Musicovery is a Flash-based "web radio" application designed to allow the user to browse a wide variety of musical material categorized by "mood" and "dance" (filterable by genre and decade). Each piece appears as a node in a web, allowing the user to easily find related pieces. The user may link to commercial sites where the music can be legally purchased. Great for "discovery" of unfamiliar styles and building a personal music web (with free account).
Type of Material:
Exploratory tool.
Recommended Uses:
Students may build a personal favorites web. Students may be asked to follow the web beyond their favorites to discover music with which they are unfamiliar. Students may be asked to discuss elements of musical style they discover in the web (i.e., what are the criteria that caused this piece to be classified as it was?). Students may use the history button to generate a listening history which could be submitted as part of an assignment.
Technical Requirements:
Flash
Identify Major Learning Goals:
Students will learn about musical styles. Students will learn about music from a variety of decades.
Target Student Population:
Middle School, High School, University
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:
None.
Content Quality
Rating:
Strengths:
The site employs a wide diversity of musical styles. Content is clearly, accurately, and attractively presented. A history button generates a list of recently visited nodes (a listening history). Five languages are supported, includeing English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish.
Concerns:
Some musical artists seem to be over-represented. Free version uses a lower-bandwidth stream.
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool
Rating:
Strengths:
The site includes no built-in pedagogy, making it highly flexible. The site is extremely engaging. The nodal organization of the content encourages continued exploration.
Concerns:
None.
Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty
Rating:
Strengths:
The site is easy to use: Content is accessed through "point and click" navigation. Interface includes icons and pop-up text-based help.
Concerns:
None.
Other Issues and Comments:
None.
Creative Commons:
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