do a practice question to make sure the tape recorder is working.

6. Always start the tape by stating your name, your subject’s name, the time, and the date on the recorder. Don’t forget to label the tape on the outside as well.

7. Understand that your list of questions is a guideline for you to follow. Sometimes the person being interviewed has a special story he or she would like to tell. Ask directly, “Do you have a special story you would like to have recorded? Would you share it with me?” Sometimes these are funny stories, sometimes these are very sad. Be prepared for the unexpected.

8. Keep your recording session to about 30 or 40 minutes. It can be very tiring for you and the person you are interviewing.

9. Make sure you thank your subject when you are finished. Remember that you could not do this project without their cooperation.

Teachers:
You are encouraged to set up classroom time to listen to the recordings and have the students share their experiences with one another. Please contact the Music House Museum to suggest outstanding interviews that would warrant videotaping.

"Excellent. The presenters did a great job of keeping the kids’ attention. It was delightful with lots of educational variety."

"I was very impressed! It was very age appropriate and educational. Students were actively involved and interested."

"Our visit to the Music House Museum was a real highlight. The students learned a great deal about your museum and about the early settlers to our area. The hands-ons experience they had with the miniature city was a lot of fun for them, too. They came back telling everyone what a great time they had."

"It relates to our literature units very well and enhances our music program. Our students were well behaved which tells me they were interested and excited. Excellent!"

"I was so impressed with this program and the organization that took place. Thanks for having us!”

"What a great opportunity to learn about the town we live in. I teach 4th grade Social Studies and the presenters and two hands-on learning programs were fantastic. You made history interesting and real."

"It gave a lot of valuable information about the history of our area. It enhanced what they are learning in music, too. A tremendous amount of auditory and visual information was given in each session."

"The students enjoyed the interactive setting and the chance for cooperative learning. I believe yours goals were met, as well as some Michigan benchmarks and standards."